by Annabelle Betcher
Our Geneseo FFA chapter has had so many events this month it feels like March Madness!
District 1 Proficiencies
It may be called proficiencies, but our members were WAY beyond proficient! Students who competed in districts first had to advance past the section contest. Competitors received scores based on the points they earned on their record book rubric added to the points they received during their interview about their record book, and they compete in specific areas relative to what their record book is about. Congratulations to the dedicated members who competed at districts including Maycie Simms, Faith Kuster, and Peyton Kies, and to those who advanced onto State Awards Day including Jackson Frank, Kolby Causemaker, Dawsyn McDonald, and Jacey Gehl!
State Awards Day
After their excellent performance at district proficiencies, Jackson, Jacey, Kolby, and Dawsyn headed to Mt. Zion to showcase their record books scored by a new set of judges one more time. Our members exhibit consistent effort into their passions, and this contest is no exception. Jacey Gehl was a state finalist in the division of specialty crop production placement, Jackson Frank was a state runner up in the division of Vegetable Production Placement, Dawsyn McDonald was a state runner up in the division of Equine Science Placement, and Kolby Causemaker was named STATE CHAMPION in Swine Production Entrepreneurship. That’s some mega piggy power! Massive congratulations to these students who represented the level of excellence our Geneseo FFA Chapter pushes members towards.
BASF Event on March 5th
Big Awesome Stupendous Farming? Not quite what BASF stands for…It is a chemical company originating in Germany that stands for Badische Anilin- und Sodafabrik. BASF works for me! Our members had the privilege to volunteer at BASF’s event at the Davenport River Center. They had the opportunity to listen to presentations that enlightened them on BASF’s role as a major player that focuses on crop protection such as herbicides, insecticides, fungicides. Our members enjoyed listening to presentations by field experts from multiple pathways, such as a talk on beneficial ways to use A.I., as well as introductions to BASF’s new fungicide, Zorina. They helped serve lunch, sold John Deere Gator Raffle tickets throughout the day, and later on in the evening, tore up the dance floor at BASF’s dinner gala. O.D. (Official Dress) does not mean Obstacle to Dancing.
Officer Interviews/Elections
On March 11th, members from our Geneseo FFA Chapter were individually interviewed by a panel of judges. Our chapter appreciates how willing members of our community are to volunteer their time towards FFA events, and thank you to all those who helped! Before qualifying for the interview process, students first had to complete an extensive application, receive 2 teacher recommendations, and create an FFA resume. Members were asked a series of questions by the judges. This experience helps prepare students for future career interviews by asking universal questions such as, “What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses?” Students also encountered more FFA-specific questions, such as, “How will you, being elected as an officer, improve this chapter?”
After a select number of students were chosen to move on from the interview process based on their scores, all candidates were required to give speeches in front of chapter members at a special chapter meeting on March 23rd. Candidates were allowed to select which positions they desired to run for, and could give up to a 90 second speech for their first desired position, and a 30 second speech for any position after that. All members present–excluding those who ran for the position being voted on–immediately voted after all speeches were given for one position. When no one candidate received a majority vote, parliamentary procedure was utilized to exclude the bottom candidates and only vote between the top 2 candidates. The popular vote score was added to the candidates interview score to determine a winner. We are so proud of all our members who developed career skills by running, and congratulations to our outstanding new officer team:
President - Annabelle Betcher
Vice President of Growing Leaders - Kolby Causemaker
Vice President of Strengthening Agriculture - Jacey Gehl
Vice President of Building Communities - Jackson Frank
Reporter - Emilie DeCastecker
Secretary - Hannah Wildemuth
Treasurer - Maycie Sims
Sentinel - Kaylin Heller
Section 3 Livestock Eval - What do you call a cow with no legs…ground beef!
On March 14th our members including Henry Dwyer - 1st in Section 3 Greenhand Reasons, Jackson Frank - 2nd in Section 3 Varsity Questions, Hannah Wildemuth - 12th in Section 3 Varsity Questions, and Kaylin Heller - 14th in Section 3 Varsity Questions, attended the Henry County Havoc Livestock Evaluation contest hosted by the Cambridge FFA Chapter. These students evaluated multiple species such as hogs, cattle, and sheep throughout the day, so this contest highlights the importance of expanding your knowledge because you can’t only appreciate and understand the quality standards of your favorite type of livestock. Kudos to these members for appreciating and understanding the livestock before they are a juicy burger or slab of bacon, and congratulations for their excellent performance at section!
Section 3 Parliamentary Procedure - What the heck is that?
Even though the word parliamentary procedure may not be one everyone is familiar with, it is used more often than you might expect. Parli pro is the most efficient way to run a meeting, so it’s often witnessed at school board, city council, or township meetings for example. It is typical for it to begin with calling the meeting room to order, making a main motion that requires a second, and is followed by debate. Our members familiarize themselves with all motions existent in parli pro so they are prepared to present an 11 minute meeting. Each floormember has to use a motion they assigned when they walk in the door, as well as determine 2 other motions and 3 unique but relevant discussions in order to achieve maximum points. They are also tested on their knowledge of motions such as what percent vote a motion needs or order of precedence of votes with a written test, as well as asked specific verbal questions on their randomly assigned motion. This year's team that competed on March 18th was comprised of:
Chairperson: Hannah Wildemouth - 2nd Place Chairperson in Section 3
Floormember 1: Dawsyn McDonald - 1st Place Floormember Section 3
Floormember 2: Annabelle Betcher - 2nd Place Floormember Section 3
Floormember 3: Jackson Frank - 5th Place Floormember Section 3
Floormember 4: Jacey Gehl - Floormember Section 3
Floormember 5: Ella Schaaf - 8th Place Floormember Section 3
These members' wonderful performance secured them a place at districts for parliamentary procedure, where they will compete in April to attempt to advance to state!
Section 3 Conduct of Chapter Meetings
Conduct is a competition exclusive to Freshmen in FFA. It has a similar foundation to parli pro involving motions, but conduct requires the memorization of a specific role. Each student who participates has an assigned position that they compete in as they run a chapter meeting at the competition. Congratulations to our members who dedicated their time to learning their parts, placed 2nd at section, and are advancing to districts! Participants include:
President: Faith Kuster
Vice President: Ashlynn Chamberlain - 3rd
Secretary: Delaney Killian - 4th
Advisor: Henry Dwyer - 6th
Treasurer: Lili Marshall - 9th
Sentinel: Molly Wannemacher - 10th
Step Into Safety
On March 25th, our Geneseo FFA chapter boogied on over to Cambridge High School to co-host a very successful line dancing/safety event with Cambridge FFA. Geneseo Officers partnered with Cambridge officers to lead 12 different line dances on stage while people in attendance could join right in. During dance breaks, students were able to visit the different booths stationed around the gym that those who help keep us safe set up such as the Cambridge and Bishop Hill Fire Departments, Henry County Sheriff's Department, Grain Elevator Rescue Experts, and Gray Matters. At these stations students were able to learn safety awareness tips from the experts themselves (though they didn’t warn us of the danger of two left feet at line dancing), and we greatly appreciate them volunteering their time to educate us!