Minutes of the 87th Arkansas FFA State Convention
June 4-6, 2014
During the 1st General Session held at 1:30 p.m. the following business was conducted:
· Dedication of Convention to Arkansas Ag Teachers.
· Posting of the Colors by the Malvern High School JROTC.
· Invocation presented by Dausen Duncan, 2012-13 State President.
· National Chapter Awards presented.
· Models of Excellence Finalists presented:
o Silver: Ozark, Oark and Cedarville
o Gold: County Line (1st Place), Lamar (2nd Place), Centerpoint (3rd Place), Mountain Home, Paris and Springdale HarBer
· Sunni Wise presented her Retiring Address.
· State Officer Candidates were introduced.
· During the Business Session, the minutes of the 86th State Convention were approved with a motion by Michaela Moder of Bismarck
· The Nominating Committee chair, Anna Grace Duggan of Centerpoint, read their nominated slate as follows:
o President: Bryce Rohr
o Secretary: Becca Burrow
o Reporter: Matthew Smith
o Eastern VP: Morgan Faulkner
o Northwest VP: Mark Dement
o Southern VP: Tabitha Hudspeth
During the 2nd General Session held at 6:30 p.m. the following business was conducted:
· Leadership CDE Awards were presented to the following winners:
o Prepared Speaking: Brian Hale, Lamar
o Extemporaneous Speaking: Dustin Jones, Bergman
o Parliamentary Procedure: Newport
o Opening Ceremonies: Clinton
o Creed Speaking: Noah Davis, Lake Hamilton
o Discussion Meet: Abby Ratton, Newport
· Glen Manchester of Farm Credit Services of Western Arkansas brought greetings.
· Mr. Davis Hays, AVATA President brought greetings and presented 13 AVATA scholarships. Troy Weatherley was recognized as the NAAE, Oustanding Young Teacher and Nicole Beirne as Teacher Turn the Key Award.
· Fletcher Family Memorial Scholarship was presented to Summer Nelson of Arkansas Tech University.
· Affiliated Chapters were recognized.
· Wes Davis, National Eastern Region Vice President delivered a keynote address.
· Certificates were presented to the chapters that participated in the Ag In Action Center.
· Wynne FFA Chapter was recognized as the Top Chapter for Ag In Action.
· Kyler Martin of Emerson was recognized as the Top Hand for Ag In Action.
· Plaques were presented to the State Winning CDE Teams.
o Ag Communications: Mountain Home
o Ag Mechanics: Greenbrier
o Agronomy: Clinton
o Electricity: Vilonia
o Environmental Natural Resources: Paris
o Farm Business Management: Harrison
o Floriculture: Rose Bud
o Food Science: Lake Hamilton
o Forestry: Cossatot River
o Horse: Springdale HarBer
o Land: Caddo Hills
o Livestock: Southside Batesville
o Meats: Springdale HarBer
o Milk Quality and Products: Greenbrier
o Nursery/Landscape: Emerson
o Poultry: Lincoln
o Veterinary Science: Mountain Home
· Agriscience Fair Awards Presented.
o Division 1 Winners: Addison Shields of Alpena
o Division 2 Winners: Ashley Cabe of Alpena
o Division 3 Winners: Tanner Mote and Hoppy Hoffman of Valley View
o Division 4 Winners: Katie and Will Welch of Alpena
o Overall Winners: Katie and Will Welch of Alpena
· Megan McMahen presented her retiring address.
