The Upper Valley Career Center FFA is reflecting on the conclusion of a very successful year. Among other accomplishments, the chapter placed in the top five at the state level in nine Career Development Events (CDEs).
CDEs are developed by the FFA to demonstrate the meaningful connections between classroom instruction and real-life scenarios. These events help prepare students for careers in agriculture and life after their formal education.
“In a year where virtual contests were the only option, these FFA members rose above and put forth incredible effort,” said Michelle Brunson Supervisor of FFA programs and now Executive Director at UVCC. “Of the nine, top-five state finishes during the 2020-21 school year, six of those were from the Ag and Power Technologies program. That says something special about that program and those students.”
“The Veterinary Science students have been on a mission to win the Vet Science CDE over the past few years, and this year they did it!” said Brunson. They will compete at the national contest in October to continue their quest.
“The students have worked hard this year and although they could have said they were not going to compete because it was virtual, they chose to persevere and work hard and it paid off in a big way,” said Brunson.
Ag Mechanic Skills CDE
First Place: Austin Bollheimer, Sam Smith, and Ethan Austin
Third Place: Kyle Low, Noah Baker, and Austin Bollheimer
Outdoor Power Equipment CDE
First Place: Austin Bollheimer, Ethan Austin, and Sam Smith
Third Place: Austin Bollheimer, Noah Baker, and Bradyn Renner
Ag Power Diagnostics CDE
Fourth Place - Austin Bollheimer and Brandon Jones
Ag Tech and Mechanical CDE
Fourth Place - Joe Cusick, Sam Smith, Kyle Low, and Austin Meyer
Dairy Cattle Judging CDE
Third Place - Emma Pax, Hannah Lear, Isabella Saunders, and Jessica Hahn
Veterinary Science CDE
First Place - Brenna Shonk, Kiersten Bowser, Sydney Meyer, and Abby Fraley
Third Place - Emmaley Cisco, Elliana Dierkes, and Carley Marple
The One and Only Livestock Judging Contest
Sydney Meyer placed as the first overall individual
State Degrees
UVCC FFA also had twelve individuals earn their State Degrees - Belle Brautigam, Blake Griewe, Carson Regula, Casey Delaet, Clayton Schafer, Elizabeth Shatto, Emma Pax, Kaitlyn Wells, Nathanial Eichelberger, Olivia Walker, Shae Gordon, and Trevor Thompson.
American Degrees
Lastly, it is a great honor to announce that two UVCC alumni received their American Degrees. “As the highest degree achievable in the National FFA Organization, the American FFA Degree shows an FFA member’s dedication to his or her chapter and state FFA association. It demonstrates the effort FFA members apply toward their supervised agricultural experience and the outstanding leadership abilities and community involvement they exhibited through their FFA career. American FFA Degree recipients show promise for the future and have gone above and beyond to achieve excellence.” Andy Holscher and Ashley Renner will be recognized for their outstanding accomplishments at the National FFA Convention in October of 2021.
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