Adam Torres and Maddie Dvorak discuss Agriculture Future of America.
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Show Notes:
Agriculture Future of America offers opportunities to Texas FFA members who graduate out of the FFA program. In this episode, Adam Torres and Maddie Dvorak, Development Fellow at Agriculture Future of America, explore Maddie’s background as an FFA member and why she is excited to represent the Agriculture Future of America at the Texas FFA convention.
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About Maddie Dvorak
In my role with Agriculture Future of America, She built transformational leaders by creating and strengthening partnerships to diversify AFA’s partner portfolio and aim to create well-rounded experiences that showcase all aspects of the agriculture industry.
Maddie is passionate about building relationships that strengthen the agriculture industry. With her undergraduate studies in Food and Resource Economics and my pending Masters of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication, she aims to create lasting relationships that contribute to a robust food, agriculture, and natural resource industry.
About Agriculture Future of America
AFA creates partnerships that identify, encourage and support outstanding college students and young professionals pursuing careers in the agriculture and food industry. Founded in 1996 by R. Crosby Kemper and other agri-business leaders, AFA offers leader and career development training and community-based academic scholarships for individuals in college pursuing a career in an agriculture-related field. AFA members share the belief that the production, processing and distribution of food and fiber, with support for agriculture business services, are vital for our nation’s economy, both now and in the future. These individuals share three characteristics – they are talented, passionate and committed to a career in agriculture. AFA’s strength comes from its unique partnerships with rural communities, corporations, foundations, colleges, universities, and individuals that support academic development, leader development and career development. This network creates an atmosphere that stimulates the development of professionalism, intrapreneurialism and intellectualism – each a key factor in human capital development.
Full Unedited Transcript
Hey, I’d like to welcome you to another episode of Mission Matters. My name is Adam Torres, and I am coming to you from the. 95th annual Texas f f A convention. I am so excited and thrilled to be here. I’m covering the event all week and today I have Maddie on the show with the Agriculture Future of America.
Hey Maddie. First I just wanna say thank you for coming on the show. I. Thank you for having me. I’m excited to chat. Alright, so I’m learning as every year I come to convention as everybody that’s been following the show for knows for a long time. I learn I’m learning something new about not just Texas, but about our agriculture in tech and in the nation and worldwide really.
And the a f a, let’s just start with that and what you do there. Absolutely. So Agriculture, future America is that next step for students going into their collegiate careers. We work with students in food, agriculture, and natural resources to connect them with industry. We always say that we build bridges between industry and students.
So we really help students feel prepared when they enter the workforce after that four years of college. Hmm. When did, when did you first learn about or hear about the F F A, Texas f f a? So I was actually an f f A member in. Florida. Okay. So I was a state officer back in 2019 with Florida. And in Florida we actually have middle school.
I know, I think Texas has eighth grade. But I joined f F A in the sixth grade back in Florida. And what did that, like, what was that like going through like F f A and like, what was that for your like early development? Oh, transformational. I came from a suburban area in Florida, so central Florida is growing very rapidly and I had family that was kind of in the industry but on a different side of it.
Yeah. So when I was able to put on that blue jacket for the first time, I realized how important our farmers and ranchers were. And because of that passion, that’s kind of what led me to go into f f A even deeper and then major in college, in agriculture, economics, and then enter the workforce for agriculture as well.
Talk to me a little bit more about like the development side, like whether it’s leadership or otherwise, like kind of how did that work? So I think the most impactful piece of it for a long time was public speaking. I know that’s like the number one fear of a lot of people in the United States. Oh, yeah.
And so I did a lot of speaking contests in F F A, I did Creed and Prepared and Parliamentary procedure, which was another leadership development event that prepares students for how to run a meeting. And so each of those really just built on each other for that next step and, and really preparing me as a person to.
Be professional and understand the impact that agriculture has. Mm-hmm. Now, you mentioned being from like a suburban part of Florida, but then kind of going into F F A, like I feel like there’s maybe a misconception that everybody that’s part of F F A, like they’re either, you know, farmers or ranchers or they come from that lineage.
So many do. But there’s also the suburbanites like yourself that kind of made their way over. Absolutely. I think. That was key for me was realizing that you don’t necessarily have to come from production in order to be successful both as an F F A member or even in the industry. It’s having the passion for agriculture.
