FFA, or previously known as Future Farmers of America is an amazing opportunity for students at Lakeland High School to get agricultural experience. 

FFA is a leadership program specifically surrounded around teaching all aspects of agriculture. 

The leader of FFA, Mrs. Laura Kelley has been teaching agriculture for around 21 years, and when she started teaching Science at Lakeland, she decided she wanted to bring the program to North Idaho. 

“When I found out around last October that I would be moving to this area, I wanted to ensure that my daughter would be able to have the resources of an agricultural extracurricular to continue what she started. I worked with administration and did a few presentations with 4-H to set it in place” said Mrs. Kelley.  

There are 34 students that are currently in FFA, and about half of them are actively able to participate in the competitions. 

Mrs. Kelley expects the number of students in FFA to grow in the future. 

“I have a lot of parents, students, and community members asking about the program. I think a lot of people wanted to wait and see how to program went because it was new. Now that we have been out in the community and done work, I am expecting more people to participate in coming years.” 

Students at Lakeland are aware of the positive effects of having FFA available to them, and the learning experiences that come from it. 

New to Lakeland this year, Claire Kelley, the vice president of FFA is grateful to be able to participate in Lakeland’s new club. 

“There are many benefits, but the most important are leadership, public speaking, networking, and advocating for the agriculture industry” Claire stated. 

Claire also mentioned “my favorite thing about FFA is being able to show livestock, specifically my pigs at the fair and national shows. I also like being able to go to speaking contests. I personally joined FFA because I love to show livestock and this gave me a great opportunity to do that.” 

Owen Forsman, a sophomore student was glad that a program like FFA was brought to Lakeland. 

“I like getting together with other people who are like-minded and want to do the same thing as me.” 

There are many different types of competitions that FFA participates in, giving students the opportunity to try different activities based on agriculture. 

Claire informed the type of competitions that FFA students participate in. 

“We show livestock, compete in speaking contests, participate in leadership contests, and hold events for the community. All the competitions are different depending on what competition you are attending, but all provide with the same thing which is giving young teenagers important life skills.” 

Mrs. Kelley works hard to give all types of resources for learning about agriculture and making sure the students are having fun. 

“The competitions are almost unlimited, we try to encompass all student interests.” 

FFA had a competition on Jan. 11. Claire Kelley explained that the competition went very well. 

“The competition went great. Maddy, Cole, and I each got to experience how a discussion meets works and watch the final round team to get a better understanding of how the contests work. I discussed in debate format questions related to agriculture with other FFA members.” 

Claire stated that she believes this is a club anyone can join, and they can receive a huge benefit from participating in FFA. 

“FFA is a great opportunity to learn special life skills you will use beyond your high school career and it’s a lot of fun. Everyone should join.”