BELLEFONTE AREA
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BAHS FFA Students Earn the Keystone in Pennsylvania
During the month of January , two Bellefonte Area High School Future Farmers of America ( FFA ) members were recognized for earning the highest degree that a FFA member can earn in high school . This award is called the Keystone in Pennsylvania , also known as the Keystone Degree . There are a variety of parts that must be completed before qualifying for this degree .
Earning the Keystone Degree requires up to four years of effort , through leadership development and participation in FFA activities , both in school and in the community . Eligible individuals must earn a certain amount of community service hours , attend so many chapter and state level events , and also have at least 300 hours in a supervised agricultural experiment to qualify . Bellefonte Area High School seniors Emmalin Pringle and Bailey Little , under the guidance of FFA leader Myken Poorman , have earned this prestigious award .
Bailey Little had this to say about earning her Keystone Degree , “ My SAE [ supervised agricultural experience ] projects included serving as the 2022-2023 Centre County Dairy Princess and raising dairy heifers to show . Earning my Keystone Degree has been one of my goals since I joined FFA as a freshman and I am honored to have been selected out of the hundreds of quality applications that are sent in each year .”
Emmalin Pringle commented about her own experiences on earning the Keystone Degree , “ I worked very hard for this degree and it is an honor to be awarded this achievement . It takes a lot of work and time to meet the criteria for this degree . Even after meeting it , there are no promises that you will be awarded the Keystone Degree for your project . It is a huge honor to be awarded the Keystone Degree at the 2023 Convention .”
Mrs . Poorman , an agricultural teacher and FFA leader at Bellefonte Area High School , could not be happier for these two young women . She has had many students participate in this program , but these two will go down in history . Mrs . Poorman states , “ When hard work pays off for my students , I am always proud of them , but earning this degree in FFA is extra special . The Keystone Degree is the highest degree a student can earn while in high school , and receiving it proves that the many , many hours they devote to their projects ( animals , service , community engagement , whatever it may be ) are worth it . Emmalin and Bailey take so much pride in the agriculture industry and this makes me so very proud as their teacher and FFA advisor . I can ' t wait to see where their experiences take them .”
Miss Little leaves us with these words about the FFA program , “ FFA has allowed me to expand and share my knowledge of the agriculture industry . Earning my Keystone degree will allow me to continue to grow my passion in the future . I hope that my journey throughout FFA will inspire others to join and pursue their own passion for agriculture .” The Bellefonte Area School District is so very proud of these young women and their efforts . It is impressive to learn the amount of time and commitment these two have endured to qualify for this award . It is also a joy to see the time and commitment to the agriculture program and the passion that these ladies have for the program .
Congratulations , Bailey and Emmalin !
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