NORFOLK, Neb. – High school students, recognized by their blue jackets and bright gold lettering, participated in the 2021 FFA Districts 3, 4 and 10 Career Development Event – Ag Education Contest on the Norfolk campus of Northeast Community College recently.
Many of the 14 contests for the over 1,100 students from 46 area high schools were state qualifying events with winners proceeding to the state contest in early April at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only four events were held on campus this year - agriculture sales presentation, floriculture, nursery and landscape, and livestock management. Other contests were held previously at each school. This included agriculture sales exam, agricultural technology and mechanization systems, ag biotechnology, farm and agribusiness management, food science (included hands on activity), veterinary science, and welding (included hands on activity).
Northeast agriculture and horticulture faculty, staff and students hosted the on-campus contests.
Corinne Morris, dean of Agriculture, Math and Science at Northeast, said a change in the format due to the pandemic proved challenging, but was successful. She said collaboration between off site locations, contest leaders, online technology, and instructors was key in maintaining the integrity of the contests which are normally held at the College.
“This event is a huge undertaking in a normal year. Everyone worked together and found solutions to every challenge making it a meaningful experience for students,” Morris said. “Our faculty and staff did an awesome job of reinventing how contests could look and still accommodate all of the high schools inside and outside of our service area with their CDE contests. I am very proud of our teachers and all of the people who helped them this year.”
FFA Chapters participating in the contest include:
District 3 Schools: Arlington, Blair, Logan View, Lyons-Decatur Northeast, Mead, North Bend, Oakland-Craig, Omaha Bryan, Pender, Scribner-Snyder, Tekamah-Herman, Wayne, West Point, Wisner-Pilger.
District 4 Schools: Allen-Wakefield, Battle Creek, Bloomfield, Creighton, Crofton, Emerson-Hubbard, Hartington-Newcastle, Laurel-Concord-Coleridge, Madison, Norfolk, Osmond, Pierce, Plainview, Randolph, Stanton, Summerland (Orchard/Ewing/Clearwater).
District 10 Schools: Ainsworth, Boyd County, Burwell, Chambers, Elgin, Elkhorn Valley, Keya Paha, Loup County, Neligh-Oakdale, O'Neill, Ord, Rock County, Sargent, Stuart, West Holt, Wheeler Central.
Northeast Community College has hosted the contest for over 40-years.
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PHOTO CUTLINE
Students from the Burwell FFA Chapter perform an exercise in a livestock management contest at Northeast Community College during the 2021 FFA Districts 3, 4 and 10 Career Development Event – Ag Education Contest recently. They were among students from 46 area high schools competing in 14 various contests. Most of the contests were state qualifying events and winners will proceed to the state contest in early April at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.