More Than Just the Blue Jacket
Noah Boykin works on his agriscience project about plant growth and rooting hormones.
Being an FFA member, especially in high school, can provide some of the best moments of your life. However, it is important to note that many members juggle more activities on top of their participation in FFA.
For example, Noah Boykin is a junior in high school who has a very full plate. He serves as secretary for the Screven County High School FFA Chapter in Georgia, which includes planning many events, organizing the calendar and other responsibilities. Boykin has been very involved in FFA since middle school. He also competes in many career development events, such as floriculture, nursery and landscaping, agriscience, environmental and natural resources, and parliamentary procedure.
Boykin (far right) and his fellow floriculture members prepare to compete at the area competition. During this competition, Boykin won high individual and placed first overall.
That is not where his involvement ends. Boykin is also employed part time at Ron’s Greenhouse, where he helps with plant care and does most of the heavy lifting. Furthermore, he serves as the team manager for the Screven County High School girls cross country team and plays third singles on the Screven County High School tennis team.
This is a very long list of activities and extracurriculars, and Boykin also takes four college-level AP classes. So, his workload is larger than most. One has to wonder, “How does he do it?”
First and foremost, Boykin puts his involvement in FFA above his extracurricular activities. He makes it clear to coaches and bosses that he has responsibilities in FFA that he has to work around. Boykin says his favorite way to keep his tasks organized is to keep a To Do list on his phone that he updates regularly.
Boykin also says that FFA always adds to his life, and he rarely feels as though he is “busy” or “swamped” with tasks within his chapter. After all, he does a lot of plant science work in his free time and keeps his own hobby greenhouse. “FFA has allowed me to compete and delve deeper into these things through activities like floriculture, nursery and landscape, and my agriscience project,” Boykin says.
He also made it clear that FFA is so rewarding that he is happy to continue to devote his time to it. “Through all the things I get to do, such as compete in CDEs and be a leader in my school and community, FFA has made it very worth it, even though I am busier,” he says. “Being able to do something I love through FFA does not make me feel busy because I enjoy what I do in FFA so much.”
Boykin helps recruit freshmen members by helping with games and activities at Greenhand Night.
Boykin’s dedication to FFA while remaining involved in other aspects of the high school experience serves as inspiration to anyone who is scared to try something new or fears they won’t be able to manage multiple activities and school. His story shows that when you love something enough, it doesn’t feel like a burden.
