News ReleaseCheryl Zimmerman, State FFA Executive Director 715-659-4807 czimmerman@wisconsinffa.org

Wisconsin FFA Center P.O. Box 110 Spencer, WI 54479 www.wisconsinffa.org

For Immediate Release

HONORARY STATE FFA DEGREES BESTOWED

Seventeen Honorary State FFA Degrees were awarded at the 92nd Wisconsin State FFA Convention in Madison, Wisconsin, July 7, 2021. The Honorary Degree is the highest degree that the Wisconsin Association of FFA can bestow on a non-member. The recipients were presented with plaques during a special program to thank them for their dedication to youth leadership development.

This year’s honorees include:

Kristopher Beaver is the FFA advisor and agricultural instructor at Waupun Area School District. He is the past President of the Wisconsin Association of Agricultural Educators. Kristopher received a BS degree in Agricultural Education from UW-River Falls and an MBA from Edgewood College

Robin Connelly completed two terms as a member of the Wisconsin FFA Foundation Board of Directors and is the Member Services Manager for Organic Valley/CROPP Cooperative. Robin was instrumental in establishing the Organic Proficiency and Organic Curriculum at both the state and national levels.

Cassandra Fabian served as the Office Operations Associate for Wisconsin DPI for almost 5 years. While at DPI she assisted the State FFA Advisor and the FFA Center in coordinating FFA programs and events across the state of Wisconsin. Currently Cassandra is employed by Epic in Verona, WI.

Dan Filla continues to serve as an FFA Convention decoration and stage manager since 2007. He has judged various FFA speaking contests at district and sectional levels and served as the Section 3 representative on the Wisconsin FFA Alumni board for 6 years. He is a landscape designer/estimator for Winona Nursery located in Winona, MN. Rudy Kaderly is the Past President of the Wisconsin FFA Alumni Council where he also served as the sectional representative. Rudy has coached both FFA and 4-H dairy judging teams within Green County and is now retired after 29 years with Select Sires.

Marina Livny has assisted the state FFA organization as a travel assistant in her position at M&M Travel. Born in France and later attending college in Russia, she has learned about the organization through her daughter’s experiences at Brodhead FFA and again when she served as a state FFA officer.

Kathleen Murphy is completing two terms as a member of the Wisconsin FFA Foundation Board of Directors where she also served as treasurer for 2 years. She is the Director of Business Administration for Total Administrative Services Corporation (TASC).

Kevin Rauchholz is the outgoing President of the Wisconsin Association of Agricultural Educators and serves as an instructor at Fox Valley Technical College. As an instructor, Kevin enjoys combining real life experiences within the classroom and helping develop the future leaders of agriculture.

Jennifer Russell is the Shullsburg FFA advisor and agricultural instructor. In 10 years at Shullsburg, Jennifer has built a solid classroom environment for the career pathways within agriculture that finds 75-80 percent of all students enrolled in an agricultural course. Jennifer served as the 1998-99 State FFA Treasurer and is a state convention manger.

Lester & Nancy Schlies are the proud parents of 2020-21 Wisconsin FFA President Joe Schlies. Both Lester and Nancy were FFA members and met each other at the Washington Leadership Conference. Lester is employed by Kewaunee County Highway after retiring from farming in 2000 and Nancy works for the United States Postal Service.

Dennis Uppena is the retired Cassville FFA advisor and agricultural instructor where he served for 37 years. During his tenure Dennis had many students participate in the soils/land evaluation competition and his teams competed at national 14 times. His knowledge of the area resulted in Dennis helping re-write the Wisconsin FFA Land Judging Manual. Nicole Wagner completed two terms as a member of the Wisconsin FFA Foundation Board of Directors. She is the Executive Director of Wisconsin Corn Program and has judged FFA speaking contests, judged national proficiencies and helps prepare FFA members for the state officer interview process.

Danielle Waterworth is the past President of the Wisconsin FFA Foundation Board. She is the Sr Director- Aftermarket Solutions - North America Ag Commercial - Part Sales & Dealer Parts Support for CNH Industrial.

Keith & Karen Weltzien are the parents of 2019-20 Wisconsin FFA President Collin Weltzien. They own and operate Welzien Dairy Farm near Arcadia.

Nate Zimdars is the President of the Wisconsin FFA Alumni Council. He served as the State FFA Treasurer in 2012-13 and is currently a Supervisor at Saputo Cheese in Waupun.

The Wisconsin Association of FFA in the 2020-2021 academic calendar year involved over 19,000 students across 252 Chapters. Wisconsin FFA focuses on premier leadership, personal growth, and career success. Student activities complement agricultural classroom instruction by giving youth an opportunity to apply skills and knowledge while gaining real-world experience. Wisconsin FFA celebrates the accomplishments of students, advisors, and supporters. FFA activities are dependent on donor funding through the Wisconsin FFA Foundation. For more information about Wisconsin FFA and the Wisconsin FFA Foundation, visit http://www.wisconsinffa.org or www.wisconsinffafoundation.org. Become a fan of Wisconsin FFA or Wisconsin FFA Foundation on Facebook, or call 715-659-4807.

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