Leaders will emerge at the upcoming Agriculture Future of America Conference

by Breanne Brammer, posted Oct. 28, 2011

Imagine an event where the nation's top collegiate agricultural students meet to further their agriculture knowledge, develop skills for workplace preparation and network with agriculture industry leaders. The upcoming national Agriculture Future of America Conference will be such an event, and is held in Kansas City at the Hyatt Regency Crown Center on Nov. 3-6.

Mizzou will be well represented by having 52 of the 500 delegates. This is one of the largest groups of Mizzou students to attend the conference. Students will serve as delegates, scholarship recipients and officers.

Lance Day is an MU junior animal science and pre-vet major from Pilot Grove and serves as a member of the national AFA student advisory team, which works year-round to plan the conference. He has been involved in AFA since his senior year of high school and encourages others to become active in the organization.

"The conference, in general, is one of the premier conferences I know within a college career," Day said. "The experience you get can only be obtained there. You can go sit down at a table with executives of leading agriculture companies and start a conversation. You realize that we are all worried about the same things in the agriculture industry. To be able to have those relationships is invaluable."

To be eligible to attend, delegates must be selected through a written application and have a 3.0 GPA or higher, attend a four-year institution, possess a passion for agriculture and plan to pursue a career in the agriculture industry.

AFA offers three tracks for students; track one is for freshmen, track two for sophomores and juniors and track three for juniors and seniors. The 2011 conference schedule includes resume, interview and career skill building and lessons on professional etiquette. Workshops are held over creativity in the workplace, the road to success and unleashing the most positive you. There will be a chance for students to listen to leading agricultural speakers and network with fellow agricultural students and leaders from across the country.

According to the AFA website, "(AFA) challenges student leaders to discover where they fit in an industry as diverse and dynamic as agriculture."

Students can see where they fit into the agriculture world at the AFA Opportunity Fair, which reaches out to students searching for agriculture industry internships or jobs. The fair consists of the top agricultural companies in the nation. They are all there, specifically at AFA, to recruit prospective employees.

AFA's conference theme this year is "My Piece. My Place. Our Future" and will focus on finding student's niches within the agriculture industry. Kathryn Coon is a freshman agricultural business and agricultural education major from North Shelby. This is Coon's first AFA conference and she will be receiving a community scholarship and participate in track one.

"I went through an interview process to get a scholarship and I and three girls from my high school ended up getting the scholarship," Coon said. "From there I was told about the conference and knew I needed to get all of my conference information in line."

Coon is most excited to network with agriculture students and industry leaders and believes that the opportunity fair will broaden her horizons. She hopes it will prepare her for a career in agricultural education and give her a background for a variety of agricultural careers.

AFA President and CEO, K. Russell Weathers, sends an encouraging message to agriculturists.

"Agriculture needs strong leaders," Weathers said. "People with passion and talent who believe in themselves and the future, who are committed to making a difference and who are willing to embrace the challenges of the 21st century."

"It's one of the best things a student can do in the agriculture industry," Day said. "There are so many opportunities in AFA. Saying you attended the AFA conference sets you apart. When it comes time to hire, representatives say they look for students that come from AFA."

The AFA conference will prepare Mizzou students for a career in the agriculture industry and mold them into knowledgeable and competent leaders. With a majority of Missouri's AFA collegiate delegates hailing from Mizzou, the future of Mizzou agricultural students is looking bright.

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