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Milan FFA students present hands-on agriculture and leadership work to school board
Summary
Students from Milan FFA described hands-on agricultural projects, leadership contests and fundraising efforts to the Milan Area Schools board; teacher-adviser Todd Federer and student officers highlighted career-connected learning, state-degree credits and community engagement.
Todd Federer, Milan High School’s agricultural science teacher and adviser to the Milan FFA, introduced a student-led presentation to the Milan Area Schools Board of Education on the breadth of the chapter’s activities and how they support career and leadership skills. "My name is Todd Federer. I’m the current agricultural science teacher and the adviser for the Milan FFA," Federer said, and then turned the presentation over to student officers.
Jonathan Ringlum, who described himself as the chapter’s vice president, and Ethan Rice, the treasurer and president-elect, walked board members through routine chapter work — building floats for parades, a district Fall Bash, and an annual hog roast fundraiser that helps finance conferences and contests. "Our chapter usually takes 12 to 13 people" to the National FFA Convention, the students said, and they described leadership competitions, discussion meets and parliamentary-procedure activities that students enter at district, state and national levels.
The students also described classroom and lab work that feeds into contests and real-world skills: broiler (chicken) raising, rabbit husbandry, sausage-making, greenhouse plant production and a crop-yield project that used kernel counts and field sampling. Federer noted the chapter received a state grant for a drone that students now use for agricultural demonstrations and to teach precision-ag techniques. Several students earned state degrees this year; Federer noted a state degree can translate into up to six credit hours at Michigan State University.
Board members praised the presentation. "Awesome presentation," one member said, and others thanked Federer for student-led instruction and the program’s community links. Superintendent McMahon and multiple trustees commended the emphasis on public speaking, technical skills and community service. No board action was required; the presentation concluded with the board thanking the students and adviser.
The board did ask clarifying questions about post–high-school pathways tied to the state degree; students and Federer said several alumni have gone on to related college programs and remain connected with the alumni chapter. The board made no policy changes as a result of the presentation.
The board meeting moved on after the presentation, recording the program as an example of district career-connected learning and strong community partnerships.
