October was a very busy month indeed as we kicked the month off with the West Tennessee Fall Leadership conference on October 2nd. This conference, along with the East and Middle Tennessee FLC’s was to bring together high school students from various CTSO’s (Career and Technical Student Organizations) to each regional conference. At these conferences, the state officers from all different organizations came together and facilitated workshops to the groups of students. It was a unique experience for everyone as members of different organizations were able to come together and learn about the different CTSO’s that Tennessee has to offer. The East Tennessee FLC was also this month on October 6th, 2015.
After Fall Leadership conferences, I had the opportunity to do several chapter visits before we headed off to the 88th National FFA Convention and Expo in Louisville KY! The convention itself lasted from October 28th until October 31st, however we as delegates had to be there little earlier than everyone else. The National FFA Delegation consists of 475 delegates from 52 different associations across the nation including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. This was an amazing opportunity as all of the state officers as well as 2 regional officers (Stephen Meredith – East Tennessee, and Ahmon Watkins – Middle Tennessee) were able to vote of current issues that the National FFA was facing and input our opinions as to how these issues could be fixed.
This convention was special to Tennessee FFA members as we heard the inspiring words of our 2014-2015 National Southern Region Vice President Stephen McBride during his retiring address. Also, Tennessee FFA has made it 3 National Officers to serve in a row and 5 in 7 years, because our own Nick Baker was elected to serve as the 2015-2016 National FFA Secretary! This was an amazing trip for all who attended and I bet next year’s will be even better since the 89th National FFA convention will not be in Louisville, but in the heart of Indianapolis! Next years convention is sure to be an amazing one!
Be sure to stay tuned to hear what else the Tennessee State Officers have been doing and thanks for reading!
Stephen McNeil
Tennessee FFA State Sentinel