Recently, at the 98th National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, two members of the East Knox FFA chapter received the prestigious American FFA Degree. Ethan Phillis and Andrew Poff were among 5,162 recipients nationwide, with 533 from Ohio. The degrees are sponsored by companies like Case IH, Cargill, John Deere, Elanco, Syngenta, and AGCO as part of a special project by the National FFA Foundation.
Recipients of this degree receive a gold key, certificate, and matted frame after being recognized on stage. To qualify for the degree, members must earn at least $10,000 from Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) projects and invest at least $7,500 productively. They must also serve as an officer or committee member in FFA and participate in various development events and leadership activities.
The American Degree is the highest honor in FFA and is awarded to less than half a percent of members annually. Ethan Phillis' SAE projects included job placement at Mills’ Farms and constructing horse treadmills. He served as Vice President for the 2022-2023 chapter year and was Sentinel for 2021-2022. His participation extended to Poultry and Agricultural Technology events.
Andrew Poff's projects involved job placement at Apple Valley Marina and home improvement tasks. He competed in several career development events including Agricultural Soils and Envirothon. In 2019, he participated in the U.S. Eastern Regional Environmental/Natural Resources competition after placing second in Ohio.
Phillis and Poff are now among the 55 American FFA Degree recipients from East Knox since 1991. The East Knox FFA chapter is part of East Knox Local Schools.
Information from this article can be found here.
