A publication of the Texas Agricultural Education Family I 2011 Volume II, Issue IX

”Words with Friends”By: David Reiley, Seguin

TEXAS AG ED FAMILY

UPDATES

Continued on page 2...

VATAT pages 1 - 6Texas FFA page 7

Foundation page 11 Young Farmers pages 12 - 13

Texas FFA Alumni page 15

Health:theoverallconditionofanorganism at a given time; soundness,especially of body or mind; freedomfrom disease or abnormality; acondition of optimal well-being;concernedabouttheecologicalhealthofthearea. With the big “5-0” just monthsaway, I have started to think of allthe wonderful things I will get toexperience.Icanretirefromteachingintwoyears,andwithallofthemoneyIhavemadeIcantakeatripaweektosomefarawayexoticlocales.IwillbeabletovisitsuchplacesasGeronimo,Marion, New Braunfels, Kingsburyand even New Berlin. Geronimo hasthe Valero convenience store; Marionhas the hamburger joint; while NewBraunfelshastheStarbucks.ThereisEdna’s in Kingsbury, and don’t forgetthepiesatBrietzke’sinNewBerlin.Allof those little places offer some reward forthemilesofpedalingittakestogetthere; to get the good stuff you have to paytheprice! You are probably asking yourself,“Andwhydowecareaboutthis?”Well,aswegetolderandwedriftawayfromthose youthful figures and lean-mean- fighting-machine bodies we used to have,westarttomakeexcusesnottoexercise. WhilebeinganAgriculturalScienceteacherhasusrunningaroundalot,itisnotthetypeofrunningthat

usually leads to good health. Expertssayyouneedtoexerciseataratethatwillelevateyourheartrateforatleast20minutesaboutthreetimesaweek.We walk from barn to barn, and weeven run out to the truck to retrievethat forgotten show stick, but do wereallyexercise? Ourlivesgetsobusywe forget to find time to take care of ourselves.Wepracticewithourteamsbefore school, then teach all day andthencheckprojectsuntildark.Wegotocontestsontheweekend,andthewholetime we are eating fast food becausethekidswantsomeplacecheaptoeat.Sometimesthatcombinationcanleadtonotsogoodresults. About 15 years ago, I started torideabiketogetsomeexercise.Iwasstillfairlyyoung,andourchildrenwereoldenoughthattheycouldridealongsometimestoo.Iwasinmymiddle30’s,andIhadstartedtoexpandaroundthemid-sectionfromtoomanyDr.Peppers,waytoomuchfastfood,manynightsontheroadandnorealexerciseprogram.I had to start blaming the cleanersfor shrinking my jeans. I had alwaysheardtoomuchheatwouldshrinkthewaistline. I decided to do somethingabout it, so I switched cleaners! No,notreally.Igotthebikeandstartedtorideonaregularbasis.OncethesparetirestartedtodisappearfrommywaistandIstartedtofeelgood,itbecamean

addiction.Ineededtoridemybike!Itwasnolongerexercise;itwasadrug.Ifelt better; I fit in my jeans again, and I eventhinkIlookedbetter! Istillridethatbiketoday,butIstillhave to fight the off-season demons sometimes. When the weather getscold and the stocks shows start, thebike riding stops. It can be a realdifficult time getting back on the bike becauseImakeexcuses.Itistoodark,

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VATAT News

Gerald Young, VATAT Executive Director

“Words with Friends”Continued from page 1

too cold, too windy and too sunny, I will only get 15 miles in,so why go, etc. It is like starting all over again each March.I walk out to the garage (yes, I know that is not where youprobably keep your bike, but my wife will not let me keepmine in the house), and I stare at the two-wheeled monster.It wants to hurt me, in a good way, but I make excuses. That�irst ride back after a few months off is killer. It makes you use muscles you forgot you had, and you wake up the nextmorning hurting in places you forget existed. Despite allof the hurt, you feel that addiction return. You are alreadyplanning your next ride and counting the hours until you canget back on the road. Next you start looking at organized rides in your areaand training for that 65 or 100-mile ride next month. Youget up at 6:00 a.m. in the summer and ride out of the gatearound 6:30. You plan your day around the ride. Slowly, you work up to 40 or 50 miles a day and ride later into theheat of the day to train for the century ride next month. Youfeel good about yourself, your health improves, your bloodpressure goes down and you start to eat better because youlike the way you feel. The only drawback is when I get backfrom a ride I clean out the refrigerator; nothing is safe whenI am hungry. By the way, a good brisk 50-mile ride at an 18MPH average will burn around 3,000 calories. The othergood news is you can go back to your favorite cleaners, sincethey stopped shrinking your clothes; your jeans �it again.

