While attending the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays caught up with current National FFA President Amara Jackson to talk about her year of service as it is coming to an end.
Jackson said that she didn’t love agricultural education when she was first put in the class during her freshman year of high school. She was already busy with her horse, dance, band, and serving on the student council. Her older sister convinced her to attend one FFA meeting and the rest is history.
“After that, I fell in love with the people, my agricultural educators, and their support,” she shared. “Then I went to my first state convention in Michigan, and that’s when I realized how much opportunity there was for students like me and how much of a priority I wanted FFA to be in my life.”
She competed in Prepared Public Speaking and Parliamentary Procedure during her time in FFA and feels that they taught her to be a better communicator, to take control of a room, and to better connect with the people around her.
“There were other conferences and conventions that I attended and the support of my ag teachers who believed in me; each of those pieces made me who I am today,” she added.
Although she is currently attending Oklahoma State University, Jackson served as a Michigan State FFA Officer from 2021 to 2022. She missed getting a National Office in 2022, but she redirected, transferred to OSU, and grew and developed as a person.
“It was January 2023 when I still had this feeling that maybe I do want to try again to serve as a National Officer,” she allowed. “I interviewed in May 2023 to be a Michigan National Officer candidate and was selected. That proved to me that everything has a perfect time and a perfect place.”
She worked hard all summer to prepare for the 2023 Convention and was thrilled to hear her name called on Saturday afternoon. “It’s been an absolutely amazing year, and I’m thankful for the lesson learned that everything happens at the right time,” she said.
A special memory that she shared was a trip to Japan with her teammates where they toured a grain storage facility. Jackson began talking with the facility manager about the functions of the machines, and imports and exports, and the impact that American agriculture has on Japanese agriculture.
“He stopped me for a moment and said, ‘I just want you to know how much American agriculture impacts our country’s agricultural industry. I don’t think you understand that American farmers and ranchers allow us to live in an environment which we can thrive in. I just hope that you all in America know how important your agricultural industry is to us.’ Standing on Japanese soil and seeing an American cargo ship with an American flag and listening to this employee tell me this just changed my whole perspective on agriculture’s impact on the global scale.”
With this new perspective, Jackson made it a personal goal to share that story with other agriculturalists so they would know that agriculture is making a difference. She hopes that on the days when the market isn’t favorable or rain doesn’t fall, that knowledge will give farmers and ranchers the boost they need to persevere.
Jackson said that FFA has given her the chance to discover her potential. “I remember coming in as a Freshman. I was very social, but I didn’t have a strong direction in what I wanted to do or how I would serve,” she shared. “I came from an ag background, but I didn’t know my true passion for agriculture and that it was a choice I could make to enter into a career in agriculture.”
Through FFA, she found her passion, discovered her own potential, and served others in her official and personal capacity. After finishing her Ag Communications in Agribusiness degree at OSU, Jackson plans to go to law school to focus on Farm Succession and Estate Planning through studying State and Tax Law.
Click here to see the website for the National FFA Convention for 2024 in Indianapolis.
Our coverage of Oklahoma FFA engaged at the National FFA Convention is being powered again in 2024 by Oklahoma Farm Bureau. Watch for our stories and interviews from Indianapolis on our Website, Daily Email, our statewide Radio Oklahoma Ag Network and our Social Media Channels. Click here for the OKFB website to learn about how they are making a difference in the lives of Oklahomans. Oklahoma Farm Bureau supports the youth of rural Oklahoma year round- and reminds you- Together- We Are Rural Oklahoma!
