Every year, the Michigan FFA recognizes members who go above and beyond in their Supervised Agricultural Experiences, or SAE’s, by awarding the Star in Agribusiness, Star in Agriscience, Star in Agricultural Placement, and Star Farmer. Finalists in these categories have learned important lessons in production, management, research, finance, and record keeping. Annually, the Star in Agricultural Placement is awarded to the FFA member with the top agricultural placement supervised agricultural experience in Michigan. This member must demonstrate outstanding achievement, active FFA participation, and an exemplary scholastic record. Let’s hear about the Finalists for 2020-2021 Star in Agricultural Placement!
Oliva Coffey from the Hopkins FFA chapter is one of the finalists for Star in Agricultural Placement! Olivia is the sixth generation to work on her family’s dairy farm. On the farm, Olivia oversees milking over 1,000 cows on their farm’s rotary parlor, driving dump trucks, helping with blood work, and helping out with calf feeding. Olivia has been on the farm her whole life and has a passion for the dairy industry, so this SAE was a no brainer for her. we asked Olivia what her favorite part of her SAE is, and she responded, “My favorite thing about my SAE is that I have many jobs I can do on the farm and getting to meet a lot of new people and the relationship I build with my coworkers.” Congratulations, Olivia, on being named a finalist for Star in Agricultural Placement!
Emily Finkbeiner from the Saline FFA chapter is another finalist for Star in Agricultural Placement! Emily’s SAE is diversified agricultural production, including production of sheep, forage, and cash crops. Emily has spent most of her time helping run her family’s lamb feedlot, which feeds 12,000 lambs per year. Her daily activities include making feed, sorting lambs, bedding lambs, and doing daily barn checks. In addition to lambs, Emily helps the farm produce 3,500 acres of cash crops, including hay, winter wheat, corn, and soybeans. We asked Emily why she chose her SAE and she responded, “Choosing an SAE that would allow me to help my family on the farm was a given to me. I wanted my SAE to be a place for me to be more educated and have as many hands-on experiences as possible, but also one in which I could work alongside my family.” Congratulations, Emily, on being named a finalist for Star in Agricultural Placement!
Joe Weiss from the North Huron FFA chapter is the last finalist for Star in Agricultural Placement! Joe’s SAE is diversified crop production, where he works on his family farm to help farm 2,700 acres of sugar beets, wheat, corn, soybeans, and black beans. They also raise 270 beef cattle on our farm, and Joe plays a role on both sides of the farm. His tasks and jobs can vary greatly to cover a wide spread of skills. We asked Joe what skills he has gained while working on his SAE and he said, “In my SAE I have gained a lot of skills all from the different tasks I do. The most important skills I have learned are how to operate all types of machinery, how to drive a semi, time management skills, and just general working knowledge that I will know when I continue to work on the farm.” Congratulations, Joe, on being named a finalist for Star in Agricultural Placement!
We are very proud of the Agricultural Placement finalists and cannot wait to see their projects continue to develop. Be sure to join us for the 93rd Michigan FFA State Convention the week of April 19, 2021 to watch the Star in Agricultural Placement award ceremony. Tune in on the Michigan FFA Facebook page!
Written by Sarah Albrecht, State Secretary
