The 2024-25 National FFA Officer Team attended the National FFA Officers International Experience Program in Japan. Officers, including Central Region Vice President Mary Schrieber of Wisconsin, got a close-up look at Japanese culture and agriculture in partnership with sister organization Future Farmers of Japan.
This annual trip provides National FFA Officers the chance to experience firsthand how agriculture transcends geographical boundaries and strengthen a partnership that dates back to 1950.
The NOIEP develops the national officers’ language skills, business practices, and communication techniques to build cross-cultural cooperation while providing an opportunity for them to practice peer leadership on an international scale, explore the complexities and implications of agriculture as part of the international landscape, and expand their cultural competency through reflected and guided instruction.
TOKYO, KYOTO, HIROSHIMA, & KAGOSHIMA
Throughout their 10-day trip from Jan. 25 to Feb. 5, the six student leaders engaged in a variety of experiences, including:
- a traditional tea ceremony and green tea factory tour,
- Aeon Shinagawa Seaside and Aeon Supermarket,
- briefings with Minister Counselor Jeanne Bailey, Agricultural Attachés Erica Summe and Craig Elliott, and Agricultural Assistant Akiko Satake at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo,
- meetings with FFJ students at Tokyo Metropolitan Engei High School,
- a bamboo forest,
- traditional Japanese garden and stately home designated a World Heritage Site,
- Miyajima Cattle Farm, an F1 Hybrid cattle farm with over 1,000 F1 cows,
- and the Japan Plant Factory Association where they work to develop and disseminate sustainable systems that can address global challenges.
Each fall at the National FFA Convention & Expo, the National FFA Organization selects six student members to represent the organization as National FFA Officers. The primary responsibility of a national officer is to serve the organization in local, state, national, and international activities in a way that will inform, motivate, and inspire FFA members, advisors, state staff, teachers, and others to achieve the mission, strategies and core goals of the organization. The officers will share knowledge gained from their experience in Japan with state chapter members, including during National FFA Week (Feb. 15-22), during which they will travel across the country to meet with state representatives.
- President: Thaddeus Bergschneider, Illinois
- Secretary: Luke Jennings, Ohio
- Eastern Region Vice President: Caroline Growth, Kentucky
- Central Region Vice President: Mary Schrieber, Wisconsin
- Southern Region Vice President: Jack Lingenfelter, Georgia
- Western Region Vice President: Abigale Jacobsen, California
National officers dedicate one year of service to the organization. The time is spent representing student membership during meetings with the National FFA Board of Directors, facilitating workshops that bring leadership and knowledge to FFA members, delivering motivational speeches, and serving as advocates for FFA on a global scale.
