Youth News
Getting Ready for the National FFA Convention- Meet a Young Lady Who Thinks Very Well on Her Feet- Ashton Mese of Kingfisher
Mon, 18 Oct 2010 21:11:27 CDT
The efforts to learn something about a wide spectrum of subjects across the business of agriculture is now over- and the key for Ashton Mese of the Kingfisher FFA Chapter will be how she responds to the choices given her as she prepares for the national Extemporaneous Speech Contest in Indianapolis that helps kick off the National FFA Convention. The early rounds of the "Extemp" Contest start first thing Wednesday morning. The finals of this contest- featuring the top four that survive from the multiple rounds that will be held on Wednesday- will be held Thursday morning at 10 AM.
Ashton tells us that she really has gotten hooked on this type of speech contest- having to rely on taking a subject- build a speech in thirty minutes and then answer questions to defend her work after the speech is concluded. The OSU Freshman won the 2010 Oklahoma Extemporaneous Speech Contest at the State FFA Convention this past May as a Senior at Kingfisher High School. This earned her the right to come to Indianapolis this week as the official conestant in this competition as Oklahoma's standard bearer. As I spent about an hour this past Wednesday with Ashton just talking issues- she impressed me with her knowledge about so many of the important agricultural issues of the day. At the National convention- she could face topics like Urban Agriculture, Cap and Trade's Implications on Agriculture, the Shortage of Large Animal Vets in Rural America, Conservation Programs and their impact on Wildlife and the Environment and on and on and on. Contestants can take a limited amount of notes into the preparation room- but the key is to have a working knowledge over a wide variety of material.
We talked with Ashton this past Wednesday in Stillwater about her involvement in this unique speaking challenge that is not for everybody- click on the LISTEN BAR below to hear that conversation.
Our coverage of the Oklahoma FFA members at the 2010 National FFA Convention is a service of the Oklahoma FFA Alumni Association- click here for details about the Alumni Association and the Oklahoma FFA Association.
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