MARYSVILLE, Ohio – Libby Ramge, Marysville High School FFA’s newly elected president, took on prepared public speaking as her Career Development Event this year, hoping to improve on her in-person communication skills.

 “One of my weaknesses has always been putting my thoughts together and effectively communicating my ideas,” said the MHS junior. “Performing a speech and answering questions about it has tremendously helped me develop these skills.”

But it was her writing communication skills that caught the attention of judges of the 2023 National Ag Day essay contest. Officials with the Agriculture Council of America asked participants to provide an essay or create a video based on the theme: Growing a Climate for Tomorrow: How American Agriculture Does It Every Day.

That’s when Ramge put her thoughts on paper.

“I’m currently writing a speech and competing in the Prepared Public Speaking Contest in FFA and that speech is addressing agriculture’s carbon footprint and how we can improve on that,” Ramge said. “Since the prompt is how agriculture ‘does it every day,’ I wrote not only about what agriculture is already doing (about the carbon footprint) but also how the public might not see what those in agriculture are already doing to be environmental stewards for the future generations.”

Celebrating 50 years, National Ag Day encourages every American to understand how food and fiber products are produced, appreciate the role agriculture plays in providing safe, abundant and affordable products. The National Ag Day Essay Contest is sponsored by CHS Inc., National Association of Farm Broadcasting, Farm Progress and Successful farming.

Libby was one of three merit winners who received $100 and blog posts featuring their essays. The other two merit winners were Sophie Griswold of Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, and Elsha Valluru of Highland Village, Texas. The national written essay winner was Timothy Hill of Orlando, Florida. This year’s video essay winner was Olivia Lee of Aliso Viejo, California.

For Libby, FFA runs in the family.

“I’ve grown up with a lot of role models in my life, with two of the biggest role models being my grandparents,” she said. “My grandmother served as our county extension agent for many years and my grandfather was an ag teacher at Fairbanks High School here in Union County.”

There are 80 students in the Marysville High FFA chapter, and less than five percent of those members live on a farm or plan on becoming a farmer in the future. Though Libby doesn’t live on a farm, she has vast experience in raising farm animals for show at the Union County Fair. She also has exhibited many 4H projects at the Ohio State Fair over the years.

“Though I don’t live a large farm I reside on a small family farm and I am fortunate to have a broader ag background compared to others in my chapter,” she said. “I want to run for an FFA state office and achieve my American FFA Degree,” she said. “That would be my ultimate goal in FFA.”

The American FFA Degree is the highest degree achievable in the National FFA. The accomplishment shows an FFA member’s dedication to his or her chapter and state FFA association. It demonstrates the effort FFA members apply toward their SAE and the outstanding leadership abilities and community involvement they exhibit through their FFA career. Outstanding scholastic achievement is also required.

“FFA has not only given me agricultural experiences, but it has made me a better leader and a better team member,” Libby said. “I’ve attended so many leadership conferences and it led me to leadership positions and that has helped create the person that I am. All of these skills are setting me up for a career of success and I’m so appreciative of all this.”

It’s safe to say Libby is a high-energy student as she has not shortage supervised agricultural experiences (SAEs). For starters, she’s raising a calf and goat to show at the Union County fair this fall. Next, she is starting a system to collect and create compost at her school. Finally, she has an internship at NRCS where she gains learning experiences within that agency. Each fall, she works at an agribusiness farm to support her other projects.

“She is amazing,” said Shari Anderson, one of three ag teachers and advisors at the high school. “She has taken on many leadership roles. She has a way to not only lead her peers but also adults. It’s amazing at her age that she is able to connect with so many different people and bring them along with her. She is selfless and always looking to better others’ situations.”

“Career-wise, my passion lies in sustainable agriculture,” Libby said. “I’ve also given some thought to agriculture education. I would like to remain in-state so I’m taking a look at Ohio State University.”