by Gwen Pearson
On April 21 the FFA students at PCM High School made their annual visit to the State FFA
convention. The convention took place at Hilton Coliseum in Ames. Two of the 148 PCM FFA members received the FFA for Iowa Degree, which is the highest award an FFA member can acquire within the State of Iowa. Senior Tyler Townsend and 2014 graduate Whitney Figland, who can compete at a high school level until she is 21, were the recipients of the award.
“The State FFA Convention is a great way for students to showcase their accomplishments throughout the year. I am very proud of how our students represented our chapter at State Convention and throughout the year,” Agriculture Teacher and FFA Leader Nichole Gent said.
The State FFA convention is for all the members of FFA to gather and compete in activities, and, at the end of it, the members could possibly receive the FFA for Iowa Degree if they met all the requirements.
“It’s quite the honor to be able to receive this award, seeing as it’s the highest you can get in the State of Iowa and not everyone in FFA is eligible; since there are certain requirements that you must meet to become eligible.” Townsend said.
A lot of effort is put into the application to try for the award. The FFA for Iowa Degree States that you’ve spent $1,800 invested in their chosen project or a thousand unpaid hours. Townsend and Figland had to meet other requirements in order to be eligible for the award. They had to fill out at least three years of paperwork and have enough involvement, both at the community level and the State level. Both recipients were the only two who tried for the award from PCM as well.
“I was very happy to receive the Iowa Degree,” Figland said. “I received this Degree from my four-year sheep SAE [supervised agricultural experience] project for FFA. My hard work has allowed me to get my Iowa Degree and American Degree this fall.”
The American Degree is awarded to members who have demonstrated the highest level of commitment to FFA and made significant accomplishments in their SAEs.
