The Eastern Lebanon County FFA officers and Superintendent Julia Vicente, who gave the pitch.
The Eastern Lebanon County FFA Chapter (ELCO FFA) made the first steps to advance the future of its agricultural education program by “pitching” an idea.
Background
At the beginning of the school year, District Superintendent Julia Vicente came to the ELCO FFA officer team with an idea. She asked, “Why don’t we start our journey with building a barn?”
This plan had been in the making among the school administration and school board for a few years. The idea came about when the school’s renovation process started. As the result of the new agricultural and technical education wing being completed, the idea started to gain traction.
Pitch Process
First, Vicente presented the idea to the whole chapter during a “Food and Business (FAB) Night.” These nights include conducting committee meetings, practicing for career development events (CDEs) and more. From there, the members in attendance provided their input on the barn’s design. Their list included the style of barn, pen shape and special features, such as a tack room and wash racks, as well as what kind of species they were interested in raising. As a result, Vicente got a taste of what the future of the ELCO FFA agriculture department could look like.
This year the kick-start began as an initiative to share the idea with the community. In the winter, the officer team met with members from the Lebanon County Chamber of Commerce. The meeting covered the basis of what the barn pitch should look like. Individuals in attendance included Karen Groh, who works for the chamber, and Danielle Gundrum, the winner of the first Lebanon County Chamber of Commerce Pitch Contest. The team also included Jennifer Martin, the ELCO career facilitator. These women met with the team several times to help develop and create an effective presentation.
As the months continued, the seven officers in charge of delivering the pitch began to make their speaking parts more personal. Furthermore, they included pieces of their journeys in agriculture as well as ways the barn could benefit future generations of students and its ability to serve as a community resource.
Part of the script used in the presentation.
The Presentation
On May 15, 2025, the officers displayed their hard work. The agriculture room, which was filled with about 50 business representatives, local and state legislators and other vital collaborators, and the barn came to life. This is just the beginning of what the future of agriculture could look like for this chapter and community.
All of the members, teachers, administrators and chapter partners who helped or presented at the pitch event.