And so when you hear a rancher story, for me, citrus and cattle were in my backyard. And so when you hear about citrus greening impacting Florida or a hurricane that really took out a crop mm-hmm. That’s when I fell in love with what producers do and how hard they work. Yeah. And so it really takes everybody to support agriculture, not just those who are farmers and ranchers, but consumers who are helping spread the message about agriculture and just really making sure that everyone understands it’s not just farmers and ranchers that play a vital role.
It’s everybody in our food system that plays a vital role. So take me further through this journey. So, okay, so first you, you started young in f f a, you, you continued, you went through the whole system, and then now at what point did you kind of stumble upon a f a? So that was in college. I think. A lot of students in F F A would probably agree that when you graduate, you’re kind of waiting for that.
What’s next? Yeah. You know, you’ve been raised for years, you show the pig because you could, I don’t wanna assume that the audience at home knows what happens when you graduate. When you graduate, then you no longer wear the blue jacket, right? Correct. Okay. So once you graduate high school technically you’re, you’re out of it.
You can’t, you’re not as, you’re not eligible to compete for these things. And so a lot of times collegiate students were. Trying to find that hunger for what’s next. Where can I put these leadership skills? So a f a was kind of created for those students from a, from f f A to take that next step. So we have a leaders conference.
It’s not a leadership conference because we realize the student’s coming to us. Already have leadership skills. Yeah. And so when I was in that weird time in college, I was in college during C Ovid 19. Mm-hmm. I stumbled across a f a and that’s when I realized I wanted to apply for it. We are an application competitive program, so that’s that competitive edge of a FFA is you have to apply for our programming.
I went in the fall of 2021 and so that’s when I kind of got. Really just invested in it. And we have campus ambassadors. Yeah. So across I think 30 plus colleges across the country, we have an ambassador trying to promote students to come to our programming. So we’re really just trying to build it up and make sure that students know that once they get out of that blue jacket, there is something for them.
Yeah. What’s been one of your favorite parts of convention this year? Oh, seeing the faces, I love students. I worked with National F F A for a little bit and I love working with students. Yeah. And so seeing them just so excited to be here and so passionate about agriculture just brings me so much joy.
I tell everybody, and I know when I go back home and I’m talking about, and I’m all fired up and people are like, why are you so excited? I’m like, oh my gosh, I just had so much fun. All these students running around these blue jackets who are just like, So pumped and excited about agriculture, about life, about leadership, about meeting people, about new friends.
They met about old friends. That they’re getting back together to see, like absolutely. The whole culture around it. I just feel like it’s so positive, so friendly. Their energy is literally infectious. Because you have students that are just so excited and, and you see so many different parts of the state coming together.
You can have a chapter in Dallas. Mm-hmm. And you can have very rural Texas. Chapter meeting here and, and seeing those, those friendships form, and, and it’s incredible to know what this blue jacket does for young people. Mm-hmm. So you, you’re so a a is obviously here and looking to recruit, promote, and introduce.
We had a gentleman on earlier from the from the National Guard, I believe was here. Yeah. And we’re bringing other individuals. So for the, let’s talk to the companies for a little bit out there. So the corp, a lot of business owners, a lot of entrepreneurs, executives watch this show. Mm-hmm. Why should they be in front of this audience?
I think when we’re, and we work with partners, a ffa mm-hmm. Works with 150 partners in the ag, food and natural resource spaces. When you’re looking for that next crop of individuals, that next generation that you wanna bring in, that you wanna bring that energy as an, as an employee, as a, a next c e o in 20 years, this is where you find them.
This is where that leadership has already been ingrained from a young age. They understand what hard work looks like, and these students are, are ready to tackle the challenges that the world faces. Yeah. That, that, and that’s why we come. So Sean, who’s looking on right now as we’re recording this, we, he was one of our, our ambassadors last year, and then we brought him on and he’s been an intern while he’s in, he’s in college and and he’s the one that booked you for this?
Absolutely. Really? I don’t. Know of another organization that prepares students as well as, yeah, for the future as F F A. Yeah, it’s wonderful. Well, Maddie, just wanna say, really appreciate your time, making some time for us today and coming on the show and really sharing your story with our audience and our viewers so that they can see the magic that’s going on here at the Texas F F A Convention 95th year.
Maddie, thank you so much for coming on the show today. Thank you for having me.