National FFA Members Head to Nation’s Capital for Washington Leadership Conference

The Washington Leadership Conference (WLC) took place in the summer of 2023 in Washington D.C with nearly 2,100 students in attendance. WLC, hosted by the National FFA Organization, provides 340 students in 9th through 12th grades the opportunity to develop their premier leadership, personal growth, and career success while being exposed to the rich history of Washington, D.C. Celebrating its 52nd year in 2023, the WLC curriculum will educate FFA member on four tenants of leadership: Me, We, Do and Serve. Throughout the week, students had the opportunity to take part in reflections, sessions, and embark on tours throughout the capital including the Arlington National Cemetery and Lincoln Memorial. The 2023 conference schedule is as follows: Week 1 (June 6-10), Week 2 (June 13-17), Week 3 (June 20-24), Week 4 (June 27-July 1), Week 5 (July 11-15) and Week 6 (July 18-22). The National FFA Organization is an intracurricular student organization for those interested in agriculture and leadership. It is one of the three components of agricultural education. To learn more, visit www.ffa.org/about. Point of Contact: Payton Carter, Program Specialist Programs and Events Division Personal: +1 (317) 802-4409 Email: pcarter@ffa.org Kristy Meyer, Communications Manager Marketing Communications Services Personal: +1 (317) 802-4205 Mobile: +1 (317) 538-7077 Email: kmeyer@ffa.org General Email: wlc@ffa.org Website: www.ffa.org/conference/washington-leadership-conference-wlc/

For more than 50 years, thousands of FFA members from across the country have converged in our nation’s capital each summer to engage with legislators, hone civic engagement and leadership skills, and create community impact projects to take back to their cities and towns.

The National FFA Organization’s Washington Leadership Conference (WLC) will take place from June 4-July 20 at the Omni Shoreham, with six, week-long sessions for FFA members to choose from. More than 1,700 FFA members from across the country are expected to attend the 2024 conference, the second-largest student experience that the National FFA Organization hosts each year, only behind the National FFA Convention & Expo which draws more than 70,000 attendees.

FFA members will spend the week under the guidance of agricultural and leadership professionals, facilitators, and FFA staff who will guide them through workshops, seminars, and small group activities, with the goal of leaving feeling equipped and empowered to impact their local communities and beyond. Students will also visit national landmarks such as the National Mall, Arlington National Cemetery, Smithsonian Museums, and the U.S. Capitol. Each day of the conference focuses on a different principle taught through the context of our nation’s capital: exploration, encouragement, advocacy and service.

FFA members will have the unique opportunity to advocate for agriculture through congressional visits during the week with legislators from their states. Members can share concerns and challenges from their communities, as well as discuss agricultural-related legislation and opportunities they see based on their own unique perspectives.

For more information, visit FFA.org/WLC.

LIVING TO SERVE The capstone of the conference is the development of a Living to Serve Plan, a civic engagement project that participants will implement in their communities after returning home.

To develop this Living to Serve Plan, members are asked to analyze the needs of their communities before attending WLC. Students can lean on their FFA chapter advisors to implement the plan upon returning home. Examples of projects in recent years include promoting agricultural literacy, collecting and distributing shoes to individuals in Haiti, and creating a hunger awareness plan.

**Story Courtesy of National FFA**