Along with all of those bene�its mentioned, your mental healthimproves,sinceyouareconstantlyonalertwhenriding.If riding with others, you have to know where everyone is aswell as watch for traf�ic. You have to think about your next turn or crossing and have a plan just in case things change.Exercising is a great way to relieve some stress as well; youcan get away from all of the troubles and concentrate on thetask at hand. No cell phone, no parents, no students, just youand the sweat rolling off your forehead. It helps to refocus your energy in a good direction by not dwelling on all of thethings you need to do. It releases endorphins that make youfeel good and raises your heart rate helping to burn caloriesand strengthen your heart in the process. As teachers, we �ind ourselves always helping others, but sometimes we forget to help ourselves. We let our healthsuffer, so we can practice one more time with our students or make one more show this weekend. While that is a greatthing to do, helping your students is not what is good foryou in the end. Sometimes, we have to just say no and taketime for ourselves. We have to be able to do that and not feelguilty, which can be hard. I think if I am that important tothem then I have to have time to keep myself in good shapebecause how will they function if I am gone? You know thebest part of all this exercise? It is the rush of beating yourstudents up the stairs, or across the parking lot to the truck.

I challenge my students to race me up the stairs in thehotels, if we are below the 6th �loor, and I race them out to the parking lot at the stock shows. So, why did I choose health as the topic this month? Iwanted to include a picture of me in Spandex of course! Notreally! I just wanted to put that bug in your ear about takingthe time to care for yourself. I wanted to make you thinkabout how important it is to �ind time to exercise and eat healthy meals. I wanted you to think about how importantyou are to your family and students. They need you! Don’tlet them down.

After the Hotter than Hell 100 Bike Ride in Wichita Falls Josh Steward, AST at Ralls High School, myself and Dr. Scott Burris, Agriculture Department at Texas Tech enjoy the shade during almost 100 degree weather. Those two guys showered and cleaned up for the picture, and I was still in my riding clothes because I had to ride back to my hotel. By the way, Burris completed an Ironman Triathlon in November! The Ironman consisting of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bike and a marathon, 26.2-mile run.

This group includes school board members, electedstate of�icials and federal of�icials. These individuals have a great deal of power, and if they are serious about

Elected Officials

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VATAT News

their job or position everything is �ine. If not, the result is not good. Like the good administrator, you hopeelected of�icials want to make a positive difference. Most elected of�icials do a very good job. The problem is there are too many that are worse than the power hungryadministrators. These of�icials are about the recognition and not about the job. Why does this happen? We can blame ourselves forsome of it. Election for individuals of state and federal levelpositions cost a great deal of money. These candidateshave to depend on donations to run a campaign. If theyget large donations from groups or individuals, they willhave to listen to them if they want to continue to receivethose donations. The second thing is most of us in theelectorate are uninformed when we vote. We do not spendthe time it takes to really get to know the candidates. Manyof us let advertisements, radio and television programstell us how to vote and what we know. This is one of thereasons it’s so costly to get elected. Since the electorate isso uninformed, the candidates have to out advertise theiropponents. I was told many years ago we should never re-elect anincumbent unless they have done something signi�icant. If we did not let the elected of�icials get comfortable, they would get more done. Another problem is educators donot, as a whole, participate in the election process. Youmight say voting day is a school day and teachers are toobusy. That is not an excuse since early voting is easy. Inoticed in Harris County you could early vote every dayof the week, including Sunday. I would like to discuss the three groups. Let’s beginwith the school board. The school board is elected tomake sure the school district is run correctly, not to run it.They can hire and �ire the superintendant, so they should make sure he or she does the job. I get calls regularlyabout a parent who called a school board member andthe board member went straight to the administrationand ignored the chain of command. What they shoulddo is tell that parent how the chain of command worksand the steps he or she should follow. If all school boardmembers would just do the job they were elected to do,schools would run better.

Next, let’s talk about the state legislature. Ourlegislators began to damage public education whenthey created the piece of legislation that establishedstandardized tests, since that happened, our dropout ratehas risen, and school morale, especially among teachers,has bottomed out. Students are not as well-rounded asthey once were. The only thing that is important is thepassing of the test. Also, when was the last time youheard an elected of�icial say, “Texas educators are doing a good job, and we are lucky to have them.”? Whateverhappened to positive reinforcement? Instead, you willhear them say we are not getting the brightest and bestto teach in schools. Even at the beginning of the current

session when legislators were being told that schools donot have enough money, they were blaming the schoolsand never looked in the mirror. The real problem withour legislature is that many do not vote thinking of theirdistrict; they are staying loyal to their party. This is howthe federal of�icials have operated for years; this is not good for state government.

Federal of�icials need to quit trying to one-up the other party and just do their jobs. Whatever happenedto representing the people in your district and state? Inyears gone by, we had statesmen in Washington. Today,we only have “R’s” and “D’s.” The experts tell us that mostpeople in the U.S. are in the center of their beliefs. Theproblem is many of the leaders in the two parties areeither far right or far left. This results in the majority ofthe citizens not truly being represented.

