Last week, National FFA Officers Mary Schrieber, central region vice president, and Luke Jennings, secretary, visited AEM’s Milwaukee office to talk to AEM staff about the value of FFA, its impact in and beyond the agricultural world, and how AEM and its member companies can get involved.
The equipment manufacturing industry has a growing need for workforce solutions – something that the FFA is working to move the needle on.
“Our more than one million members will eventually take on positions in the industry, or positions like you are working in today. As AEM grows, and the industry grows, we’re going to need that pipeline of skilled workers, and the National FFA Organization is investing in creating that,” said Schrieber.
FFA celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2024, and the organization looks toward a bright future with new initiatives in the works. Included in those initiatives is an effort to make sure that students of all backgrounds can participate in FFA if they want to in the future.
“We're making sure to diversify every opportunity every student, and that whether you come from hundreds of acres and your family's been farming for 10 generations or you live in a major city across America, there are opportunities to get involved,” said Jennings.
AEM is a longstanding supporter of the National FFA Organization, and recently established a Youth Industry Engagement Council to further support organizations like it. The Youth Engagement Council connects AEM membership with youth groups like FFA, AFA, and 4H to grow the future of our industry.
For more information on the Youth Industry Engagement Council, or to get involved, contact AEM’s Trevor Calewart at tcalewart@aem.org.
