Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports 2016 Impact of being a West Virginia State FFA President on Career and Personal Accomplishments as Perceived by Past State FFA Presidents 1955 to 2005 Jada M. Bennett Follow this and additional works at: https://researchrepository.edu/etd Recommended Citation Bennett, Jada M., "Impact of being a West Virginia State FFA President on Career and Personal Accomplishments as Perceived by Past State FFA Presidents 1955 to 2005" (2016). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports.edu/etd/5185 This Thesis is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by the The Research Repository @ WVU with permission from the rights-holder(s).
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Impact of being a West Virginia State FFA President on Career and Personal Accomplishments as Perceived by Past State FFA Presidents 1955 to 2005 Jada M. Bennett Thesis submitted to the Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design at West Virginia University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Agricultural and Extension Education Deborah A. School of Design and Community Development Morgantown, West Virginia 2016 Keywords: FFA, State President, State Officer, West Virginia Copyright 2016 Jada M. Bennett ABSTRACT Impact of being a West Virginia State FFA President on Career and Personal Accomplishments as Perceived by Past State FFA Presidents 1955 to 2005 Jada M.
Bennett This descriptive survey study was designed to identify the impact of being a West Virginia State FFA President elected between the years of 1955-2005 on career and personal accomplishments. The population consisted of 51 people who were elected to the office of West Virginia FFA President, the response rate was 69%. A survey which was composed of four main question sets was mailed to the accessible population. Questions focused on their SAE and FFA experience, involvement in community and school activities, leadership skills, and demographics.
Data were collected and analyzed to identify contributing factors in each of the constructs. The study found that leadership skills were influenced by their FFA experience, specifically being a State President, and the respondents were active members of the community. Several indicated how FFA had an impact on their lives and they were appreciative of the opportunity. Some remarked that the experience lead them to their current careers.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are times in your life when things line up perfectly to take you on a great adventure. Sometimes the things that line up seem as though they are horrible situations, but in turn becoming an enormous blessing. My graduate school experience has been one of these amazing blessings. It has taken me down a path I never thought I would go down and allowed me to take the adventure of a lifetime.
Along this path have been supporters and key contributors to my success in this program. First, the greatest advisor I could have asked for, Dr. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for putting up with me through the last two years. Whether it was needing to vent, asking advice, or threatening to quit; you were the greatest advisor.
Thank you to my other committee members Dr. Harry Boone, and Dr. Harry, you are such an inspiration to your students and such an amazing mentor through the graduate school process. Gartin, thank you for your help and motivation and always making sure to ask your students the most important question, “How are you doing?” Without both of you this experience would not have been possible.
Thank you Dr. Gary Wingenbach, Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture, for allowing me the use some of your survey questions. Your research allowed me to have a wonderful starting point for this study. To my graduate student peers, it was so wonderful taking this ride with you.
It was also a little terrifying but let’s try to erase the memories of final exams. You were all so helpful in calming me down and helping me reach my goals. Thank you for being there for me and know that I will always be here for you. iii Thank you to my co-workers, Stacey, Sherry, and Margaret for listening to me complain and encouraging me to keep going.
To my loving and supportive family thank you for believing in me. Thank you to my in-laws who were always offering a word of encouragement and understanding when plans were cancelled because of school. Thank you to my best friend, Jesica Streets for being the one person who was always willing to listen to me complain. Thank you to my mom for pushing me, believing in me, and giving me your fighting spirit and belief that things will always work out for the best.
Thank you to my dad for instilling the love for agriculture in me at an early age and encouraging me to fight for my dreams. Most importantly, thank you to my wonderful husband, Charlie Bennett, for supporting me, pushing me, and picking me up when all I wanted to do was cry in the corner. You are the greatest husband and I love you so very much. Graduate school has not been easy, and at times seemed like a bigger hassle than it was worth, but I am so grateful and appreciative of this opportunity and all the people who have helped me through it.
iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS.v LIST OF TABLES. viii CHAPTER I: Introduction .1 Statement of the Problem .2 Purpose of the Study .2 Objectives of the Study .3 Limitations of the Study .3 CHAPTER II: Review of Literature .4 FFA Members Staying in Agriculture Related Fields .6 CHAPTER III: Methodology.8 Purpose of the Study .8 Objectives of the Study .10 Data Collection Procedure .10 Analysis of Data.11 Use of Findings .12 v CHAPTER IV: Data Analysis .13 Purpose of the Study .13 Objectives of the Study .13 Current Level of FFA Involvement .21 FFA and Extracurricular Activities.30 Participation in Activities .32 Participation in Activities Outside of High School .35 Activities Participated in College .39 CHAPTER V: Conclusions/Recommendations/Implications.71 Purpose of the Study .71 Objectives of the Study .74 Recommendations for Further Studies .78 APPENDIX A: Cover Letter .81 APPENDIX C: Responses to Initial Professional Career .94 Responses to Initial Professional Career .95 vi APPENDIX D: Responses to Current or at Retirement Professional Career .96 Responses to current or at retirement career .97 APPENDIX E: Responses to Organizations Holding Leadership Roles .99 Responses to Organizations Holding Leadership Roles.100 APPENDIX F: Other Comments .108 vii LIST OF TABLES Table Title Page 1 Gender of Participants. 14 2 Current Place of Residence.
