A Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) is required for all active members in the FFA and also serves a purpose in teaching members some great life skills while still pertaining to agriculture.
These projects take place outside of the classroom and can be both short term or long term. Experiences can be accredited for something simple like gardening and job shadowing, or they can be more demanding such as raising/selling animals and building a lifelong business. Either way, students have the opportunity to get creative and learn lots about the career field/future hobby they are interested in, whether that be skills that they pick up during their experience, or even just some valuable information that they can use throughout their lifetime.
Furthermore, SAE projects give the members a way to stay active in FFA, more than what they are already doing during school hours. For example, many students take on tasks that they never could have imagined themselves doing. These projects help students take on some responsibility, build confidence and accomplish some lifelong goals.
Over the summer and throughout the school year, students have been diligently working on their SAEs. Many of our Hillsboro FFA members have been working on their family farms, taking on landscaping or gardening, volunteering their time at some of our local businesses, and so much more.
Jenna Rhoades has a forest management and products SAE project where she raises and sells Christmas trees. This will be her third year doing so.
Submitted by: Reagan Eastes, Hillsboro FFA Chapter treasurer.
