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Lyndon Institute Instructor Awarded VT FFA Advisor of the Year

January 10th, 2020


Lyndon Institute is proud to announce that Diversified Agriculture instructor, Jerry Leonard has been chosen as the 2018-19 Vermont FFA Advisor of the Year by the Vermont FFA Association. Mr. Leonard, a resident of Newark VT, was notified of the honor by Vermont Career & Technical Student Organizations Coordinator, Susan Ladd on January 1st, 2020.

As their website says, FFA--which stands for Future Farmers of America--is “ the premier youth organization preparing members for leadership and careers in the science, business, and technology of agriculture.”

“Lyndon Institute has had a long history with FFA, and Jerry has worked hard to reinvigorate the chapter and breathe new life and energy into a program that had not seen any activity for many years,” said Executive Director of the VT FFA, Suzanne S. Buck, M.Ed CAGS. Buck went on to say, “If I call or email with a question or a request he normally replies, ‘Yeah, I think we can do that!’  or ‘Let me think about that and I will get back to you!’.  He has a great personality and a huge heart.  I am so proud of the work that he has done with the students at Lyndon, and I am just so appreciative of his efforts to reinvigorate a very proud chapter. I am sure that they will go a long way.”

Leonard resurrected the LI FFA Chapter for the 2018-19 school year. After winning at the state level in its first year back to the LI campus, the chapter went on to represent Vermont at the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana from October 30th through November 2nd, 2019. With over 69,000 attendees, the National FFA Convention and Expo remains one of the world’s largest student conventions.

Lyndon Institute Head of School, Twila Perry, said “We are pleased that Jerry will be recognized at the state level for the work he has done to resurrect the LI FFA Chapter. It is wonderful to be continuing with a long tradition of working with future agricultural leaders.”

Leonard will be recognized at a meeting of the Vermont Association of Career & Technical Education Directors on February 13th as part of their celebration of Career and Technical Education Month. More information about the Vermont FFA Association and Lyndon Institute can be found on their websites at www.vtffa.com and www.lyndoninstitute.org.

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