FFA

If you haven't guessed already, I have been involved majorly with my school's FFA chapter. I have served as Chapter Secretary, and am currently serving as this year's Chapter Vice-President. I am planning to run for a Nebraska State FFA Officer this spring.  FFA is a HUGE part of my life and it has played a major role in shaping the person I am today.

What is FFA you ask? Well, first off, it is not just the "Future Farmers of America", as it once was thought of. While the National FFA Organization still is based on "achievements won by the present and past generations of agriculturists" (straight from the FFA Creed...check it out: https://www.ffa.org/about/whoweare/Pages/TheFFACreed.aspx), with that comes so many more opportunities made available to anyone from every walk of life. The National FFA Organization is dedicated to making a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth, and career success through agricultural education. Through the National FFA Organization I have learned, and am still learning, so many life skills that will carry me far beyond these dirt roads.


Just as the American flag is a representation of what it means to be an American, the FFA emblem plays a similar role in the hearts of FFA'ers across the nation (including Puerto Rico!) Here's a quick look at what elements come together to represent the history, goals, and future of this organization.

The cross section of the ear of corn: "Unity"
-Whether you live in Maine, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, or one of the states in between, corn is grown somewhere in your state. Corn signifies unity and, from the first Thanksgiving feast on, it has historically served as the foundation crop of American agriculture.

The rising sun: "Progress"
-The rising sun signifies progress and holds the promise that tomorrow will bring a new day, shining with opportunity. I have a feeling the creators of this emblem would be in total shock if they saw how the industry of agriculture has developed in this technological age and how it's evolved to meet the next generation of consumer demands.

The plow: "Labor and Tilling of the Soil"
-The FFA Organization is founded in agriculture, the backbone of our country. Without the labor and tillage of the soil done by our forefathers, our country would not be where it is today.

The eagle: "Freedom"
-The eagle reminds each and every FFA member that they have the freedom to explore new horizons for the future of agriculture.

The owl: "Knowledge"
-As the time-honored symbol of wisdom and knowledge, the owl symbolizes the knowledge required to be successful in the agricultural industry.

"Agricultural Education" and "FFA"
-The words "Agricultural Education" and the letters "FFA" are emblazoned in the center of the emblem to signify the combination of learning and leadership necessary for progressive agriculture.

While this may be my first post on FFA, it definitely won't be my last. Any questions about the National FFA Organization, please comment or head on over to this website: https://www.ffa.org/Pages/default.aspx.

This would be my sister and I. FFA is a family tradition passed on from a father to his daughters. :)

These would be a few pictures of my officer team. We are an amazingly dysfunctional group, but I wouldn't trade them for anything. 

   

Dud Degrees? Think again.....

Very rarely does something that I read on the Internet, outside of the Facebook gossip/rumor-mill, leave me speechless with my face resembling the 'scream mask'.  Today though, an article on yahoo.com did. Its title? "College Majors That Are Useless"  (http://education.yahoo.net/articles/most_useless_degrees.htm)  Being a senior in high school, about ready to embark on the next stage of my life which includes deciding on a college major, I figured I would give the article a look. I was flat out flabbergasted as I read the #1 so-called "Useless Degree": Agriculture. Animal science and horticulture rounded out the top five.  Now, just curious...do the people who did this outlook study like to eat, live in a house, drive, wear clothes, or breathe?! If they keep discouraging ag-related degrees, they're going to have quite a difficult time trying to do those tasks. With the world population set to reach 9 billion by 2050, how do these people expect to feed, clothe, and transport everyone without agriculture?  The average age of a farmer is 57.  In a study done by the USDA in 2007 (a little outdated, I know, but the information is still extremely relevant) the number of farm operators over the age of 45 is 2,549,212, compared to only 732,322 under the age of 45. In the next few decades, a vast majority of our farmers will be getting too old to carry out the day-to-day tasks that agricultural life demands. In addition, with the advancements in technology, the older generations of farmers will be left in the dust because of their inability to master the use of this technology.  You would think one would see the need for a large and strong younger generation of agriculturalists that will help account for this loss. 

Now, let's take a quick look at another article in Yahoo's Guide to College Majors series: "What Are The Most Effective Degrees?". (http://education.yahoo.net/articles/most_effective_degrees.htm?kid=1KWNT&svkid=EZPJ&partner=1946&usid=15673d90-42ef-11e1-b6ab-002219651dc9) Alright, so the top 5 most effective degrees are business administration, psychology, accounting, information technology, and health care administration.  Unless individuals with degrees in business administration or accounting can grow a field of corn from their cubicles and individuals with degrees in psychology are now learning to read the minds of cattle and swine, none of them will be able to produce enough food to sustain this rapidly growing population.  Now, don't get me wrong, two of these definitely earn their position on this list in my opinion: information technology and health care administration.  We all know we are now living in the information age. Smart phones, iPads, GPS...without these tools, our lives would be almost unthinkable.  Agriculture itself would not be able to sustain 9 billion people's existence without these forms of technology.  By the same token, if there weren't farmers and ranchers to utilize these forms of technology, thousands of employees in the IT field who work on components of agricultural technology would be out of jobs.  Looking at the big picture, if agriculture means as little as people say it does, then the world's population will all go hungry and no one will be left to fill the positions these jobs provide. 

No matter how you look at it, agriculture has and always will be an extremely important industry in today's world. The food on your table, roof over your head, clothes on your body, and fuel in your vehicle all are made possible by God and agriculture. I am proud to say that I have picked one of these so-called "dud degrees". 

Where I Come From

Hey everyone, my name is Alix Mashino. The place I call home is in north-central Nebraska, also known as God's Country.  While the land is great, the people here are even greater.  I am blessed to have been born the oldest of four daughters into a family with down-home values and a love for agriculture that runs deep.  As an agriculturist, I feel it is our duty to tell our own story to the best of our abilities.  We are each experts in what we do.  If we don't tell our story, others without as much knowledge will tell it for us.

Like I said before, I am the oldest of four daughters, born into a farming/ranching family.  I wouldn't trade this life I live for anything.  Every day, my family and I go to work for the best industry--Agriculture!  We background cattle during the fall, winter, and part of the spring months.  Calving season in the spring is also a busy time for us, as we have around 250 Black Angus cow/calf pairs.  We also raise corn, beans, oats, wheat and a little alfalfa.  Waking up early on the weekends to feed cattle, knowing that each of our bottle calves would eventually end up on someone's supper plate, spending more time in a John Deere tractor than anywhere else during the summers, and having scars from barbed wire while fencing in the heat of the day has made me and my sisters the farm girls we are today. Ones that can do anything just as well as a boy can, if not better, I might add! :)

Well, now you all know a little more about my background.  While I have so much more to say, I will save it for later posts.  Becuase this blogging thing is all new to me, I'll do my best to do it right, and would appreciate your comments.

Until next time, go out and AGvocate!