The Washington-Wilkes FFA Chapter will be celebrating National FFA Week February 27- March 2, 2012. National FFA Week is designed to celebrate the impact that FFA has on local chapter members and the community. FFA is an integral part of the complete Agricultural Education program. Students who are in agricultural education classes are encouraged to become an active part of FFA in order to gain the most benefit from this area of education. Students who are involved in FFA are more likely to have confidence in themselves. Many former Washington-Wilkes students who were involved in FFA are now local business owners and operators.

Students have many activities which build a confident personality. Students have the opportunity to compete in Career Development Events such as: Prepared and Extemporaneous Public Speaking, Job Interview, Floral Design, Agricultural Mechanics (welding, electrical wiring, small engines), Forestry Field Day, Livestock Judging, Wildlife Management, Poultry Judging, Tractor Operation, and Lawnmower Operation.

Every student enrolled in an Agricultural Education class is required to have a Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) project. These projects include a range of various activities such as vegetable production, animal production, picking up and selling pecans, selling firewood, floriculture, and many other areas. Students design the projects around their personal interests. The purpose of SAE projects is to give students an opportunity to learn business practices such as record keeping and to use classroom knowledge in a real world setting. Many FFA members across the United States turn their SAEs into successful lifetime businesses.

Additionally, students can participate in traveling across the state and nationally for State and National FFA Convention, livestock shows, Summer Leadership Camp, and Washington Leadership Conference. Locally, our members are provided with fun competitions such as archery, skeet shooting, big buck contest, big turkey contest, and Adopt-A-Highway. This year, ten students attended the National FFA Convention. The chapter will be taking twenty students to the Georgia State Convention in April. Summer Leadership camp will be coming up in the early summer when our students will be involved with many fun activities and competitions with other students from across the state. The camp is always filled to capacity each week with over five hundred students.

Each spring an officer team is elected to run the monthly meetings and plan the other chapter activities for the upcoming year. This year’s officers are: Juanita Moran (President), Emily Tanner (V. Pres.), Dennis Hagan (Secretary), Marlyse Sifre (Reporter), Tiffany Roberson (Treasurer), Erika Scott (Sentinel), and Josh McLeroy (Student Advisor).

Many scholarships are available each year for those students who are very active in the local chapter. Every scholarship is based on the student’s SAE, community service, FFA leadership activities, and academic record. Our students are encouraged to participate as much as possible throughout their high school career.

The AgEd Department teaches several classes each year which fit the needs of the community. The courses offered at Washington-Wilkes include: Forestry, Animal Science, Agriscience, Construction, Power and Machinery, Ag Mechanics I (small engines), Ag Mechanics II (Welding), Metal Fabrication, Electrical Wiring, Plant Science, and Wildlife Management. The Advisors are Mr. Nathan Heaton, Mr. Adam Wood, and Mr. Eric Holton.

The advisors and students would like to thank all individuals and businesses who have supported us throughout the year during fundraisers and through scholarships. Anyone interested in learning more about the Washington-Wilkes FFA program may contact one of the advisors at 706- 678-2426.