VATAT AWARDS

The VATAT Awards process has been upgraded for2011, and the deadline to apply is fast approaching!The new award applications and procedures areavailable on the VATAT website! Check out thefollowing award categories and make plans to applyor nominate someone! Area winning applications must be submitted by the VATAT executive committee member at the spring board meeting, May 21-22, 2011.

Outstanding School AdministratorOutstanding Cooperation Award

Outstanding NewspaperOutstanding Radio Station

Outstanding Television StationTeacher’s Media Award - NEW!

Teacher’s Chapter Publicity & Promotional Award - NEW!Ideas Unlimited - NAAE Eligible

Texas Turn the Key Award - NAAE Eligible Teacher Mentor Award - NAAE Eligible

30-Minute Club

Have You Applied?

Get all your information for the 2011 VATAT Professional Development Conference at

www.vatat.org!

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2011 VATAT TENURE AWARDSIf you should receive a VATAT Tenure Award this year and you are not listed below, or if you feel you are listed in error, please contact Karen Grumbles at karen@vatat.org, so that we may update our records. Also, don’t forget to contact the VATAT office if you are retiring this year.

5 YEARSKen Abney, Hardin-Jefferson High School MonicaBarton,C.H.YoeHighSchoolBrandonBiggs,OltonHighSchoolJordanBlount,CommunityHighSchoolCyLynnBraswell,BryonNelsonHighSchoolDavidBrown,GeorgeRanchHighSchoolJoshuaBurnett,AzleHighSchoolJasonButler,NederlandHighSchoolEddieByrom,FrederickburgHighSchoolAmberCampise,LaPorteHighSchoolDustinClark,MabankHighSchoolChrisCleveland,RiverRoadHighSchoolSheridanClinkscales,A&MConsolidatedHighSchoolBradleyCobb,DouglassHighSchoolKaseyCrawford,ParisHighSchoolLeslieCronin,ShepherdHighSchoolEricDavis,JudsonHighSchoolJason Derington, Mansfield Ben Barber Career Tech Academy KadyDonaghey,NorthCrowleyHighSchoolJustinDunlap,NewBraunfelsHighSchoolLindseyDunn,HillsboroHighSchool

ChassityDurhamSukiennik,Martin’sMillHighSchoolTomFarmer,ClydeHighSchoolChristopherFinke,NavasotaHighSchoolBrandonFizer,SamuelClemensHighSchoolKarenForbes,NaamanForestHighSchoolLinseyFowler,ArlingtonHeightsHighSchoolVeronicaGarcia,AssociateHenry Goff, Lorena High School AdamGraham,OnalaskaHighSchoolSarah Griffeth, Allen High School JasonGuidry,BolingHighSchoolDavidHall,LamarHighSchoolHaleyHarris,JoshuaHighSchoolSamHarrison,PlanoEastSeniorHighSchoolAustinHeck,NazarethHighSchoolRoxanneHerbrich,ColumbusHighSchoolBryceHines,DalhartHighSchoolJeff Holland, Overton High School BeckyHunnicutt,Mt.VernonHighSchoolJenniferJackson,CentennialHighSchoolRobert Jackson,BreckenridgeHighSchoolJoshua Jaggears,EnnisHighSchool

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ChrisJones,NorthShoreSr.HighSchoolRogerJones,OreCityHighSchoolStephanieJones,NorthShoreHighSchoolNathanielJordan,NacogdochesHighSchoolAshleyKellermeier,CentralHighSchoolHoney Key, Mansfield Ben Barber Career Tech Academy KristynLoomis,ArlingtonHighSchoolPriscillaLopez,LopezHighSchoolClintonLove,LakeTravisHighSchoolTrentManning,IrionCountyHighSchoolJamieMcDonald,ShoemakerHighSchoolJohnMcKinley,PorterHighSchoolAmberMcRae,HallsvilleHighSchoolRichardMeeks,CommerceHighSchoolTyMerritt,ParisHighSchoolTroyMitchell,CalvertHighSchoolDougMorrish,TexasStateUniversityShellyMowrey,S&SHighSchoolKimNew,ManvelHighSchoolBrandonOtto,BarbersHillHighSchoolEloyPerez,GrangerHighSchoolMiltonPerez,Juarez-LincolnHighSchoolCodyPeterson,BallingerHighSchoolWeldonRainey,MoultonHighSchoolLanceRasch,MasonHighSchoolRachelRawlings,SangerHighSchoolScottRawlings,BoydHighSchoolFernandoRodriguez,ZapataHighSchoolJodyRowland,ClaudeHighSchoolMichelleSammon,DawsonHighSchoolAmySchatte,BoydHighSchoolCharlesSeidensticker,IraHighSchoolAmandaSimmons,KleinForestHighSchoolJosephSimmons,RisingStarHighSchoolTamsenSmith,WimberleyHighSchoolKellyStapleton,PrairilandHighSchoolCrystalStewart,HighlandParkHighSchoolBeauStutts,CrossRoadsHighSchoolBethStutts,CrossRoadsHighSchoolAngelaWaiser,OnalaskaHighSchoolLanceWann,SnyderHighSchoolKellyWehba,HighlandHighSchoolJessWheeler,MidwayHighSchoolAaronWhitener,AliefElsikHighSchool

