Falkville wins Forestry Awards at national event
Members of the Falkville FFA Chapter in Alabama competed in the National FFA Forestry Career Development Event in October. The event was held in conjunction with the 88th National FFA Convention & Expo in Louisville, Ky.
Prior to competing in the national event, the team competed in the Alabama FFA State Forestry Contest this past June. The state contest was held in Auburn as part of the 87th Alabama State FFA Convention. Overall, the team won first place, which allowed them the opportunity to represent the state of Alabama at the national event. Bryan Holmes was the individual high scorer of the entire state contest.
The team, led by advisor Ashley Holmes, was awarded a Silver emblem at the National FFA Forestry Career Development Event. Shane Bryan, their former FFA Advisor also assisted with training and preparing the team. In addition to competing as a team, members also competed for individual awards with 150 other participants. Bryan Holmes, Cole Asherbranner and Logan Byrd each received a Silver emblem individually, and Lucas Townsend received a Bronze emblem individually.
The National FFA Forestry CDE is a competitive event that tests students’ skills and knowledge in the area of forest management. Event components include a general forest knowledge exam, tree identification, timber cruising, tree/forest disorders identification, a chainsaw practicum, forestry issues interview, and a team activity. Each team competed at local and state levels for the privilege of representing their state at the National FFA Convention & Expo.
This event, held at Bernheim Forest in Clermont, Ky., is one of many educational activities at the national convention in which FFA members apply classroom knowledge to real-life situations. The cash awards and the forestry event are sponsored by Husqvarna and John Deere as a special project of the National FFA Foundation and the National FFA Organization.
The National FFA Organization is a national youth organization of 629,367 student members as part of 7,757 local FFA chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The FFA mission is to make a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. The National FFA Organization operates under a federal charter granted by the 81st United States Congress and it is an integral part of public instruction in agriculture. The U.S. Department of Education provides leadership and helps set direction for FFA as a service to state and local agricultural education programs.