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| Spotlight on Youth - Feb. 23, 2011 |
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Miami Trace competes in district, state FFA contests
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The agricultural communications contest is a competition in which teams prepare a communications project proposal for their chapter explaining the communications activities planned to publicize an event or issue. This year’s topic was recruitment. The proposal must be very detailed, including rationale for selecting the project, objectives of the project, identification of target audiences, types of media selected to accomplish the project and a budget to produce and place communications materials. When it is completed, each team must present their proposal to a panel of judges as a group.
For the individual portion of the contest, each person on the team is assigned a title as news writer, press release writer, broadcaster or graphic designer. Each must prepare a practicum that focuses on his or her assigned mode of communication.
The five members of Miami Trace’s ag communications team this year were Ben Hisey, Madison Hisey, Charlie Miller, Katie Frost and Hannah Peterson. The team first competed at a district contest at Felicity High School and placed first, which qualified them to go on to the state contest where they placed sixth. This was an excellent ranking, considering the fact that all five members of the team were first-year participants in the ag communications contest. The contest follows the FFA mission statement by making a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education.
Have you ever been frustrated during a meeting that seems to drag on for hours? Often times, meetings are unorganized and chaotic, which can lead to confusion and irritation. Parliamentary Procedure lends the structure necessary to complete business in an efficient manner. The key to Parliamentary Procedure is maintaining the rule of the majority while respecting the rights of the minority. The goal is to allow consideration of all questions of interest to the organization and to make decisions on these questions based upon the sentiments of the assembly. Parliamentary procedure is used in organizations of people to conduct with the least possible hostility in order to conduct a meeting.
The Parliamentary Procedure contest is very popular in FFA chapters across the country. Teams use Robert’s Rules of Order to properly run a business meeting. They are judged on their ability to make convincing and articulate debates, memorize parts, maintain composure, and get through a set agenda by disposing of different motions.
The eight members of the Miami Trace team are: Rachel McClish, Emily Ratliff, Terry Perkins, Sarah Peterson, Daniella Straathof, Landon Gibbs, Tanner Mick, Jamie Payton and alternates Judith Straathof and Jessica Little. The parli-pro team worked hard to earn their spot at the state contest. On Nov. 22, the team placed first out of five teams competing at their sub-district contest. The next week, Miami Trace won the district contest, which qualified them to go on to state. The team placed second in their heat at the state contest on Dec.18.
The team had a successful year and gained a lot of experience that will help them become effective members in business meetings, communicate orally, and promote the flow of group discussion in a democratic manner.
ExplorACES scheduled for March 11 and 12
URBANA, Ill. — ExplorACES is a two-day event designed to introduce high school students and their families to the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
The event is scheduled for Friday, March 11, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturday, March 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Details about ExplorACES can be found at www.aces.illinois.edu/ExplorACES/
The website includes information about exhibits as well as an interactive map to help guide visitors through the buildings and activities and online registration to attend receptions for admitted freshman and others.
The event is also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/ExplorACES, and Twitter at twitter.com/ExplorACES
“Last year more than 2,000 high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors from across the state attended the event,” said Kendra Courson, who one of the event coordinators. “It’s a totally student-run event, so visiting high school students and their families can catch the enthusiasm from current ACES students. This event helps students get a sense of the smaller college atmosphere within the University of Illinois, too.”
This year ExplorACES will include over 100 hands-on exhibits relating to classroom work, club activities, and honors research. Visitors can also tour lab and classroom facilities and have the opportunity to visit with ACES faculty members.
“We are very excited about the 2011 ExplorACES event,” said Cassie Becker, one of the students planning publicity for the event. “The theme this year is about ACES being a kind of college network—playing off Facebook. We want ExplorACES to be a place where prospective and admitted students can come and find how they can get connected to the College of ACES.”
The College of ACES offers 10 undergraduate majors with 39 different concentrations, and ExplorACES helps prospective students get an overview of the potential areas of study, including bioengineering, community development, economics, human nutrition, plant breeding, and pre-veterinary studies. |
| 2/23/2011 |
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