By MEGGIE. I. FOSTER
Assistant Editor

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — While modestly, Dr. Larry Case refers to himself as just a good ole’ Missouri farm boy living his dream job in Washington, D.C., more than 500,000 FFA members from across the country look up to him as so much more, including a mentor, an inspiration and above all their National FFA advisor.

FFA members will have the chance to wish him well during the 83rd annual National FFA Convention this year in Indianapolis, Ind., as Case is hanging up his ag education hat after 26 years of dedicated service to the National FFA Organization.

“I’ve told people that I have the best job in the world,” said a reflective Case. “I’ve met some of the brightest young minds in America, seen them grow and become successful – it’s been a real joy.

“This is the job I was meant to do,” he added. “I sure will miss the blue and gold jackets, the state staff, national staff and advisors, but I’m looking forwarding to topping it all off with 54,000 of my closest friends with me at this year’s convention.”

“Words fail to adequately express what Dr. Larry Case has meant to the National FFA Organization and all of agricultural education,” said Dwight Armstrong, National FFA chief operating officer. “For decades, his leadership has paved the way for unprecedented growth in FFA and unprecedented cooperation among other agricultural organizations, industry representatives and the U.S. Departments of Education and Agriculture.”

Case began his lifelong career in agricultural education as a FFA and 4-H member in Stet, Mo. After high school, he attended the University of Missouri-Columbia and majored in agricultural engineering. He credits his eventual major change to his FFA Advisor Kenneth Nofftz and C.V. Roderick, an agricultural education professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

“I started out in ag engineering and my grades were terrible and I didn’t have the support from my advisor that I needed,” he said. “I went home for the parents-son banquet at my high school and C.V. Roderick was the guest speaker.”

That evening, Roderick and Nofftz both encouraged the shy, young farm boy to reconsider ag education as a major. And Case did just that – when he visited Roderick’s office in Columbia, he changed his major that very day.

“And the rest, they say, is history,” quipped Case.

Case went on to receive his bachelor’s in agricultural education, master’s in vocational education and a doctorate in education from the University of Missouri. He began his career as a vocational ag teacher at a local high school and rapidly began assuming greater administrative responsibilities for vocational and agricultural education at the district and state levels, including serving as the Missouri director of agricultural education for seven years.

Along the way, Case made a very important connection with Raymond D. Hagan, the executive secretary of the Missouri Department of Education.

“He basically coached me through my career,” said Case. “He kept saying to keep my eyes open for the next opportunity.”

When it came to the job opening in Washington D.C. with the U.S. Department of Education as the National FFA Advisor in 1984, Hagan strongly urged the Missouri farm boy to put his name in the running.

“Forty-three others applied for the position at that time, I was fortunate in landing the job,” Case said. “I’ve had a tremendous career all the way around.”

In addition to National FFA advisor, Case has served as the chief administrator and chairman of the board of directors for the National Future Farmers of America Organization (FFA) during his tenure.

“Dr Case has touched the lives of thousands of young people and adults, particularly in rural schools and communities during his career,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

“I want to thank him for his service and contributions to agricultural education as a teacher, federal employee and a leader within FFA, and I wish him well in retirement.”

Looking back, Case speaks fondly of his experience with the National FFA Officer teams of years past, as well as the opportunities to meet past U.S. presidents including Presidents Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George H. Bush and George W. Bush. Additionally, during the Georgia FFA Association’s 75th anniversary banquet, Case had the pleasure of being seated right next to President Jimmy Carter, a former FFA member and advocate of agricultural education.

But beyond all of the celebrity encounters and trips to beautiful areas of the world, Case is most proud of the growth in membership to the FFA Organization, although he respectfully declined to take credit for the accomplishment.

“I don’t know the amount of influence I’ve had on this, but the crowning achievement for me would be the all-time record membership at 523,300 plus members,” he said. “The last record for the organization was in 1977 with over 509,000 members. While this may not seem like much, it really is a big win in ag education.”
To explain why growth in membership is so important for ag education, Case spoke candidly about the historical influence of production agriculture in the 1970s on the FFA Organization.
“Farmers were plowing fencerow to fencerow, ag was really good at that time and guys were buying land up at every opportunity,” Case recalled. “More new carpet went into farmhouses during that time than ever before.”

Until the pendulum dropped on agriculture. In the 1980s, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates to 13-20 percent and agriculture went into a downward tailspin, Case explained.
“This all caused a tremendous drop in FFA membership, it was at its lowest ever at 382,000,” he said. “The FFA Organization was not in great financial health at this time either.”

And in 1984, Case walked into the office of his new job in Washington, D.C. and into an organization that was suffering to stay relevant. “When I started, FFA and agricultural education were going out of business,” he said. “I knew I had to help change the direction of agricultural education and the organization at that time.”

So Case took up the reins of the organization and helped to adjust the focus from strictly production agriculture to include applied science, business and technology content. In 1988, the organization underwent several constitutional changes, including changing the name of the youth organization from the Future Farmers of America to The FFA Organization.

“We wanted to say that we’re more than farming – we had to think differently – go broader and begin to change the technical content of the program to teach applied science that included a broader food system approach,” Case explained. “We tried, attempted and accomplished those changes in FFA programs. In today’s world, we try to be purposeful in truth and spirit and include science and math in a successful educational curriculum.”

Beginning in the 1980s, the FFA Organization began recognizing the top ag science student and ag science teacher. Today, the FFA Organization offers one of the most competitive science fair competitions in the country – the National Ag Science Fair and recognizes the top students in agriscience through the Star in Agriscience award at state and national levels.