With the start of another school year many teachers will be teaching about the FFA creed. Several past Friday Footnotes have looked at the origin of the FFA creed and attempts to revise it. You might want to review these past postings to enhance your teaching about the FFA Creed. They are:
- The Origins and Revisions of the FFA Creed (1/17/2020)
- The Failed Revision of the FFA Creed (1/24/2020)
- In the Room Where it Happened (1/31/2020)
A few weeks ago I was copied on some correspondence to the National FFA Organization about the FFA Creed contest. It was an interesting read. The author of the email, Tony Romero, had judging a FFA Creed Speaking contest in Virginia. His qualifications for judging the contest were that he was available and was married to an agriculture teacher. But other than that, he had little previous knowledge of the FFA Creed.
Based upon this experience, he had some suggestions. Tony has given me permission to share his observations and suggestions with the profession. He has also posted a musical rendition of a possible revised creed on YouTube. You may want to share this video with your students and see what they think. Here is what Tony wrote:
Dear FFA National Leadership,
Topic: An idea to better connect with today’s youth and increase the impact of the organization.
Bottom Line Up Front: Revise the FFA creed to resonate with 21st-century students, emphasizing that agriculture is all around us.
Hello, my name is Tony Romero and in 2024 I had the privilege of judging an FFA Creed Speaking contest in Virginia. My qualifications for this task were simply this; I was available and was asked by my Ag teacher wife for help. While it was my first time as a judge, I had attended other contests, including Creed Speaking, to help out in various ways. I’ve also attended countless FFA banquets, several State Conventions and a couple of National Conventions.
As I watched each competitor recite the Creed and answer questions, three things stuck out to me. Firstly, each competitor’s courage. These brave young teenagers fought back nerves and self-doubt to compete at a very high level. The second thing that stuck out to me came as the participants answered questions. Half of the competitors live on working farms and easily answered the questions. The other half did not live on farms and their answers seemed much more forced. This half was struggling to reconcile certain parts of the creed with their own experiences. The final, and I feel most telling, thing I noticed was that there was no passion in the words spoken by the contestants. Now I know that nerves play a major role in keeping any public speaking effort from seeming genuine, honest and heartfelt; however, these competitors were struggling with both the phrasing of the words and convincing me that the message was one they could truly understand and relate to. The competitors were obviously well prepared and were well trained as to the meaning of each section; but what I didn’t see in their eyes was an inherent understanding of what they were saying.
Granted I probably see the world quite differently than both the competitors of this competition and most, if not all, of the judges. I was born in 1961 in Washington D.C. and have lived the vast majority of my life in Annandale, a suburb of Washington D.C, (which I’ve since learned is known as Fairfax County in other circles). I have no formal, or otherwise, Ag education. My first real exposure to Agriculture came while dating my wife in 1998.
My first prolonged experience in a non-suburban area came in the early 1980s when I attended James Madison University in Harrisonburg Virginia. There I learned a different meaning to the term Northern Virginia. Being a naive, idealistic young man, it wasn’t until my sophomore year that I realized that being called a “Northern Virginian” was meant as a derogatory term. I was being stereotyped as a rich, privileged snob. Someone who felt everyone who lived in rural areas was beneath them. Nothing could have been farther from the truth. This experience has not been isolated to JMU or Harrisonburg; I’ve gotten the same look when I’ve told people I’m from Fairfax County when attending FFA Banquets, Ruritan and even church events in more rural areas. I’ve attended more than one event where the keynote speaker tells the “joke” about “northerners” believing that their food comes from a grocery store (instead of from farmers). This “joke” is generally met with confirming quiet laughs and nodding heads. To be fair, these instances are in the far minority of my experiences. The vast majority of my interactions with those that live in rural areas have been respectful, understanding and accepting; however, it would not surprise me to find this same bias across our great nation.
I believe the Creed is an opportunity to further connect rural and urban communities, extending its reach to all regions where agriculture exists; an opportunity to break down stereotypes, promote the diverse range of agricultural pursuits, and present FFA values to a broader audience.
With all of the above being said, my band has produced its own agriculture creed. The Bent Ruler Band Agriculture Creed (BRB AC) attempts to modernize the phrasing, language and focus of the creed in hopes of better relating to today’s (2024) youth. The BRB AC provides a nod to technology, to collaboration, to diversity and inclusion while highlighting the values of the FFA and those in agriculture. I respectfully present BRB’s AC for your consideration. A video has been produced to introduce the creed. It can be viewed on YouTube by searching for “Bent Ruler Band Agriculture Creed” in any search engine or by using the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyscnNG_UAE
I sincerely thank you for your time,
Tony Romero
Bent Ruler Band
-Tony Romero ( bentrulerband@gmail.com )
Concluding Remarks
The FFA has a long history and many revered traditions. However, we must be willing to consider changes as the world around us changes. I applaud Tony for taking the time to put his thoughts on paper (and in music). It gives us something to think about as we start a new school year.
Here is the link to the video in case you missed it above. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyscnNG_UAE