Professional Opportunities at ACES Conference

Did you know that ACES stands for Agricultural Cooperation Establishes Success? Also, did you know that this name was created by a pervious Derry FFA member? Awesome! I am amazed with all the ‘fun’ facts I learn about my chapter and its members, which made this past weekend one to remember!

On February 17^th and 18^th I was able to fully immerse myself in my first ACES conference. That is right, I said FIRST. Although I was a FFA member in high school, I never took the opportunity to attend this conference. Mr. Campbell, Mrs. Rippole and I were able to bring fifteen energetic and enthusiastic FFA members from Derry.

Selfie time with all the Derry FFA members

Throughout the weekend, our students were able to engage in agricultural based workshops, leadership activities, and social functions. Not only was this an amazing opportunity for the students, but even for agricultural educators. Mr. Campbell, Mrs. Rippole and I were able to participate in a professional development workshop and collaborate with other agriculture educators throughout the state.

Professional Development: As someone who has grown their roots in agriculture education through a growth mindset, I believe in professional development. This is because this is how educators stay relevant with the changing technologies and information within the agriculture industry, while learning new ways to teach material, with additional resources to use in the future. This year at ACES, agriculture educators were given an awesome experience through the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. The foundation’s program shared many materials and resources that can closely be aligned and integrated into agriculture education. Additionally, we were provided with contacts of personnel from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation to use in the future.

Courtesy Corps: Since this was my first FFA event as an ‘advisor’, this  was my first time helping with the FFA Courtesy Corps. FFA Courtesy Corps is a program where teacher help with student management in the hotel after curfew. We are guests in the hotel and it is important to make sure that the students represent themselves, their school, and the FFA with pride and distinction. As a result, after curfew has passed and students are to be in their rooms and quite, teachers split up among the floor to monitor the halls. If a student leaves their room, has the TV on too loud, or if they are talking/laughing too loud, the teacher will intervene. It was really awesome to help with this because it is something that I believe all teachers should volunteer for at one time or another. If everyone helps out from time-to-time, everyone can benefit as well. Plus, it is a great way to meet new agriculture educators from across the state.

Overall, ACES was awesome and full of opportunity to grow as an educator with other educators and FFA members.