10 YEARSMikeAbrameit,RefugioHighSchoolJerrodBaird,ChillicotheHighSchoolBradBarnett,LometaHighSchoolJeremyBonds,HendricksonHighSchool

WestonBorn,GruverHighSchoolChristinaCapps,TheGuthrieCenterDarrenCarson,RoscoeHighSchoolShawnCoyle,SkylineHighSchoolCindyDockter,PantherCreekHighSchoolTravisDube,SaladoHighSchoolBobbyFarias,BishopHighSchoolRoel Garza, Banquete High SchoolSandraGraham,AssociateToddGregory,KlondikeHighSchoolMelissaGrimes,AssociateDonHarris,IngramHighSchoolRustyHollingsworth,GardenCityHighSchoolEricJanszen,MidlothianHighSchoolJimKelly,KountzeHighSchoolJustinLacy,McKinneyHighSchoolElmo Lawson, Lufkin High SchoolJoeDavid,LehmbergSmithsonValleyHighSchoolChristieLinke,MemorialHighSchoolDannyMcBride,Liberty-EylauHighSchoolKevinMcCarty,KingwoodParkHighSchoolMarkMcClure,CleburneHighSchoolJasonMiller,EastBernardHighSchoolJohnHunter,MorganPearlandHighSchoolAmberNorris,SulphurSpringsHighSchoolMichaelNorton,ElginHighSchoolRodneyPeugh,SantoHighSchoolJessicaReeves,TomballHighSchoolJustinRichey,MerkelHighSchoolBeverleySchroedter,RouseHighSchoolJeff Sherman, Wellington High SchoolTaraSpencer,SkylineHighSchoolJoshStewart,RallsHighSchoolBartStover,PonderHighSchoolEdStrange,KerensHighSchoolStevenTatsch,TexasCityHighSchoolCraigTaylor,AssociateMatthewTurner,TheWoodlandsCollegeParkHighSchoolDannyUnderwood,DimmittHighSchoolMikeWallace,JamesMadisonHighSchoolWilliamWallace,TerrellHighSchoolRobinWheelus,DevineHighSchoolBrentWicker,PeasterHighSchoolKeithWiley,SteeleHighSchoolMarkYouree,PottsboroHIghSchool

15 YEARSRobbyBow,HappyHighSchoolWesBrown,NorthLamarHighSchoolSandraChoate,AthensHighSchoolErnestClark,BlumHighSchool

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VATAT News

DeanDavis,GonzalesHighSchoolAntonioGarza,EdinburgNorthHighSchoolCharlesBuck,HudsonSpurgerHighSchoolBradIngram,Mt.VernonHighSchoolTreyKeys,GranburyHighSchoolMichaelKissire,SonoraHighSchoolTobyLong,HamiltonHighSchoolPTMahoney,WimberleyHighSchoolClevelandMorris,RobertE.LeeHighSchoolTroyOliver,SealyHighSchoolGeorgePyle,BunaHighSchoolStephenScitern,AnsonHighSchoolGlenShinn,AssociateJerryVanCleave,NoviceHighSchoolMarkVitters,CorsicanaHighSchoolLarryWatson,AvingerHighSchoolJanaWilson,MagnoliaHighSchoolKrisYork,MullinHighSchool

20 YEARSLonAdams,HedleyHighSchoolJimAllsup,DecaturHighSchoolChrisBean,LakeDallasHighSchoolStevenBranecky,SandraDayO’ConnorHighSchoolDougFlanery,WhitesboroHighSchoolDeanFuchs,CincoRanchHighSchoolRichardGarcia,RaymondvilleHighSchoolMarcHackstedt,NeedvilleHighSchoolRobertHill,SplendoraHighSchoolJeff Huckaby, Hardin-Jefferson High SchoolMichaelHunter,LindaleHighSchoolRicHunter,JourdantonHighSchoolJack Jebbia, Stafford High SchoolKevinKelley,ValleyHighSchoolSteveKruse,UniversityCharterSchool-MethodistChildren’sHomeCampusShannonLayman,CelinaHighSchoolDominicMazoch,ChannelviewHighSchoolRoyMcCoy,TrentHighSchoolJerryPerritte,HuntingtonHighSchoolDennisPierce,AssociateCharlesRaley,OglesbyHighSchoolDannyReaves,KleinCollinsHighSchoolEdwinSmith,MagnoliaHighSchoolRobertSteglich,ThorndaleHighSchoolRussellThomas,GilmerHighSchoolTomTrull,AssociateKellyWhite,DelValleHighSchool

