Ellie Maughan was born deaf, but she has never allowed it to slow her down. The Spanish Fork, Utah, FFA member joined FFA in eighth grade, and in high school, she took on the challenge of participating in FFA Creed Speaking Leadership Development Event (LDE). In 2022, Maughan defied the odds when she won first place at the Utah FFA Extemporaneous Public Speaking LDE.
“I was born profoundly deaf in both ears, and I have bilateral cochlear implants,” says Maughan, now 18. “I was able to get my right cochlear implant at age 1, and my left cochlear implant when I was 8. I started my education at the school for the deaf and blind, and after first grade, I was able to switch to mainstream public school.”
Maughan received speech therapy from second grade through fifth grade.
“Even after all that time spent, I still have a deaf accent,” she says. “But being deaf has instilled confidence in me because I have to advocate for myself in many situations and learn to be comfortable with being different.”
Maughan first competed in FFA Creed Speaking her freshman year. She felt comfortable doing it as long as she had a script she could memorize.
“One day I came into my agriculture class and my advisor, Kaylee Liddiard, gave me a look everyone knows means she has an idea you might hate,” Maughan says. “She told me about the Extemporaneous Public Speaking LDE contest in Heber, Utah. At first, I protested and said I knew nothing about public speaking. She told me I would be fine, and next thing I knew I was in front of a panel of judges giving a speech.”
To her surprise, Maughan won the regional contest and went on to compete at the state contest.
“Ever since then, I’ve been in love with public speaking,” she says.
In March 2022, Maughan impressed the judges again, winning first place at the state level. To prepare, she did frequent research on the latest news in the agriculture industry so she would have examples to refer to in her speeches. She practiced in front of her peers several times and asked them for constructive criticism.
“I’m very grateful for this win because there was a lot of work behind it,” Maughan says. “I could not have done it without my advisors, peers and my parents.”
FFA has helped Maughan realize that sometimes the best way to overcome fears is to dive headfirst into the challenge.
“The confidence I gained through my public speaking experience has spread to multiple areas of my life, because I know I can do challenging things,” she says. “Through FFA, I have gained a supportive team that is constantly rooting for me and will be happy for me, no matter the outcome.”
Maughan will attend Utah State University in fall 2022 and plans to major in animal, dairy and veterinary sciences.
