During the National FFA Convention last week, Cortney Zimmerman of Wisconsin was elected as the Central Region Vice President for the 2021-2022 year. Zimmerman is the eighth dairy state FFA member to ever be elected as a national officer and the first to be elected since 2011 when Alicia Hodnik took the National VP position. She’s currently going to school for agricultural communications at South Dakota State University and just finished her term as the Wisconsin FFA Vice President.
Outside of the state, Jackson Sylvester of Delaware was elected National Secretary, Erik Robinson Jr. of Georgia is now the Southern Region Vice President, Josiah Cruikshank from Oregon is the Western Region VP, Mallory White from Kentucky is the Eastern Region VP, and lastly, Cole Baerlocher of Washington is the National FFA President.
“I can’t even explain my emotions, it’s like excitement and just this readiness to get out there and start serving as a national officer and start making an impact. And this is just crazy, it’s really a dream come true. That chance to serve over 730,000 members, it’s something that, grounds you. And so, it’s just incredibly humbling and I’m so, so, so excited for this opportunity and for the year ahead,” Baerlocher said.
Along with Zimmerman, there were others from Wisconsin who were also recognized. Tristan Wirkus from the Stratford FFA received first place for his Environmental Science and Natural Resources Management Proficiency Award. Plus, Olivia Olson of Lake Mills FFA was the runner-up in the National FFA Creed Speaking Contest.
The 2022 National FFA Convention will be held in Indianapolis from October 26th – 29th.
