Two Marion County High School students have been selected to attend the Institute for Future Agricultural Leaders (IFAL) Program sponsored by Kentucky Farm Bureau. MCHS juniors Adriana Gordon and Sydnie Mattingly have been selected to attend the five-day leadership conference, which focuses on various agriculture-related careers.
Gordon will attend the conference at Murray State University while Mattingly will attend at the University of Kentucky.
For Gordon, the most exciting part about the conference is the opportunity to spend a week at Murray State’s campus.
“I’m most excited about going to a college and getting a college experience and staying on a campus so that it gives me an idea of what’s to be expected,” she said.
Gordon said she was encouraged to apply by her Agriculture teachers and FFA advisors at MCHS and she had high praise for Ag-education experience at the high school.
“It’s been amazing and I absolutely love it because I get to learn more about the industry as a whole,” Gordon said. “I was raised in horses so I know a lot about the horse industry, so it’s very much widened my experience and knowledge of all the different types of industry and all that Ag brings to the community.”
Mattingly said she’s hoping to garner additional leadership skills that she can bring back to MCHS as well as encourage other students to apply.
“I’m excited to bring the IFAL program to Marion County and maybe get more people involved with it next year,” she said. “I think there are some leadership components I can bring back to other parts of the school.”
According to information on Kentucky Farm Bureau’s website, the program “helps students become more familiar with Farm Bureau, promote agricultural-related career choices, provide leadership development opportunities, and promote each participating university.”