25 YEARSMarkArnold,PanhandleHighSchool

Steve Black, Fairfield High SchoolGeorgeBrooks,CoronadoHighSchoolDavidFleming,SealyHighSchoolMarkForeman,BigSandyHighSchoolWesleyHancock,CaldwellHighSchoolAllenKaminski,AssociateAlvinLarke,AssociateBrianLowe,AssociateMontyMoeller,BowieHighSchoolCharles Prause, Bosqueville High SchoolDavidReiley,SeguinHighSchoolRomeoRobles,Pharr-SanJuanAlamoHighSchoolJimmyRogers,RivercrestHighSchoolBobbyStrader,MontgomeryHighSchoolMichaelTondre,SandraDayOConnorHighSchoolRobertWashington,GonzalesHighSchool

30 YEARSRickyBurgess,CovingtonHighSchoolRogerClaxton,TulsaWeldingSchoolFritzCornelius,ElCampoHighSchoolLesDeuel,AssociateErnieEckert,WallHighSchoolCarlosGarza,RioHondoHighSchoolSamHollingsworth,HawkinsHighSchoolArthurHunter,CrawfordHighSchoolGeraldKelley,AbernathyHighSchoolAnthonyMayers,Laredo-MartinHighSchoolTimMcNair,RiderHighSchoolDennisPalmer,NorthwestHighSchoolRoy Ramirez, Littlefield High SchoolKennethSchneider,RogersHighSchoolLizTreptow,WeimarHighSchoolJimmyVaculin,TomballHighSchoolDannyVestal,BairdHighSchoolDougVrabel,HuttoHighSchoolGeorge Walters, New Summerfield High SchoolKelvinWest,BremondHighSchoolJackWinterrowd,CedarParkHighSchool

35 YEARSJesseBradford,DibollHighSchoolRonnieDavis,KempnerHighSchoolRogerGreen,MontereyHighSchoolWayneLamb,DaytonHighSchoolDalePerritt,AssociateGaryRosenbusch,GlenRoseHighSchool

45 YEARSRobertRay,GrafordHighSchool

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VATAT News

The Texas FFA Board of Directors approved signi�icant changes in its adult recognition policy and procedures thatwill open the process to consider a wider, deeper pool of non-teacherHonoraryLoneStarFFADegreenomineesandprovidemore signi�icant recognition at the state convention. Previously, nominees for the non-teacher HonoraryLone Star FFA Degree were state of�icer parents, convention host committee members and those nominated by the areaassociation. The new policy allows for other FFA partnersand committees to nominate adults who have renderedoutstanding service to the FFA. This will allow the entitiessuch as the Foundation and the State CDE Committee to makenominations. TexasFFAwillnowprovideanopportunityfornon-teacherrecipients to receive the honorary degree onstage at thestate convention on Friday morning. The Friday session wasselected because constitutionally, the delegates are required to approve honorary degree recipients, and the business sessionis currently scheduled for Thursday afternoon. Additionally,many professionals may hesitate to come to convention in themiddle of the week, but might be more willing to take Fridayoff of work. Hotel rooms are more likely to be available on Thursday night than on other nights of convention week. TheTexas FFA Convention block loses about 20% of its occupancybetween Wednesday and Thursday. TexasFFAplanstohostallnon-teacherHonoraryLoneStarFFA Degree recipients at a Friday morning breakfast, escortthem to VIP seating and honor them in an on-stage ceremony.While the last session is not the most highly attended, it hasseveral unique features that make it special. For those non-teacher recipients nominated by areas, butunable to attend convention, as in the past, these plaques will be sent by the convention award presentation committee backto the respective areas. Plans are in motion to honor teacher recipients in aceremony in a general session at the VATAT Conference.The honorary degree is perceived to be an honor amongstagricultural educators and the VATAT Conference was deemed

the most appropriate time and place to honor those whoearned it. Procedurally, all Honorary Lone Star Degree recipients—teacher and non-teacher must be nominated on a standardform now available on the Texas FFA website. This is a slightchange. In past years, teachers would type a letter on schoolor chapter letterhead. The new form will allow nominatorsto download forms, type into them on a computer, printand submit. The new procedure is intended to facilitate thenomination process.

Tom Maynard, Texas FFA Association Executive Director

Specializing in FFA, 4H andLivestock Show Awards, we have

provided quality products at competitive prices since 1979.

