Ridgedale FFA

10/10/2026

10/10/2026

🌾🐐 Learning, leadership, and fall fun at Ridgedale FFA Fall Fest! 🎃

Our third and fourth graders explored agriculture through hands-on activities—learning where their food comes from, how it travels from farm to table, and why farm safety matters. Meeting chickens, goats, sheep, pigs, and rabbits helped students learn about animal care and the responsibilities of raising livestock.

Pumpkin painting, face painting, and an obstacle course added creativity, smiles, and teamwork to the day!

For our FFA members, the learning began long before Fall Fest. Members planned activities and stations, organized responsibilities within their groups, and worked together to prepare. Throughout the day, they adjusted their delivery to help younger students understand and stay engaged. They also evaluated what went well and identified ways to improve the programming for future events.

This experience helped members practice communication, teamwork, problem solving, and leadership. As role models for younger students, they learned to advocate for agriculture by sharing their knowledge and answering questions.

After Fall Fest, members held a chapter FFA meeting, enjoyed a luncheon together, and strengthened friendships through kickball and Pictionary. Quick sketches and hilarious guesses brought plenty of laughter as teams competed to reach the finish square!

From teaching younger students to reflecting on their work and bonding as a chapter, the day provided valuable opportunities to learn and grow. Thank you to our teachers, staff, and FFA members for making it possible! 💙💛

Things

09/26/2026

Community partners and mock interviews are important soft skills to help members prepare for real-world experience. Self-awareness is an aspect that's taught, but having conversations with adults, preparing with peers, and being pushed to step out of our comfort zones are also valuable. Students will rise to our expectations eventually, and these members did just that yesterday at Ridgedale FFA Mock Interviews. We would like to thank the following community members for assistance and feedback: Diane Widman from Marion Co Soil and Water, Wayne Porter, Tina Lust, Ellen Messenger, Sara Molski and Tami Galloway from MTC, Mandy Roberts, and Cathy Hamilton.Thank you for your time and expertise in helping to prepare our future leaders.

09/23/2026

Farm Science Review is an amazing experience to introduce, expose students to the many different aspects of Agriculture Industry. Great day for the Ridgedale FFA members who attended.

09/23/2026

Ohio FFA Legislative Leadership Conference held at the Ohio Capitol. They saw the House and Senate Chambers, partipated in legislation activities sponsored by Ohio Farm Bureau

08/28/2026

Let the tradition continue. Congratulations to Laykan Wippich for reciting the FFA Creed being the 1st to this year's freshman class and winning the Free FFA jacket on behalf of Ridgedale FFA. Chapter Officers Elliott Weston and Britton Pottkotter celebration along with all FFA members in class.

08/22/2026

🌱 **A GREAT START TO THE SCHOOL YEAR IN RIDGEDALE AG!** 💙💛

The school year has begun, and we are excited about the **ideas, plans, projects, and goals** we are working toward in the Ridgedale Agricultural Education Department!

This past week, our students jumped right into **hands-on learning!**

🌱 **Indoor Plant Lab & Hydroponics**
Students have been busy setting up our indoor plant lab and planting **microgreens in our hydroponics system**. Throughout the project, students will learn about plant science, growing requirements, hydroponic production, responsibility, and harvesting.

And we're growing with a purpose! 🥗 Once the microgreens are ready to harvest, our goal is to provide them to the **Ridgedale kitchen to use in salads**—giving students the opportunity to experience food production from **planting to plate!**

🤝 **Team Building & Leadership**
Students also took part in team-building challenges that required them to **communicate, problem-solve, think creatively, listen to one another, and work together toward a common goal.**

Sometimes an idea works, sometimes it doesn't—and that's part of learning! Students had to make adjustments, try again, and rely on their teammates to complete the challenge.

Agricultural Education is about so much more than learning about agriculture. It's about preparing young people with the **leadership, communication, teamwork, responsibility, and problem-solving skills** they will need in their future careers and everyday lives.

We're off to a GREAT start, and this is only the beginning!

🌱 **Learning by Doing.**
🤝 **Growing Together.**
💙💛 **Preparing for the Future.**

07/09/2026

The Rabbit Barn had some amazing Banner, Belt Buckle, Wooden Rabbit and Tee- Shirt Sponsors that make our barn a special place to show in. This year our list grew! When we came up short, everyone stepped up! I have posted photos of the banners with each sponsor through out the page throughout last week. Please check them out as they are AMAZING! And everyone loved the BELT BUCKLES which were new the the barn this year!!!!

Special thank you to Melissa & Jake Heffley for making our wooden rabbits this year & Madi Eager @ Eager Design for making shirts for the rabbit junior fair members and advisors. ( Maybe if we have interest we can do rabbit barn shirts next year if we have interest?)

It takes a village to make the barn work and our barn is luck to have the support it does! Thank you all!!!!