Peotone FFA has had a long tradition of competing with Supervised Agricultural Experiences in Proficiency Awards. The plaques form rows on the walls in the Peotone High School agriculture rooms, dating from the 1950s to the 2020s.
This year, students continue to add hardware to that wall. On Wednesday, February 15, eight students competed in 10 different areas at Tri-Point High School for the Section 10 Proficiency Awards.
When the night was finished, six Peotone FFA students were announced as a Section 10 winner and were to move on to District II competition in March, making them one of the top 25 FFA members in their award area in the State of Illinois.
Section 10 winners include Emma Bialko, William Bialko, Isabella Johnson, Mark Jones II, Reese Parker, and Bryce Thomas. Other competitors were Quinn Pollak, who placed second in Ag Sales Placement, and Joel Myers, who placed third in Ag Mechanics Design and Fabrication.
Each student holds a SAE, also known as record books, on a job or business relating to agriculture. Students must keep accurate records on their hours worked, wages, skills, and responsibilities. The students submit an application and are interviewed for the Proficiency Award areas. Peotone FFA takes pride in continuing to grow students in agricultural experiences.
Bryce Thomas competed in two areas and placed first in both. However, students only are allowed to compete in one area at the district competition. Bryce was selected as the winner of Diversified Ag Production and Diversified Crop Production Placement. Bryce selected Diversified Ag Production, where he keeps multiple record books for his work on a local dairy farm, local corn and soybean farm, and a local forage operation.
Mark Jones II competed in Agriculture Education and was named the winner. Mark keeps records on his work related to Will County Farm Bureau Ag in the Classroom, where he is an intern and makes lessons to use for teachers across Will County.
Isabella Johnson competed in Food Science Placement, where she was named the winner. Isabella uses her work experience at McDonald’s in Peotone for her record book, where she is a crew trainer.
Reese Parker competed in Nursery Operations and was selected as the winner. Reese completed her SAE while working for Possibility Place Nursery in Monee.
Emma Bialko competed in two areas. In Equine Science Placement, she was named the winner. She keeps her records on working for two different horse barns in Will and Kankakee Counties. She also interviewed and competed in Equine Science Entrepreneurship, where she placed second.
William Bialko competed in Turf Grass Management and was selected as the winner. William keeps records from his summer job mowing grass and up-keeping parks for the Village of Beecher.
The Section 10 Proficiency Awards were a competition of students from Section 10, which includes 12 schools from Ford, Iroquois, Livingston, Kankakee, and Will Counties. Students, who won in their respective area, compete in the District II competition at Joliet Junior College in March. The District II area covers schools from a wide range of communities in Northeast Illinois, including communities in Bloomington, Rockford, and Chicagoland.