Many Delawareans who participated in the 97th 97th National FFA Convention say the experience helped them grow in various ways.
DOVER – A junior at Delaware State University who represents Delaware as the state’s national officer candidate believes his participation with the Future Farmers of America (FFA) made him the leader he is today.
“I am, and forever will be, an advocate for the FFA, and the person I am is because of the people in this organization who have given their time, talents, and resources to make me a better leader,” said Noah Dixon, who represented the more than 5,000 members of the Delaware FFA Association during the 97th National FFA Convention last month.
State FFA officers lead their state association’s membership and participate in local, district, state, and national activities, and are elected by delegates at their state FFA convention.
Noah Dixon
The lessons and skills from the FFA have helped Dixon find ways to serve in his church and local community.
During the convention and expo, which took place in Indianapolis, Delaware FFA members competed in 26 career and leadership development events as well as the Agriscience Fair.
The Delaware FFA Chapters in attendance were from Appoquinimink, Caesar Rodney, Indian River, Lake Forest, Laurel, Laurel Middle, Middletown, Milford, Odessa, Smyrna, Smyrna Middle, Sussex Central, Millsboro Middle, William Penn, and Woodbridge.
“This experience provided me with a great sense of joy and humility,” said Dixon, who joined FFA when he was in sixth grade.
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He said his role as the national officer candidate was the culmination of all the hours of hard work, studying, connecting, and inspiration that filled those nine years.
“Making it to the national level is honestly an experience like no other,” said Aria Boyton, a senior at Milford High School. “The months we spent practicing, stressing, and meeting new people grew our knowledge on the topic of avian influenza, but we also developed good public speaking skills that some of us might not have otherwise.”
She highlighted her opportunity to speak to experts on these issues, such as the Delaware Department of Agriculture, Delmarva Chicken Association, Perdue, Delaware Farm Bureau, and University of Delaware Cooperative Extension.
“They gave us information and helpful feedback, which we ended up applying to our presentation,” she said. “This process was interesting because I got to learn about avian influenza, which, prior to this, I knew nothing about, but I was able to apply the knowledge that I have learned in my previous AP Biology class and AP Environmental Science class to this topic.”
She researched the ways the disease was spread and prevented, created, and made presentations and answered on-the-spot questions about avian influenza.
“I guess you could say that by the end of nationals, we became ‘experts’,” she said.
Five Delaware FFA members also participated in the National Band, National Chorus, and the National Talent Competition:
- Elora Kline from Lake Forest – National Chorus
- Taylor Wallace from Smyrna – National Talent
- Jake Novak from Lake Forest – National Band
- Maria Gutierrez Carcamo from Sussex Central – National Band
- Sam Trusty from Sussex Central – National Band
During the week leading up to the national convention, Dixon, along with 37 other individuals from across the country, went through the selection process to become the national officer.
National officer candidates are always college students.
Dixon made it through to the second round. Six of the state’s national officer candidates are selected to serve as national officers, including a president, a secretary, a central region vice president, an eastern region vice president, a western region vice president, and a southern region vice president.
The primary responsibility of a national officer is to serve the organization in local, state, national and international activities in a way that will inform, motivate and inspire FFA members, advisors, state staff, teachers and others to achieve the mission, strategies, and core goals of the organization.
A student can be an FFA member for four conventions following high school graduation.
Most of the national officer candidates have served as a state FFA officer first, and most state FFA officers are high school graduates.
“The experience included hours of interviewing, delivering speeches and workshops, and interacting with a nominating committee composed of nine of the most tenured FFA members across the country,” Dixon said. “This process took place over a week and tested our ability to communicate, influence, work as a team, express their character, and demonstrate areas of knowledge in agriculture and education.”
“Although the process is strenuous, he said it is revealing of who you are, empowering for your future, and a great opportunity to make many new friends,” he said. “Serving as Delaware’s NOC was representative of all of those who fed into me and gave me the chance to experience things I thought impossible.”
Delaware FFA is a leading Career and Technical Student Organization for students pursuing careers in agriculture, food, natural resources, and other related career fields.
Kalena Diaz, a senior at Odessa High School and a member of the 4th place national team in the Agronomy Career Development event, said the award symbolizes all the hard work her team has put in over the past six months.
“Beyond the competition, it was an opportunity to grow—as an agriculturalist, a student, and an individual,” she said.
The event offered countless chances to build meaningful connections and to appreciate the little moments along the way, she said.
“Whether competing, exploring the Expo Center and Career Fair, or simply meeting other members in the sea of blue jackets, there was always something unique to experience,” she said.
It was a celebration of growth, learning, and the shared passion for agriculture, she said.
“No matter what career path I pursue, I will utilize my experiences from the FFA to become more successful and serve others,” Dixon said.
Raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Jarek earned a B.A. in journalism and a B.A. in political science from Temple University in 2021. After running CNN’s Michael Smerconish’s YouTube channel, Jarek became a reporter for the Bucks County Herald before joining Delaware LIVE News.
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