Proud Corporate Partnerof the Texas FFA

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VATAT News

SAE Marketplace is an online resource designedspecifically for agricultural science teachers and FFA memberstolocatelivestocksalesandbreeders,purchaseequipment and supplies and find the perfect Supervised AgriculturalExperienceproject. TheSAEMarketplaceisaventureoftheVATATandissimpleandeasytouse. It isdivided intothreecategorieswhich contain agricultural products and servicesincluding:TheShowSource,AgServiceandSupplyShopandtheGreenhouse. AdvertisingonSAEMarketplaceisagreatwaytotargetAgEdFamilymembers!Advertisementsrunfor12monthsandincludeupto50wordoftext,companylogo,websiteandemaillinks---allforonly$100peryear! VisitSAEMarketplaceatwww.saemarketplace.comtofind your next SAE project or to advertise one!

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VATAT News

As the newest addition to Texas FFA Foundationstaff, I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself; my name is Joanne Shelton and I am pleased tobe working with the Texas FFA to build a strong futurefor the youth of Texas. The Foundation is fortunate tohave many generous scholarship donors who supportstudents and provide the opportunity for them to ful�ill their dreams. One of my main responsibilities at the Foundationis that of “Scholarship Administrator.” It is veryimportant for our students to receive their scholarshipand award funding when and where they need it. Atthis time of year, while many seniors are busy makingplans for college, I thought it would be a perfect timeto mention a few tips to assist with their transitionfrom high school and processing scholarship fundingrequests.

One of the most important items is ef�iciency. Beginningwiththespring2011semester,theFoundationrevised the process to request scholarship and award funding. All requests for payment of scholarships and awards administered by the Texas FFA Foundation aresubmitted to the Foundation by email. This includes allrequired paperwork in .jpeg or .pdf format attached to an email sent to: scholarships@texasffafoundation.org. I am con�ident the electronic submission is a more ef�icient and convenient method. Submit your documents by the deadlines of August1st and January 1st. If your contact information(address, email or phone) has changed, it is yourresponsibility to notify the Foundation, so we canupdate our records. Have you changed schools? Toavoid a delay in payment be sure give us the name ofyour new school. If funds are sent to the wrong school,checks will not be reissued until the refund has beenreceived. Academic Scholarship and Award Information:

academic scholarships can be funded over multiplesemesters. These scholarships are applied for and then�inalists are interviewed during the State Degree Check. Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, San AntonioLivestock Show and Star of Texas Rodeo recipientsare responsible to their speci�ic benefactor. Texas FFA Association has agreed to select their award winnersusing our application process, but they administertheir own monies. All other academic recipients areresponsible for reporting their grades, acceptanceagreementsandupdatedlettersthroughoutthedurationof their scholarship to the Texas FFA Foundation. Award scholarships are a one-time award for aspeci�ic event. These award scholarships must be used within 12 months after graduation, unless the recipientsubmits a hold request. No award will be held for more than 24 months following graduation, unless they havereceived approval from the Foundation. It is importantthat as soon as your student is awarded a scholarshipof this type they complete and return an AwardAcceptance Agreement by email along with sending athank you note to his or her donor. After graduation,the student will submit his or her schedule showingfull-time college enrollment. I recognize parents, teachers and students arebusy and stressed trying to follow guidelines and meetdeadlines. I appreciate your efforts and invite you to contact me at anytime, 512-480-8047 or joanne@texasffafoundation. I’ll be happy to help.

Joanne Shelton, Texas FFA Foundation Scholarship Administrator and Executive Assistant

To learn more about the Foundation and Our Mission that Matters, please visit

www.texasffafoundation.org

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VATAT News

Janet Bulger, Texas Young Farmers President

Howdy, to everyone reading this. I hope you are alldoing great. Things are still busy, busy, busy. Kenny hasplanted our garden. He planted tomatoes, squash, eggplant and peppers. The last couple of years he has planted in bigplastic/rubber barrels that cattle syrup comes in. If youonly want to plant a few things, I would recommend thistype of gardening. It works great! I attended a couple of shows at the Houston LivestockShow (HLSR) and really had a good time. This was my �irst time to ever go to HLSR. I loved seeing my granddaughtershow her hog. Even though she did not make the sale, shehad a great learning experience. I am so proud she wantedto show in Houston. There is a lot of work involved inshowing an animal in any show, but a major show seemsto take a lot more time and effort. It was such a great learning experience for our youngergrandchildren as well. Capital One Bank had what theycalled the AgVenture. This was such an educationaladventure. We watched baby chicks hatch; baby pigs werebeing born, and I believe a calf was born. In addition tothe birthing area, they had all breeds of rabbits to study.Southwest Dairy was there with a milking demonstrationand many more educational exhibits. If you have a chancesometime in the near future, I would recommend you go. At the Ag Mechanics Show, Young Farmers gave a$500.00 scholarship to Tucker Jacob from Round TopCarmine. He is a member of the Fayette Co. 4-H. Photo

from left to right: David Stratton, Chairman of Ag MechanicsContest; Don Beene, Texas Young Farmers Secretary; TuckerJacob, Round Top Carmine; Janet Bulger, Texas Young

