Try a New Leadership Development Event!

Coming back to school after winter break is always difficult. Many high schools jump right back in at the end of the semester, making the weeks after break stressful and filled with getting caught up on work you swore you were going to do over break but didn’t and studying for looming final exams. 

During my time in high school, I also spent hours and hours in the weeks following winter break in the ag room, preparing for whichever Leadership Development Event (LDE) I was participating in that year. Whether it was reciting the creed over and over my freshman year to get my hand motions just right or researching hot topics in agriculture to prepare for extemporaneous speaking, I have some amazing memories of late nights and early mornings spent in my high school ag room preparing for contests.

Participating in LDEs was one of the most valuable, memorable and enjoyable parts of my FFA career. They made me more confident in my ability as a speaker and gave me experience sharing the story of agriculture. Sub-district contests are rapidly approaching for most of the chapters in the state, but it’s not too late to take advantage of some of the great opportunities these contests provide. In Iowa, there are nine LDEs that begin at the sub-district level for you to choose from. I have included descriptions of some of my favorites below.

Creed Speaking - “I believe in the future of agriculture, with a faith born not of words but of deeds…” This LDE is for members in seventh through ninth grade. Participants are judged on their ability to present all five paragraphs of the FFA Creed from memory and then answer three questions related to it. I participated in this LDE my freshman year of high school.

Extemporaneous Speaking - In this LDE, participants showcase their agricultural knowledge and ability to think on their feet by giving a speech and answering questions with limited prep time. To compete, members draw three agricultural topics and choose one to craft a speech on. They then have 30 minutes to prepare a four to six minute speech on the topic and are able to use 100 pages of resources. After their speech, participants answer five minutes worth of questions on the topic they just presented. I participated in this LDE my junior year of high school.

Prepared Public Speaking - Participants in this LDE write and deliver a six to eight-minute speech about a current agriculture-related topic. Members are allowed to choose and research their own topic and then put together a creative, informative speech. The speech is presented to a panel of judges, who score the student based on the speech’s content, composition and delivery. I participated in this LDE my senior year of high school.

Conduct of Meetings - The purpose of this LDE is to introduce members to parliamentary procedure as they learn how to conduct efficient meetings and build their communication skills. A team of seven students from one chapter demonstrate correct use of FFA opening and closing ceremonies. Members assume various officer duties (president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, reporter, sentinel and advisor) during the presentation that is evaluated by a team of judges. They are also asked to answer related questions as a team.

These LDEs also start at the sub-district level and descriptions of them can be found at these two links: http://www.iowaffa.com/leadershipcdematerials.aspx and https://www.ffa.org/participate/cde-lde/. (LDE descriptions above were created with the help of these resources).

Job Interview
Parliamentary Procedure
Ag Broadcasting
Ag Sales
Program of Activities

Take a step outside your comfort zone this year and try a new LDE! No matter the outcome, you will make memories and learn skills that will help you grow inside and outside of the classroom.


In Blue and Gold,

2019-2020 State Reporter

Grace Long

Giving the creed at my chapter's banquet during my freshman year.

Four generations of creed speakers from the Ballard FFA Chapter.