COVID-19

Motivation and active engagement remain relevant topics when studying FFA members and FFA advisors, especially since COVID-19. This report includes results from 419 FFA members we surveyed in early 2024. It specifically highlights survey questions centered around motivation and active engagement. Findings reveal that FFA members and agriculture teachers/FFA advisors seem to be out of sync when it comes to the perception of student motivation levels. Agriculture educators should take members’ feedback found throughout this report and use it to help bridge the gap in perceived motivation and engagement levels between FFA members and agriculture teachers/FFA advisors. Lasting impact? The perceived effect of COVID-19 on members’ motivation levels varies. 1 in 3 FFA advisors (N=2,002) identified lack of student motivation as their biggest challenge in a 2023 survey.1 Over half of the FFA members surveyed in 2024 (59%, N=246) said that COVID-19 had no effect on their motivation to do well in school. Be an active participant: FFA members report high levels of motivation and active engagement in their FFA chapters. A series of validated scales [...]

National Days of Service is an annual opportunity for FFA members attending the National FFA Convention & Expo to give back through service projects at sites around the host city. In 2020, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, FFA launched the first-ever nationwide National Days of Service. Throughout the month of October, 8,014 volunteers representing 340 chapters from 45 states and Puerto Rico logged 24,321 hours of service. 8,014 student volunteers created $661,531 in economic impact Most of the volunteers were FFA members, and FFA advisors participated as well. The collective effort produced an economic impact of $661,531 nationwide.1 What’s more, the participants enjoyed their time spent at their respective service projects: FFA members and adults alike rated the virtual event 4.5 out of 5 stars. Year Economic Impact 2018 $173,324 2019 $168,804 2020 $661,531 FFA members believe volunteerism is essential We asked FFA members about their volunteerism. FFA members agreed or strongly agreed that…2 Volunteering my time is essential for my personal growth (95%) I volunteered because I wanted to (84%) Volunteer work is an important [...]

When the new coronavirus (COVID-19) became a worldwide pandemic, National FFA events previously scheduled to take place in person had to transition to virtual events swiftly. This summer, two leadership and professional development trainings—with audiences spanning from in-service teachers to state FFA officers—still took place despite the limitations surrounding in-person gatherings. The National Teacher Ambassadors for FFA training took place in June, while the State Officer Summit took place in July. National Teacher Ambassadors for FFA Training: June 8-12 and June 15-19, 2020 2020 Format: Live Zoom sessions, pre-recorded video messaging and networking time in Zoom Typically, the National Teacher Ambassadors for FFA term begins with a summer training where ambassadors convene in Indianapolis in mid-June. Not only do ambassadors get to network and meet each other, but the training also provides an opportunity for ambassadors to learn about FFA educator resources and brainstorm how they will share the resources with their peers through interactive workshops. This essential training also outlines the expectations of the ambassadors. The team at National FFA executed virtual training—using Zoom—that took [...]

The new coronavirus (COVID-19) became a worldwide pandemic in early 2020, prompting businesses and organizations to close throughout the United States. Perhaps two of the most impacted groups by the closings and limits on social gatherings were teachers and students. When schools closed, many faced the challenge of transitioning to e-learning to finish the school year. Canceled conferences and events also impacted participants. National FFA took the following actions to ensure that the FFA mission was still being delivered to members and teachers in the wake of COVID-19: Educator Resources National FFA recognized the potential difficulty of moving all learning online in a short time. To help ease the burden on agriculture educators, FFA took actions ranging from providing the 2017 National FFA Student Handbook online for free to creating a guide on distance learning. Analytics1 revealed that the 2017 Official FFA Student Handbook (English) was one of the top 10 accessed educator resources in both March and April, along with supervised agricultural experience (SAE) videos, the generic activity worksheet for SAE videos, and SAE choice [...]