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FFA is challenging the future, and challenged by the present

The annual fall migration has begun. Blue and gold jackets being worn by more than 50,000 high school students from across the nation are in Indianapolis this week for the National FFA Convention. Billed as the largest youth convention in the nation, this four-day event is a life-changing experience for many. The theme of this year’s event is Lead Out Loud. If there are two things FFA young people are good at, it is leading and being loud.

Leadership is a major part of the convention, and leadership by the next generation will be needed as agriculture and rural communities face a challenging future. The FFA, however, is facing some challenges today as our society, economy and ag industry are changing in ways that will force FFA to make changes in some of their most cherished traditions.

The FFA was founded in 1928 as the Future Farmers of America. It was strictly about agriculture and strictly for males. Forty years ago young women were admitted to the organization; and, in the mid-1980s, the name was changed to FFA, to reflect the growing involvement of non-farm youth in the organization.

Today, 41 percent of the membership is female with more than 50 percent of state leadership positions being held by young women. According to the FFA website, only 20 percent of FFA members come from farming areas, while 39 percent come from non-farm backgrounds. Students from urban areas account for 34 percent of FFA members.

While the organization has done a good job of assimilating farm, non-farm, and urban members, there are some other areas that present some serious challenges.

According to FFA’s own figures only 4 percent of FFA members are African American. This is understandable since FFA chapters are tied to vocational education departments at local high schools. These programs are common in rural areas but almost nonexistent in urban areas where the population of African American students is higher.

Yet, FFA’s overwhelming Caucasian make up (77 percent) is an issue the organization needs to face. Another segment of the population that is severely under-represented in the FFA is homeschooled students. According to the U.S. Department of Education, in 2007 there were 1.5 million U.S. students who were home educated. With the ties that FFA has to the DOE and state departments of education, reaching out to homeschoolers may be politically sensitive. Yet, homeschoolers represent a group of students with much to contribute to FFA.

With the kind of changes that are taking place in American education and social stratification, the FFA organization will need to find ways to reach out to other segments of the population and become a far more inclusive group. The innovation that will drive the future of agricultural and the leadership that will determine the direction of our communities need to come from a diverse group of students from all segments of our nation. In addition, the agribusinesses that heavily recruit FFA members need a diverse and racially proportioned workforce.

This week some of the most talented youth in America will Lead Out Loud at the National FFA Convention. They have the ability to lead the agricultural industry into a challenging future. They also have the opportunity to lead their organization into a bright and dynamic future.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Gary Truitt may write to him in care of this publication.

10/21/2009