Farmers President and David Boothe, Vice President of theHouston Livestock Show and Rodeo and Of�icer in Charge of Ag Mechanics Contest. With spring comes working in the yard. Here are a fewhints on taking care of your lawn/turfgrass. Mowing – Is the lawn smooth enough to mow with areel mower? Is it smooth enough to mow at the optimalmowing height for the grass variety without continualscalping damage? Scalping will put grass at a competitivedisadvantage and eventually lead to the decline of lawnquality. Evaluate the yard for high spots, low spots and ruts to decrease scalping. Add soil to level out the lawn

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1133

1. What is the most consumed beverage next to water in the United States?

2. What is the second most popular fresh vegetable in the U.S.?

3. What is the second most popular fruit in the U.S.?

4. What state grows the most apples?

5. What is the third most popular fruit raised in the U.S.?

Answers from last month’s trivia: 1. d-All of the Above; 2. a-$218,860,000,000; 3. d-17%

surface. Fill in ruts by lifting sod (in ruts) with a sharpspade and place topsoil underneath. Replace sod andkeep the area moist for several days to help redevelopa healthy root system. What is thatch? Thatch is the intermingled layerof living and dead steams, roots, rhizomes and stolonsthat develops between the live green vegetation ofyour lawn and the soil surface. The thatch layer iscomposed of plant parts at various stages of decay bysoil microorganisms. Most lawn turfgrasses used inthe southern United States are perennial grasses thatspread by both rhizomes and stolons, and form thatch. Having a moderate thatch layer, between ¼ and ½inch thickness is beneficial because it makes turf moretraffic tolerant, decreases compaction, protects grasscrowns from extreme temperature and acts as a mulchto decrease water loss from the soil surface. Thatchdecay also releases beneficial nutrients to the turfenvironment. Excessive thatch layers of more than ½inch can lead to serious problems. Thatch problems include reduced water, nutrientand air infiltration into the soil, which leads toreduced rooting and decreased drought resistance,and increases disease and insect damage. A lawnwith an excessive thatch layer declines in quality and becomes much harder to manage. The turf becomesless responsive to fertilizer applications and muchmore water will be required to wet the soil profile through a thick thatch layer. Thatch control is a preventive and curative process. Thatch prevention can be achieved through properfertilization and mowing. Avoid applying nitrogen ata rate exceeding one pound per thousand square feet. Maintain adequate, but not excessive soil moisture to encourage thatch decomposition – deep andinfrequent watering – ½ inch every four days when dry. Use composed or organic materials for topdressingsparingly and lightly. Adding highly organic materialsadds to the already decomposing organic thatch layerand can increase thatch problems.

I would like to encourage you to be working on yourawards applications. These applications are due November1, 2011, and that day will be here before you know it.

Outstanding Chapter Award: The purpose of theOutstanding Chapter Award is to recognize and honor thosechapters who conduct activities that uphold the ideals of theState Association of Young Farmers of Texas. All chaptersare eligible to apply for this award. Report of the chapter’s accomplishments shall cover theperiodofSeptember1,2010toAugust31,2011. Onepicture,black & white or color, for each activity will be accepted, butare limited to 3x5, 4x6, or 5x7.

An activity may only qualify for one category. Activities shall be categorized and given the following emphasis.a. Educational - any activity that will provide informationor training to bene�it the membership and/or agricultural students.b. Community Service - activities sponsored or co-sponsored by the chapter that provides service to thecommunity.c. Leadership - activities with the purpose of developingand/or improving the leadership ability of members. d. Recreational-activitiessponsoredfortheentertainmentofthemembers.You may go to the website to see more detailed description of awards.

July 11-15, 2011 – State FFA Convention – Lubbock, TXJuly 25-29, 2011 – VATAT Conference – Arlington, TXNovember 1, 2011 – Awards Applications DueDecember 7-10, 2011–National YFInstitute in KansasCity, MOJanuary 13-14, 2012 – YF State Convention in Austin, TX

1�

VATAT News

15

VATAT News

Kelly White, Texas FFA Alumni President

“Money isn’t the most important thing in life, but it’s reasonably close to oxygen on the ‘gotta have it’ scale.”

