Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE – On Thursday, March 25, students from southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois came to the University of Wisconsin-Platteville for the annual FFA Skills Contest. UWP has been holding this event for the last 27 years.

This year, more than 57 schools participated in the event, bringing more than 380 teams made up of 1,800 high school students. The students began the day with an opening session in the Ullsvik Center. After the large group session, members of each team attended their respective contests, everything from evaluating dairy cattle, to identifying wildlife species, to trying to sell an agriculture product. The contests were held in the Pioneer Student Center, the Ullsvik Center, Russell Hall and at the Pioneer Farm.

There were 13 contests held, including: agricultural mechanics, agronomy, dairy cattle, junior dairy cattle, dairy products, farm business management, floriculture, horses, livestock, meats, poultry, sales, and wildlife.

I am grateful for the help of the UWP faculty and students for the time that they spent preparing and hosting these events. This event couldn't happen without their cooperation. I'm so happy UWP has the facilities like the Pioneer Farm and the student center to host these events, said Dr. Mark Zidon, professor in the School of Agriculture.

Some of the students who scored well in the competition have earned a chance to compete at the state FFA skills contest held in Madison on Friday, April 30.

Six events qualify students to compete at the state level. They include agricultural mechanics, dairy cattle, livestock, horses, floriculture and wildlife.

We're hoping to provide a meaningful learning experience for the students Zidon concluded.

For more information about the contest or to view the results go to http://www.uwplatt.edu/ffa/cde.