The 90th annual Future Farmers of America convention was held in Ames on April 22-24.

Over 5,000 FFA members from all over the state to Iowa came campus. This year’s convention theme was “”I Can. We Will.”

The three day event had a multitude of events that focused on agricultural education, careers in agriculture and science, leadership and volunteering. 

Volunteering and service projects are a major part of FFA. This year’s Conference Service Project was Meals from the Heartland. FFA members helped pack rice and soy meals to send out around the state and beyond. 

Also in the schedule were Career Development Events, also known as CDEs. In some of the individual events, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences gave $500 scholarships for winners.

To expose members to potential careers in agriculture and science, FFA sponsored an The Agricultural Career Fair to be held at the conference. The fair introduced the members to a variety of companies who work in agricultural and science fields. At the College of Agriculture and Life Science’s booth, they gave away eight $1,000 scholarships.

Tours of agriculture buildings were given as well as general ones of campus to expose members to Iowa State University. 

FFA focuses on building the future leaders of the agriculture industry. They focus on premier leadership, personal growth and career success. Additionally, they encourage agricultural education.

But the activities did not stop during the day. After-hours events were held on Monday night for members to interact with each other. A barbecue and other events were held in the Memorial Union.

Mandy Harvey was the keynote speaker for the conference. 

The major sponsors of the conference were the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Dakota Access Pipeline, the CHS foundation, and more. 

The conference allowed FFA members to volunteer, learn about job opportunities, and connect with peers from all over the state.