Ellsworth High School senior Rachel Sebesta entered her fifth year with FFA and she is currently serving as the chapter President. Sebesta first joined the FFA in the eighth grade after her family encouraged her to do so.

“My parents encouraged me to join but my older brother Lukas was truly the spark that got me engaged. He would tell me about how much fun events were and I wanted to experience the same thing,” said Sebesta.

If being President of the chapter wasn’t enough, Sebesta has made the most of her opportunities with FFA.

“I currently serve as the North Central District FFA Reporter. I participate in a wide range of Career Development Events (CDEs for short) such as Range Management, Agricultural Communications, Entomology, Discussion Meet, and my personal favorite, Meats Evaluation and Technology,” said Sebesta. “I am also involved in Leadership Development Events (LDEs) like Discussion Meet, Ritual, Extemporaneous Speaking, FFA Quiz Bowl, and Prepared Public Speaking. I help my community through service projects such as our Agricultural Literacy Program for kindergarten and first grade students and collecting Christmas trees for fish habitats in Wilson Lake.”

Sebesta also shows several varieties of animals.

“I show several species of animals through FFA as well. I exhibit sheep and goats at the Ellsworth County Fair, Kansas State Fair, and the Kansas Junior Livestock Show and have found significant success while doing so. I showed the Champion Suffolk Market Lamb in 2018 at the Kansas State Fair and the Reserve Champion All-Other-Breeds Breeding Ewe in 2020 at the Kansas State Fair. I have also been named a top 5 individual for the past three years in the Kansas Junior Livestock Show LEAD Challenge, which is a contest for youth in agriculture to showcase their skills in advocating the industry to the general public,” said Sebesta. “My favorite thing in FFA is networking with people from across the state and even across the US! FFA gives over 700,000 students something in common: an interest in the industry that fuels our nation.”

Her other activities include National Honor Society, Marching Band, Pep Band, Drumline, Musical, Math Relays and Scholar’s Bowl.

“I also am a four-year tennis letterman and I manage men’s tennis,” said Sebesta. “Following graduation, I will attend Kansas State University to major in Agricultural Education.”