Liberty High School’s Future Farmers of America have been given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to head to the capitol. On January 25th, Mrs.Loring and Mrs. Locuratolo, along with 20 FFA members from 20 other schools in the state, headed down to Richmond to spread awareness about the benefits of agriculture in Virginia. This opportunity came after the state FFA executive director started and pushed to have an FFA.
The FFA students are meeting with Virginia Legislative Senators. The goal is to spread awareness of FFA and advocate it for others. Some of the benefits of having a strong agriculture community in Virginia are having support for each other and agriculture education programs. It is also important to be knowledgeable about where your local food comes from how it’s produced and that it’s safe.
Most Liberty High School students that are going are expecting to have the chance to explain why agriculture education is important and why they should support funding programs. “This event is going to give me the experience to talk in front bigger association,” explained Sophomore Mackenzie Dodd. FFA provides premier leadership career skills for all students to continue in the agriculture industry.“FFA teaches real-world experiences and gives leadership and personal growth,” said Ag teacher, Mrs.Locuratolo.
Despite the muggy weather, Liberty High School students had a successful trip to meet with Delegate Nadarius Clark, Delegate Michael J. Webert, and Dr. Kara Von Dresner De Rothschild. “I could have been more open because of shyness but I opened up at the end of the speech,” said sophomore Sarah Wiles. They talked about water culture as one of the most important aspects of Agriculture and how sometimes it can be detrimental to the land. Norfolk is now the second city that is currently sinking in Virginia. Agriculture is a huge industry made up of many different possible avenues for students looking to get into the business. There are around 300 different careers that are related to agriculture outside of farming. “The Agriculture field trip was a good way to make new friends,” stated sophomore, Garret Owens. “It was a cool experience seeing all those people in their blue suits.”
