The Kentucky FFA Foundation kicked off 2024 by launching two major projects after months and months of work behind the scenes. 

Our new podcast, “Growing Kentucky’s Leaders” is hosted by me and my colleague Ruth Ann Fink. We have a weekly guest and talk about agriculture, leadership and the role that Kentucky FFA has played in their journey. It’s been a blast to make. A special part of my role as Executive Director has been having these really meaningful conversations with people about what FFA means to them. It has always deeply moved me and it’s an honor to host  those conversations for anyone to hear. You can listen on Apple Podcats, Spotify or YouTube. 

After years of visiting companies and hearing the same message consistently - “WE NEED PEOPLE!”, the Kentucky FFA Foundation and FFA Chapters across Kentucky are answering that call with our new pilot program, Kentucky FFA Works. We are trying our hand at becoming a real workforce solution by uniting our ambitious, graduating FFA members with real opportunities for Kentucky jobs. 

Here’s how it works. 

We are are asking companies to enroll and as partners and they share on our website jobs they commonly are hiring high school graduates for. They share all the information about their preferred candidate, information about the wages, benefits and anything else they would want a potential employee to know about them.

These companies will be featured on www.kyffaworks.com and can enroll through late March. In April, this website opens up for students to apply. This is a job application website exclusively for 2024 graduating seniors that are FFA members who are seeking full time employment following graduation. They complete the “one” common application, share a bit about their FFA experience, select what companies they are interested in and locations they are willing to work. Upon completion, their agriculture teacher will receive a recommendation e-mail where they anonymously review that student. 

In May, our team will review all applicants for enrolled companies, share a complete list of students  interested in working for their companies at their desired locations. We will rank top matches and then companies take it from there. They connect and offer next steps to students at their own desire & pace - no obligation to hire anyone. 

A recent study conducted by National FFA shared that 75% of high school students hear about a potential job from their agriculture teacher. They also found that Gen Z is most attracted to a company if they reflect their values and feel like they can make a difference. I cannot think of a better for an agriculture company to recruit the next generation than by supporting FFA and recruiting within our network. It’s not too late to sign up. Visit www.kyffaworks.com and complete the Company Enrollment Application and we will be in touch. 

Putting all of this out there into the world all at once has given me a bit of a vulnerability hangover. Are you familiar? Feeling like you may have shared too much, feeling a little anxious to see how you’re received? While I’m at it… might as well share the whole truth. I am absolutely serious when I tell you that our team is dedicated to making Kentucky Agricultural Education & FFA the very best in the country. We want to grow the best students, the best communities and we want Kentucky agriculture to thrive. We have to take big risks to do that. I hope you’ll come along for that ride with Kentucky FFA and I hope you’ll give our podcast a listen while on the ride.