During the 3rd General Session at 9:30 a.m. the following business was conducted:
· Proficiency Awards were presented to the following:
· In the area of Ag Education:
§ Macie Kelley of Mountain Home, Bronze
§ Kirsten Crabtree of Ozark, Bronze
§ And Mark Dement of Paris, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Ag Mechanics Repair and Maintenance:
§ Patrick Morris of Mountain Home, Bronze
§ And Madison Nichols of Augusta, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Beef Production:
§ Keith Petty of Mountain Home, Silver
§ Austin Wachtel of Mountain Home, Silver
§ Bryce Rohr of Mountain Home, Silver
§ Zac Norwood of Mountain Home, Gold
§ And Tiffany Johns of Mountain Home, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Diversified Agriculture Production:
§ Zach Martin of Mountain Home, Silver
§ And James Daniel Brown of Mountain Home, Silver
· In the area of Diversified Livestock Production:
§ Jessica Barnett of Ozark, Bronze
§ Carson White of Mountain Home, Gold
§ And Becca Burrow of Brinkley, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Forest Management:
§ Austin Shourd of Searcy, Bronze
§ And Pake Sutton of Centerpoint, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Goat Production:
§ Jacob Settles of Mountain Home, Silver
§ And Morgan Taylor of Bismarck, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Home and Community Development:
§ Levi Jones of Glen Rose, Bronze
§ And Dustin Patterson of Ozark, Silver
· In the area of Landscape Management:
§ Destin Kuykendall of County Line, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Nursery Operations:
§ Destiny Watkins of Springdale HarBer, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Poultry Production:
§ Cole Umberson of Lincoln, Silver
§ Courtney Crawford of Mountain Home, Gold
§ And Abigail Sanders of Oark, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Sheep Production:
§ Michaela Moder of Bismarck, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Small Animal Production:
§ Bodie Cotter of Mountain Home, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Swine Production, Entrepreneurship:
§ Hunter McClellan of Hackett, Silver
· In the area of Swine Production, Placement:
§ James Dement of Paris, 1st Place Gold
· In the area of Veterinary Science:
§ Logan Armstrong of Mountain Home, Gold
§ Carley Allen of Oark, 1st Place Gold
· And in the area of Wildlife Management:
§ Brett Brewer of Mountain Home, 1st Place Gold
· Mr. Rodney Baker of Arkansas Farm Bureau brought greetings.
· Brian Hale, state winning prepared speaker presented speech.
· Sheila Peirson of Tyson Foods presented Poultry Media Awards to the following winners:
o Springdale HarBer, 1st place
o Lincoln, 2nd place
o County Line, 3rd place
· Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board presented scholarships to the following students:
o Sam Burchfield, Sara Wright and Dannah Norris
· Recognition of National FFA Scholarship Recipients:
o Receiving an Animal Health International Scholarship, Taylor Canamore of Greene County Tech
o Receiving an Archer Daniels Midland Company Scholarship, Seth Stapleton of Izard County
o Receiving Built Ford Tough Scholarships,
o Juliane Johnson of Wonderview
o Levi Jones of Glen Rose
o Garrett Montgomery of Jackson County
o Skyler Morris of Black Rock
o Melodie Palmer of Pocahontas
o Brooke Roden of Smackover
o Evan Rohlfing of Newport
o AND Haven Saffell of Valley View
o Receiving a Casey’s General Store Scholarship, Chance Dearing of Cossatot River
o Receives a Farmer’s Mutual Hail Insurance Scholarship, Bryce Rohr of Mountain Home
o Receiving a Fastline Publications Scholarship, Britt Driggers of Lake Hamilton
o Receiving a Firestone Farm Tire Scholarship, Preston Graddy of Valley View
o Receiving a John Deere Scholarship, Danielle Rosson of Cedarville
o Receiving a NAPA Auto Parts Scholarship, Autumn Mears of Newport
o Receiving a RABO Agrifinance Scholarship, Katlin Shumate of Newport
o Receiving a RAM Truck Scholarship, Mark Dement of Paris
o Receiving a Robert Eggert Memorial Scholarship, Victoria Maloch of Emerson
o Receiving Tractor Supply Growing Scholarships,
o Kaycee Grissum of Mountain Home
o Mark McAfee of Lake Hamilton
o Taylor McNeel of Vilonia
o Caleigh Sue Moyer of Prairie Grove
o Abby Ratton of Newport
o Chaney Ryan of Cedar Ridge
o Jenna Smith of Greene County Tech
o AND Matthew Smith of Hermitage
o Receiving a Tulsa Welding School Scholarship, Hunter Barnard of Bergman
o And Receiving Tyson Foods Scholarships
o Lensey Watson of Decatur
o AND Sara White of Springdale HarBer
· American FFA Degree Candidates Recognized.