14 3 Place of Residence during FFA. 15 4 Current Employment Status. 16 5 Initial Professional Career. 17 6 Initial Professional Career Field.
18 7 Current Job Career Status. 18 8 Current Professional Career Field. 19 9 Age of Participants at time of Survey. 20 10 Educational Attainment by Participants.
21 11 Current Involvement in FFA. 23 12 Supervised Agriculture Experience of State Presidents. 25 13 Relationship between Careers and SAE. 26 14 Chapter Office Held.
27 15 Competitions Competed in as an FFA Member. 29 16 Competitions Competed in as an FFA Member. 30 17 Number of Members in Home Chapter. 31 18 Other FFA Awards and Recognition.
32 19 Activities Participated in Outside of High School. 36 20 Activities Participated in College. 38 21 Ability to Determine Personal Needs and FFA’s Influence. 40 viii 22 Have a Positive Self-Concept and FFA’s Influence.
41 23 Ability to Express Feelings and FFA’s Influence. 42 24 Ability to Set Personal Goals and FFA’s Influence. 43 25 Ability to Set Group Goals and FFA’s Influence. 44 26 Ability to be Honest with Others and FFA’s Influence.
45 27 Ability to Use Information to Solve Problems and FFA’s Influence. 46 28 Ability to Delegate Responsibility and FFA’s Influence. 47 29 Ability to Set Priorities and FFA’s Influence. 48 30 Sensitivity to Others and FFA’s Influence.
50 31 Respondent’s Sense of Being Open Minded and FFA’s Influence. 51 32 Consideration for the Needs of Others and FFA’s Influence. 52 33 Ability to Show a Responsible Attitude and FFA’s Influence. 53 34 Having a Friendly Personality and FFA’s Influence on Personality.
54 35 Considers Input from All Group Members and FFA’s Influence. 55 36 Ability to Listen Effectively and FFA’s Influence. 56 37 Ability to Select Alternatives and FFA’s Influence. 57 38 Respect Others and FFA’s Influence.
58 39 Ability to Solve Problems and FFA’s Influence. 59 40 Ability to Handle Mistakes and FFA’s Influence. 60 41 Ability to be Tactful and FFA’s Influence. 61 42 Ability to be Flexible and FFA’s Influence.
62 43 Ability to Get Along with Others and FFA’s Influence. 63 44 Ability to Clarify Personal Values and FFA’s Influence. 64 ix 45 Ability to Use Rational Thinking and FFA’s Influence. 65 46 Open to Change and FFA’s Influence.
66 47 Possess Good Manners and FFA’s Influence. 67 48 Ability to Trust Other People and FFA’s Influence. 68 49 Ability to Lead a Team and FFA’s Influence. 69 50 Ability to Follow Guidelines and FFA’s Influence.
70 x CHAPTER I Introduction The National FFA Organization (FFA) is a youth organization that prides itself on developing students into successful individuals and future leaders. “FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education” (National FFA Organization, 2015, p. In 2015 The National FFA organization reports, “629,367 FFA members, aged 12‒21, in 7,757 chapters in all 50 states, Puerto Rico and the U. Virgin Islands” (National FFA Organization, 2015, p.
The National FFA organization at all levels works to develop student skills in career fields through training and developing leadership techniques. The question remains as to how effective this training has been in assisting students to develop their leadership skills and reach career goals. According to the National FFA official manual; FFA members who take advantage of the many leadership opportunities in FFA become top leaders in the organization. Each state elects a group of student officers to lead its membership for the year.
Qualified candidates must have obtained the State FFA Degree. Once elected, state officers engage in a leadership development continuum that reinforces their prior knowledge and trainings for position-related work that builds upon each other… state officers lead the membership of the associations and are 1 elected by state convention delegates (National FFA Organization, 2015, p. A study by Brannon, Holley and Key (1989) found that individuals with a vocational agriculture background had a “higher degree of involvement in community activities than non-vocational agriculture participants” (p 42). Wingenbach (1995), found in a study of 316 students taking agriculture classes that leadership opportunities in non FFA related areas was much lower than what FFA offered.
The study also found that of the areas of sports, church groups, after school jobs, and 4-H offered the highest leadership opportunities when compared to FFA, but was not higher than FFA. Statement of the Problem Although it is stated that FFA members who take advantage of the many leadership opportunities become top leaders in the organization, little research has been found that addresses the impact of past state officers.