FFA Ready For Indy Return
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe chief executive officer of the National FFA says it will be "nice to be back in Indianapolis" for the 89th National FFA Convention & Expo beginning next week. Mark Poeschl estimates the four-day event will bring 60,000 people to the city and generate an economic impact of about $36 million. The convention is returning to Indianapolis after three years in Louisville and will stay in the city through at least 2024.
Poeschl says the National FFA will begin the process in the next 18-24 months to determine where the convention will be beginning in 2025, including for the 100th anniversary in 2028. He says organizers will be looking at factors including arenas, convention facilities, hotel rooms and distance for students and schools to travel to the event. Poeschl says, "There is a lot of criteria, and certainly Indiana checks a lot of those boxes for us."
This year’s event runs Wednesday, October 19-Saturday, October 22. This year’s theme is "transform Purpose to Action."
Events include a grand march down Georgia Street Wednesday, eight general sessions at Bankers Life Fieldhouse and the awarding of American FFA Degrees to more than 3,000 members. Attendees will also take part in several community projects through the National Day of Service with organizations including Gleaners Food Bank, MapleLawn Farmstead, the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, Indy Read Books, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and Woodruff Place Civic League.
The National FFA announced last year that it would return to Indianapolis long-term, citing the state’s commitment to growing agriculture beyond the farm. The organization also recently announced a record-high student membership total of nearly 650,000.