The Montgomery County and Wellsville-Middletown FFA chapters will travel to Indianapolis this week to participate in the 98th Annual National FFA Convention and Expo, which starts on Oct. 29 and ends on Nov. 1.

The MCHS chapter plans to take 25 of its members, while the W-M chapter will send 12. 

Also, MCHS will have 11 members earn their American Degrees and eight of them will be making the trip to the American Degree ceremony, scheduled for Nov. 1. Derrick Cobb, Aleida Eldringhoff, Jace Ellis, Destani Eversmeyer, Alexa Groeber, Raylene Poston, Brayden Rose, Presley Schluss, Shea Stille, Lexy Veach and Jaylynn Zerr are the American Degree winners for MCHS.

Two W-M members – Jenelle Boeckelman and Caden Gilbert – will also receive their American Degrees at the national convention.

The American FFA Degree is awarded to an FFA member who showed outstanding leadership abilities and was highly involved in the community. To be eligible for the honor, members must receive a state FFA degree, become an active FFA member for three years, complete instruction in an agricultural education program and operate a supervised agriculture experience (SAE) program.

Missouri has the most American Degree recipients in the country with 755.

In addition to picking up her American Degree, Groeber is a national finalist for the environmental science and natural resources proficiency award. 

Groeber, who graduated from MCHS in 2024, was one of four FFA members nationwide that were selected as national finalists in the environmental science and national resources agricultural proficiency. She will be recognized at 6 p.m. on Oct. 31.

The other national finalists are Jacob Zuniga of St. Helena, Calif., Olivia Hogg of LaGrange, Ga., and Rylee Nelson of Waupaca, Wis. 

Agricultural Proficiency Awards honor FFA members who, through supervised agricultural experiences (SAEs), have developed specialized skills that they can apply toward their future careers. Students compete in areas ranging from agricultural communications to wildlife management. Proficiency awards are also recognized at local and state levels and provide recognition to members exploring and becoming established in agricultural career pathways.

Groeber was the first MCHS FFA member since the 2000s to be selected as national finalist, when Kyle Carter was selected in swine production placement. Another MCHS FFA member who was a national finalist was Randy Rodgers in swine production in the 1970s.