Zig Ziglar

Money… Budget Cuts… Cuts in Salary… This articlewasn’t the easiest to begin writing considering what’sgoing on with our State at this time. It is not a conversationto have at the dinner table with your spouse either. Timesare tough; money is tight. No one is going to just giveyou money, or will they? The Texas FFA Alumni is willingto give you money, but there are a few strings attached.First, about the money…

The Money: Each year, the Texas FFA Alumni givesout the following monetary awards. These include: two$1,000.00 scholarships; ten $500.00 local grants; andlastly we graciously give $1,000.00 each to the Texas FFA,the Texas FFA Foundation and the VATAT. The moneywe give is raised at our Annual Alumni Auction held inconjunction with the Texas FFA Convention. Items suchas scales, airline tickets, boots, retreats, FFA memorabilia,outdoor items and much more is bid on and goes homewith the fortunate bidder. FFA Alumni Af�iliates and Chapters also contribute to our auction by entering inthe Alumni Basket Contest, rules for the contest can befound on the alumni website.

$500.00 Grants: What do you do to get grant money?How must it be used? Be prepared to answer the followingquestions. What is your project? What do you want to accomplish? What is your plan of action (Who, what,when, where, why, how)? How will this project make animpact on your members and/or program? Be preparedto have an estimate of what your project will cost.

The Catch: You are asking yourself about how toget free money, and what is the catch? All a FFA Chapterhas to do to be considered for the above mentionedawards is have an active local FFA Alumni Af�iliate

which is a minimum of 10 members to pay their annualstate and national dues by February 1st and to �ill out the applications and have them into the Texas FFAAlumni Association by the June 1st deadline. Grants andscholarships have been denied because they did not meetthe requirements or missed the deadline. Applications can be found on the Texas FFA Alumniwebsite at http://texasffaalumni.ffanow.org. Register to get updates about the Texas FFA Alumni. Thanks for allyou do!

• We value the integral nature of FFA and agricultural education.

• We value agriculture as an essential part of society.

• We value diversity in serving all populations.

• We value the impact of a teacher on a student’s life.

• We value the impact and involvement of parents/guardians and communities on a student’s life.

• We value the community’s support of agricultural education teachers and programs.

Remember to visit http://texasffaalumni.ffanow.org for all the latest updates on Texas FFA Alumni news!

16

VATAT News

Vocational AgricultureTeachers Association of Texas614 East 12th StreetAustin, Texas 78701

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Vocational Agriculture Teachers Association

of Texas

OFFICERS

David Reiley

President

Russell Thomas

Vice President

Kevin Swor

Secretary/Treasurer

STAFF

Gerald Young

Executive Director

Karen Grumbles

Membership Services

Allison Bequette

Communications

CONTACT US

614 East 12th Street

Austin, Texas 78701

(512) 472-3128

toll free: (800) 777-5818

fax: (512) 472-0555

e-mail: vatat@vatat.org

Web: www.vatat.org

PRSRT STDUS POSTAGE

PAIDAUSTIN, TX

PERMIT NO. 1

TEXAS AG ED FAMILY EVENTSMAY 2011

7th - State CDEs - Texas A&M, College Station

7th - Late Swine Tag Order Begins - Austin (Ends June 10)

TBD - State Wildlife CDE - Nacogdoches

JUNE 2011

JULY 2011

7th - Deadline for all Swine Validation Materials - Austin

11th - 15th - 83rd State FFA Convention - Lubbock

25th - 29th - VATAT Professional Development Conference - Arlington

1st - State Speaking Events Online Entry Deadline

4th - 7th - State Leadership Conference

8th - State Officer Selection Interviews & Testing

9th - State Scholarship Selection

9th - Texas FFA Board of Directors Meeting - Location TBD

9th - 10th - State Degree Check - Location TBD

11th - 17th - State Fair Priority Tags, Fax Only - Austin

21st - Agriscience Fair Online Entry Deadline

30th - Last Day to Validate Swine

The early tag orders are $7.00 from April 4 - May 6, 2011. The late tag orders are $10.00from May 7 - June 10, 2011. The priority tag orders must be faxed to 512-476-2894, and thetags are $10.00 per tag plus $20.00 priority postage and handling fee from June 11 - June 16,2011. All swine must be validated on or before June 30, 2011. The Validation Chairpersonmust be present when the animals are validated. The change of ownership is due in the FFAof�ice on or before June 30, 2011. All manila forms, hair envelopes, ethics policies, committee forms and Excel spreadsheetsare due in the FFA of�ice on or before July 8, 2011 (Manilas, hair envelopes & ethic policies - Alpha Order). In regards to tag alterations, any change to size, shape, form or color will voidthe tag. The tag will be replaced at the stock show, and the replacement cost will be charged tothe individual. Ear notch correction and ear tag replacement forms must be faxed (512-476-2894) to the FFA of�ice on or before July 22, 2011. Any required validation information not in the FFA of�ice by July 22, 2011 will not be validated. Information is due July 8th; we do not have personnel in the of�ice to process or call for missing validation items after this date.