FFA addressing the future workforce
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Parents, guardians, educators, and corporations are typically aligned on wanting the best for our next generation of workers. Be it school, extracurricular activities or organizations that cater to our youth and young adults, it’s important that we prioritize the funding and support needed so that each of those environments can thrive.
Organizations like FFA, which is headquartered in Indianapolis, changes lives and prepares members for premier leadership, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education. And each year during National FFA Week, which is taking place this week, we acknowledge and celebrate the organization and the impactful local work being done at more than 9,000 school-based chapters nationwide serving more than 1 million members, primarily middle and high schoolers, through giveback opportunities and school events.
According to a recent study, youth and young adults make up nearly 50 million Americans, and this segment of people is in need of positive programming that helps instill a sense of purpose, learning opportunities, and ongoing mentorship.
Value of agricultural education in 2025
Every day we’re subject to a wide range of news and updated trends filling our phones and inboxes. It can be difficult for seasoned workers, let alone our young students, to navigate the overall fast pace of our world, its advancements, and what learnings to take away from it all.
The uptick in AI usage is just one example of how our educational system has to adapt and how jobs must evolve to meet the growing demands of our workforce. And with technological advancements also comes the growing need to protect natural resources and keep sustainability goals at the forefront.
Our educators are tasked with the important job of skilling up our young learners and preparing them to support a world that is in constant change. Agriculture has remained vital to the overall survival and well-being of every person, no matter where they live or what they do for a living. It doesn’t matter whether you’re raised in a rural or urban setting; agriculture still impacts each and every person through the food they eat and the clothes they wear. We must train the next generation of agricultural workforce to sustain this foundational industry.
Today, agricultural education is meeting the demands of our world by incorporating classroom coursework that makes science, math, and technology engaging and hands-on.
Youth’s need for community and belonging
For our young learners, it’s important that they have a community where they feel safe, accepted, mentored and motivated. Organizations like FFA provide opportunities for youth to make lifelong friendships through chapter meetings, competitions, leadership activities and community service events. We encourage business and education leaders to see the immense value of agricultural education and FFA and support it in their communities.
While teens’ use of social media seems to be at an all-time high (TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat remain widely used by teens, according to a 2024 study), there remains incredible benefits of in-person connections. Agricultural education engages students in three key ways: school, work-based learning, and FFA events and competitions. Each piece of this three circle approach gives students a platform for in-person learning and growth opportunities.
Celebrating our young learners
I can remember being in middle and high school and the occasional pressure of needing to determine what I “wanted to be when I grew up.” And this was during a time when I didn’t have a cell phone glued to me each and every day that could easily present me with a million different ideas. While our youth today are certainly growing up in a different way compared to previous generations, it’s still just as important to present them with opportunities to connect with other peers, to learn about our world, and to position them to be positive members of our communities and workforce in the future.
Schools remain a wonderful place to celebrate achievements, to offer up youth-centered organizations like FFA chapters, and to support our young learners in every way possible. I urge you to support these organizations in any way possible, because they’re what’s going to make a difference in the lives of our students, and will give them purpose.