SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — With Covid restrictions lifted, the 2022 Illinois State FFA Convention returned to a traditional three-day event of business sessions, award recognitions, workshops and a career show after a hybrid event last year. Hundreds of blue, corduroy-jacketed FFA youth converged on downtown Springfield from June 14-16 for the convention, during which five new state leaders were elected by 350 voting delegates. 

Elected as FFA state leaders for 2022-2023 were President Rachel Hood, from the Rushville-Industry FFA Chapter, Vice President Derek Sample, Sesser-Valier FFA Chapter, Reporter Levi Maierhofer, Seneca FFA Chapter, Secretary Haley Bode, Waterloo FFA Chapter and Treasurer Kate Colgan, Princeville FFA Chapter.

The newly elected officers are embarking on a watershed year for Illinois FFA, with an expected 15,000 additional students expected to enroll in the program in schools across the state. Thanks to a state appropriation of $550,000, the cost to belong to FFA will no longer be a restriction for ag students in Illinois. The appropriation, which will pay the FFA membership dues for every student taking agriculture classes, makes Illinois an FFA-affiliation-membership state. The designation ensures that every agricultural education student in the state will have his or her FFA dues automatically paid.

New president Rachel Hood, who grew up on her family’s farm south of Industry, Illinois (McDonough County), said she welcomes any potential FFA member who may be “on the fence” about joining the youth leadership development organization. “With affiliation we are expecting to get about 15,000 new members. This is something we are incredibly excited about. Previously in Illinois FFA, your chapter or school decided if you were affiliated or not. Now, all of Illinois will be affiliated,” she said.

“FFA is not just about agriculture and cows, sows and plows. You do not have to come from an agricultural background to reap the benefits of FFA, because it is a leadership organization. You can grow by challenging yourself and putting yourself out there. I would tell students to try every opportunity, and at least one of them will get you further than you were.”

The FFA experience provides students with the opportunity to make new connections, some of which will last a lifetime, added Hood. The program can also help a young person solidify their career choice during high school — such as Hood, who will major in agricultural education at Kansas State University in 2023. 

“Agriculture was the only class I really looked forward to in high school. I was a teacher’s assistant for the 8th grade ag class during my junior and senior years. That really got my foot in the door in the ag ed program,” said Hood, who attended the FFA National Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. in July. There, the 18 year-old did committee work in preparation for the 2022 FFA National Convention in Indianapolis, where she will serve as a leadership delegate.

Hood credits her senior-year agricultural educator and FFA advisor, Sydney Riden, for encouraging her desire to teach for a living. “(Riden) reminded me that you just have to do what you love. She supported me and believed in me, as did both of my parents, Steve and Lisa Hood. Through their support and my FFA experience, I believe I can do anything I set my mind to,” she said. 

New Illinois FFA treasurer Kate Colgan, of Princeville, grew up on her family’s beef cattle operation in northwest Peoria County. During high school, the longtime 4-H and FFA member  belonged to the National Honor Society and Princeville High School Student Council, and was a member of the school’s bass fishing team (personal best: a 7-pound largemouth caught in Wisconsin). 

The former Princeville chapter and section officer and secretary was inspired to run for state office by “amazing, great Section 5 advisors” and her FFA advisor Jacob Meisner. “Pushing yourself to be better is something we should always strive to be doing, and my advisors and family believe in that,” said Colgan. “It’s about taking that next step and improving, and accepting the challenge to become a better version of yourself.”

FFA can help open doors for youth who might feel that the doors they seek to access are closed to them, Colgan noted. This is why she encourages any Illinois high school student with an interest in FFA to take advantage of Illinois’ new FFA-affiliation-membership status and get signed up this fall. 

“It’s really important to learn about the industry that makes this world go around — the agriculture industry — and FFA is a really great way to do that. Now that the dues are waived and anyone can join FFA, it’s one of the most important things to learn about. In today’s world there are so many uncertainties and misconceptions about where food comes from and where your clothes come from, so FFA is a great opportunity for people to step outside the classroom and learn these things,” Colgan said. “It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity that people should definitely not pass up.”

The 94th annual Illinois State FFA Convention, with the theme of “Initiate,” hosted more than 5,000 FFA members, advisers, and guests, according to an FFA news release. The 2022 convention spotlighted the Association’s annual service project, which provided $250 scholarships to 20 FFA chapters planting trees throughout the state. 

More than 350 Illinois schools currently host an FFA chapter, according to the Illinois FFA Association. Nearly 37,000 students across Illinois took ag classes last school year, with 23,000 enrolled in FFA. 

“By removing the cost barrier, this opens the doors for thousands more students to benefit from what FFA provides, which goes well beyond what can be taught in the classroom,” said Jerry Costello, Illinois Agriculture Director.