The FFA chapter at Manhattan High School has geared up for upcoming events with the first meeting of the semester on Jan. 21, during which members discussed goals and upcoming events, signaling a strong start to the new year with opportunities for leadership, community service, and agricultural education.

Ag teachers Alyssa Higbie and Elissa Mullinix have been practicing with their students involved with poultry as they have an upcoming competition today.

 “They’ve been learning about the meat side of poultry,” Mullinex said. “They’ve been learning about identification, USDA grading, a lot of different pieces and parts to how value is assigned to poultry.” 

The students will also be learning the different ways that poultry is marketed.

Among the highlights for the upcoming weeks, FFA has some fun activities planned like ice skating. This activity for all of the Career and Technical Student Organizations is scheduled to take place at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 30  at the city skating rink. It will be a night filled with laughter and hopefully no bruised hips.

In addition to ice skating, FFA is preparing for their public speaking and employment skills competitions.  Members will be participating in Leadership Development Events.

“They will do Prepared and Extemporaneous [speaking] and Job interviews as part of their events,” Mullinex said.

Prepared Public Speaking is an event where students research and deliver a speech about an agriculture-related topic. The speech is evaluated by a panel of judges based on its content, composition, and delivery. In Extemporaneous Public Speaking students select an agricultural topic, prepare a speech and answer questions from a panel of judges. This event challenges students to think on their feet and advocate for agriculture.