UTM FFA wins ‘Chapter of the Year’ for eighth time

Members of UTM’s Collegiate FFA Chapter headed to Montgomery Bell State Park this past Friday to compete in the 2013 Tennessee FFA Collegiate Contests held in conjunction with the Tennessee FFA Alumni Convention.

Students competed in public speaking, interview and quiz bowl events to earn the covenant Tennessee FFA Collegiate Chapter of the Year Award. During a banquet last Friday night, UTM Colligate FFA was named Chapter of the Year for the eighth time.

Last year, after winning the honor for seven consecutive years, UTM FFA was forced to relinquish the honor to Tennessee Tech University’s chapter.  Therefore, extra consideration and preparation was put into this year’s events.

 “This year, we made sure to choose the very best for the collegiate events, whether that was a past prepared public speaker or someone we knew who is proficient in interviewing,” said UTM Collegiate FFA President, Emily Keeton. “As the old saying goes, we pulled out the big guns.”
In the past ten years that the competition has been held, UTM’s Collegiate FFA Chapter has won eight out the ten contests held since 2003 including this year’s win. For many UTM FFA alumni, winning this particular honor has been a highlight of their time at UTM, and it will be a memorable moment for the FFA members that took part in the events this year.

“When we found out we won, it was definitely a rewarding feeling. I was so proud of the competitors and the time they put in to preparing for this event,” Keeton said. “UTM has a reputation of doing well at alumni convention, and it was an awesome feeling to know that we were back. I can’t wait to see what next year will bring when there will be fresh new faces competing.”
In all, sixteen members attended the convention. In addition to the overall win, UTM ended the

night with second place finishes in prepared public speaking, agriculture education interview and discussion meet. First place finishes included: extemporaneous public speaking, job interview competitions in agriculture professions, production and business, scrapbook and quiz bowl.

Collegiate FFA has been around since 1931 and enhances the collegiate experience through service and engagement to create premier leaders, enable personal growth and ensure career success.