It’s on to state for two Future Farmers of America team as they advanced from Tuesday’s area level of competition.

“Our students did very well we had four teams competing in four different contests and each team is comprised of up to four individuals and the score’s combined for a team score but they compete individually,” sponsor Julie Anderson said. “Our Veterinary Medical Applications team and our Farm Business Management team both advanced to state so they will be competing at Sam Houston State and Texas A&M University. The other two teams had strong finishes; our Milk Quality Products team was one out of going to state and our Horticulture team was in the top 20 in the area.”

Leading up to the competition, students studied material for their events to refine their skills.

“I prepared for this event by looking over flash cards over the written exam, and trying different dairy products that they would give us in competition,” sophomore Thais Fernandez said. “The competition that I do is Milk Quality and basically you try a lot of dairy products and try milks to find the defect in them, natural and artificial fair products, try and determine different types of cheeses and problem solving.”

In the long run, the competition allowed student to practice skills that will benefit them in their futures.

“I think the biggest thing is it teaches them evaluation, reasoning, critical thinking, problem solving skills, and traits that will be applicable to their future careers,” Anderson said. “It also prepares them for their college majors and their careers.”

Students got the chance to apply their skills in events to expand their knowledge of them.

“I’m on the vet science team and we take a test, identify breeds of animals, tools, and organs and parasites, and we do a practicum portion where we fill a syringe or perform an injection,” senior Savannah West said. “My goal was to do my best and to get a perfect score on the practicum. We all feel pretty good about it.”

Having competed in a large area, Anderson takes pride in the students’ performance.

“I’m very proud of our students,” Anderson said. “Our area has over 13,000 members and so when you consider that there are 68 teams in some of these contests, for them to be able to qualify and move on it’s quite a feat.”

FFA Area V Career Development Event Results: 

Farm Business Management: 2^nd,  advanced to state

Brogan Gunia – 3^rd high individual

Natalia Montemayor – 7^th high individual

Kirin Parikh

Veterinary Science: 10^th place, advanced to state

Emily Corona

Halston Searls

Natalie Watkins

Savanna West

Milk Quality: 6^th in area, missed state by one placing

Thais Fernandez

Remington Williams

Rachel Wilson

Floriculture :

Tahirah Jones

Lauren Sutherland

Alessandra Vasconcelos