This FFA Chapter Found a New Future

In August 2026, students from the LaSalle-Peru FFA Chapter in Illinois entered their new agriculture facility to celebrate two milestones — the revitalization of the school’s FFA chapter and a brand new ag facility. For junior member Mollie Thomson, it was the culmination of years of hard work convincing school leaders to invest in the district’s agriculture program.

“When I was in eighth grade, I went to an open house where you could explore different clubs and see the school,” she says. “I said to my parents, ‘Where’s the FFA program?’ I approached the superintendent about it, and he offered to set up a meeting.”

The school had an FFA chapter from 1938 until 2009, when it was closed. With Thomson, now the FFA chapter’s president, leading the advocacy effort, the chapter rechartered at the beginning of the 2025–26 school year. Forty-eight students joined the first year, and just one year later, membership doubled to 102, which Riley Hintzsche, the ag teacher and FFA advisor, attributes to Chapter Vice President Drake Margis’s passion for recruiting new members.

“FFA changed me,” Margis says. “I’m a lot more comfortable talking in a public setting and taking on a leadership role, and I really love our ag classes. I talk to students about that and how our teacher is awesome.”

New Facilities

When the school board approved rechartering the chapter, students and community stakeholders worked with the board to receive approval for a new state-of-the-art facility to house three new classes, including animal science, veterinary science and an introduction to agriculture class. The facility also includes a head house and floral design room, an FFA workroom, a full commercial kitchen, an ag mechanic shop and additional student spaces. Future plans include the construction of a veterinary science building.

“This spring, we’re hosting a Think Oink program, where we’ll have a sow who will farrow on campus,” Hintzsche says. “Having livestock in town meant going through the City Council to request an ordinance, and one of the most exciting things is that we can bring livestock to town for our students to work with.”

Advocating for the agriculture program and FFA chapter required work, determination and many hours at meetings. 

“I had a bunch of people tell me I was wasting my time and there was no point in doing this,” Thomson says. “If you’re passionate about something, don’t worry about what other people say. Put the work in and eventually it will happen.”