o Amanda Bacon, Madison Beavers, Blake Bennett, Shawn Bowie, Nathan Cooper, Christian Davis, Bow Franklin, Dustin Hanson, Ashley Henry, Wesley Henry, Bailey Hill, Tyler Jennings, John Brian Kirksey, Quentin Mansfield, Morgan Marley, Megan McMahen, Taylor McNeel, Caleigh Sue Moyer, Jace Newby, Mitch Rowland, Mason Strayhorn, Trent Taylor, Lindsey Triplett, Brad Tucker, Isaac Wachtel, Lensey Watson and Sunni Wise
· Keegan Kautzky and Libby Crimmings of the World Food Prize delivered keynote address.
· World Food Prize awards presented to participating students, and Paden Cook of Lamar and Marissa Davis of Springdale HarBer were announced as two selected to attend Global Youth Institute.
· Sam Harris recognized for being a Borlaug-Ruan Intern for Summer 2014.
· Honorary State Degrees presented to the following:
o Butch Calhoun, Senator Jason Rapert, Rep. Jeremy Gilliam, Dr. Michael Kidd, Malcolm Rainey, Diana Arn, Marilyn Thomas, Suellen Ward, Jane Phillips, Ann Wright, Carl Loewer, Charla Keys, Amy Lyman, Stan Jones, Frank Bolton, Lloyd Carter, Larry Cupp, Darin Hughes, Robert McMahen, Patty Fulton, Samantha McCullah, Bob Barnes, Joe Don Greenwood, Perry Richard, Randy Romeo, Terry Rorex, Kyle Sanders, Joe Wallis, Doss Walker, Doug Ward, Mack Wheeler, Melvin Daniel and Acee Pilgrim
· Lindsey Triplett presented her retiring address.
During the 4th General Session at 1:30 p.m., the following business was handled:
· Sponsors were recognized with video presentation.
· Noah Davis, Creed Speaking winner presented the Creed.
· Top selling John Deere Gator Chapters were recognized:
o Emerson, 1st Place
o Dover, 2nd Place
o Prairie Grove, 3rd Place
· Foundation Plus Chapters were recognized:
o Buffalo Island, Centerpoint, Greene County Tech, Lake Hamilton, Mena, Mountain Home, Newport, Prairie Grove and Quitman
· Foundation Scholarships were presented to the following members:
o Haylie Dobbs, I.L. “Ish” Stivers Scholarship
o Mason Strayhorn, Jack Justus Scholarship
o Megan McMahen, Jack Warnock Scholarship
o James Dement, Landy Nelson Doyel Scholarship
o Lindsey Triplett, Marvin Vines Scholarship
o Raigan Dew, Orval Childs Scholarship
o Kisia Weeks, Wyatt Bowen, Kelsey Willingham, Colleen Grace Burrus, Sophia Scalise, Colby Leggett, Morgan Faulkner, Clark Taylor, Chase McCormick, Claire Williamson, Tara Hentz, Shelby Jo Carden, Jeana Mathias, Colton Teekell, Seth Halley and Cody Salmon
· Mr. Bob Award was presented to Jerry Fendley of Centerpoint.
· State Officer Advisors were recognized.
· Krista Cupp, Tyson Foods presented Keynote Address.
· Teressa Curtis gave the Arkansas Alumni report and presented State Officers with lifetime membership and Alumni blazers.
· Adam McClung, Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association brought greetings.
· Camp Couchdale Clean-up Chapters were recognized:
o Arkansas High, Bismarck, Brinkley, Centerpoint, Emerson, Hermitage and Lake Hamilton.
· Mason Strayhorn presented his retiring address.
