McClain High School FFA Chapter attends 63rd State Convention

On May 1-2, the McClain High School FFA Chapter attended the 63rd State Convention held at the Ohio State Fairgrounds.

McClain was one of the 603 FFA chapters across Ohio to participate.

Tommy Free, Ryan Faulconer, and Wyatt Jones were among 701 other members to receive their state degrees. These three young men have worked hard not only in the classroom, but also countless hours outside working on projects and attending Career Development Events (CDE).

Tommy Free was also a finalist in Vegetable Production Efficiency. On Thursday, Free was interviewed on his Supervised Agriculture Experience (SAE) pumpkin patch project and placed third overall.

Four members also competed in the AG Science Fair. This was McClain's first year submitting a project. Members participating included freshmen Kaylee Hurley and Shanoah Graham and juniors Shelby Dodds and Tommy Free.

Hurley and Graham competed in Division 3 Food Science and Technology with their project titled, "The Whole Scoop On Ice Cream," which focused on the overrun percentage in processed vanilla ice cream. They were awarded a silver rating.

Shelby Dodds and Tommy Free took part in Division 4 Power and Energy with their projected "Watts In The Barn," focusing on the evolution of the light bulb. They received a gold rating and placed first overall.

Senior Ryan Kline presented his speech entitled "Old McDonald's New Farm: Effects Of Cloning In Agriculture," which had won him first place in the Public Speaking CDE earlier this year. Kline will compete once again at National Convention in October.

Member Hannah Hodge took part in equine judging where she judged and placed in one class of riding horses, and a halter class. After ranking the horses, Hannah deliberated with judges on why she placed the way she did. Hannah was sixth overall.

In addition to the awards, McClain also had three members participating in state FFA choir. Members included Ryan Kline, Shelby Dodds, and Wyatt Jones.

Overall, McClain was very successful throughout the past year and hopes to build on that success next year. We would also like to thank everyone who has helped and supported the McClain FFA chapter this year.