During the 5th General Session, the following business took place:
· Past State Officers were recognized.
· Caleigh Sue Moyer presented her retiring address.
· Dustin Jones, State Extemporaneous Speaking Winner presented his speech.
· Video greetings from Victoria Maloch were brought.
· State Officer Parents were recognized.
· STARS Over Arkansas were announced:
o Star Farmer – Jessica Barnett, Ozark
o Star in Agribusiness – Brett Brewer, Mountain Home
o Star in Ag Placement – Carley Allen, Oark
o Star in Agriscience – Katie Welch, Alpena
· During the Delegate Business Session the Audit committee was recognized and presented their report. Motion passed.
· Election of Officers:
o President: Nominating Committee – Bryce Rohr
§ Colby Leggett nominated by Dakota Mooney, Clinton (declined)
§ Becca Burrow nominated by Jaci Poole, Conway (declined)
§ Jeanna Mathias nominated by Tanner Mills, Farmington (declined)
§ Mark Dement nominated by James Dement, Paris (declined)
§ Cara Kaines nominated by Justin Tedford, Morrilton
§ Dustin Jones nominated by Will Welch, Alpena
§ Mark McAfee nominated by Jonathan Hutter, Lake Hamilton (declined)
§ Matthew Smith nominated by Blaire McMahen, Taylor
§ Bryce Rohr Elected State President
o Secretary: Nominating Committee – Becca Burrow
§ Mark Dement nominated by Corey Ahrens, Lamar
§ Maranda Smith nominated by Will Sparks, Blytheville (declined)
§ Morgan Faulkner nominated by Seth, Greene County Tech (declined)
§ Matthew Smith nominated by Reana Allen, Waldron (declined)
§ Becca Burrow Elected State Secretary
o Reporter: Nominating Committee – Matthew Smith
§ Maranda Smith nominated by Will Sparks, Blytheville
§ Morgan Faulkner nominated by Boyce Cate, Greene County Tech (declined)
§ Jacinda Passmore nominated by Becca Capps, Hillcrest
§ Wade Andrews nominated by Makayla Jiles, Camden Fairview (declined)
§ Tabitha Hudspeth nominated by Jade Beedy, Nettleton (declined)
§ Jeanna Mathias nominated by Hailey Hanson, Lincoln
§ Dustin Jones nominated by Will Welch, Alpena
§ Matthew Smith Elected State Reporter
o Northwest Vice President: Nominating Committee – Mark Dement
§ Jeanna Mathias nominated by Hailey Hanson, Lincoln
§ Colby Leggett nominated by Sam Harris, Greenbrier
§ Cara Kaines nominated by Justin Tedford, Conway
§ Dustin Jones nominated by Bailey Riggs, Bergman
§ Jacinda Passmore nominated by Mayra Moffet, Conway
§ Mark Dement Elected Northwest Vice President
o Southern Vice President: Nominating Committee – Tabitha Hudspeth
§ Mark McAfee nominated by Carol Ann McAfee, Lake Hamilton
§ Wade Andrews nominated by Charles, Ashdown
§ Mark McAfee Elected Southern Vice President
o Eastern Vice President: Nominating Committee – Morgan Faulkner
§ Maranda Smith nominated by Tanner Mote, Valley View
§ Tabitha Hudspeth nominated by Jade Beedy, Nettleton
§ Morgan Faulkner Elected Eastern Vice President
During the 6th General Session at 9:30 a.m., the following business took place:
· Rob Roedel brought greetings from the Arkansas Electric Cooperatives.
· Chapters that participated in the FFA for FFS program were recognized:
o Top three Winners: Mansfield, 1st Place; Bergman, 2nd Place; Sloan Hendrix, 3rd Place
· 240 FFA members were presented their State FFA Degree.
· Members of the 2014 Courtesy Corps were recognized.
· The 2014-2015 State Officer team was installed.
· Year in Review Video recognized the 2013-2014 Retiring State officers.