National FFA Convention Bus Trip

Each fall, Grover FFA joins eight to nine other chapters from Northern Colorado for a week-long trip to the National FFA Convention in Indianapolis. It’s a long haul, but it’s worth every mile. The bus turns into a rolling classroom, and by the end of the week it feels like family. 

I tell people this trip hits differently depending on where you are in high school. For freshmen, it lights a fire when they see thousands of FFA jackets filling Lucas Oil Stadium, meet students from across the country, and realize the diversity of their opportunities. It gives them goals to chase and experiences they want to earn, and in some cases, a track to take to achieve those experiences. For upperclassmen, it’s about direction—talking with colleges, trade schools, or employers, asking questions, and picturing what comes next after they’re done with high school. It’s not uncommon for students to attend all four years, and the trip means something different every time they go.

On the Road: Tours and Learning Experiences

We kicked things off at the Case IH Combine Factory in Grand Island, Nebraska. It’s hard to explain how massive that place is until you’re standing under a combine frame the size of a house. Students saw robotic welders and torque tools that stop automatically when they hit the exact right torque. We talked about safety, precision, and how every single machine that leaves that floor is built to order. That tour alone ties back to half the standards in our ag mechanics program—welding, automation, manufacturing, and career skills.

Next up was Iowa State University’s College of Animal Science. We toured their animal science facilities, saw their arena, which is home to the largest student-run rodeo in the country, and learned how their livestock, dairy, and meats judging teams have been competing since the early 1900s. Faculty shared how their research connects directly to animal health and production, and how graduates have nearly a 99 percent job placement rate. It gave our students a real look at what an agriculture degree can lead to, whether that’s animal science, research, or communications.

Then came one of our most unique tours, Hummel Livestock. We toured their barns, met animals up close, and heard how their operation combines show goats, cattle, and Savannah cats into a thriving family business. Students met Goats, Rheas, a baby Eland, a Dingo-cross dog, a savannah cat kitten, and a really large sheep dog. Mr. Hummel told the kids three different times that his biggest key to success was “predicting where the market would go,” and that stuck. It was a hands-on look at entrepreneurship, genetics, and innovation.

A visit to Conner Prairie brought a different kind of lesson. Students explored the 1836 “Prairietown” museum covering over 1,000 acres, a fully recreated pioneer community filled with displays of blacksmithing, pottery, weaving, and other trades from the time period. The helium balloon experience there usually lifts people over 400 feet into the air, but wind kept us grounded this year. It still sparked some great discussion about helium’s role in buoyancy and how balloons like this have been used throughout history, from early science experiments, to observation during the Civil War, and now as an educational tool.

Our most personal and one of our most memorable stops came through a connection made by one of the ag teachers on our bus: a behind-the-scenes visit to Chip Ganassi Racing, one of the most successful teams in motorsports. Every small group got its own guide, so each tour was different. Students heard from engineers, mechanics, drivers, graphic designers, and technicians who print vinyl wraps or create carbon-fiber parts. They explained how precision, teamwork, and data come together to produce winning results, and how attention to detail in one field connects directly to success in another. That stop tied mechanical and engineering standards straight back to the real world, showing that the same accuracy, problem-solving, and pride we teach in ag mechanics apply far beyond agriculture.

The Convention and Expo

Once we rolled into Indianapolis, everything shifted into high gear. From over 64,000 members and guests at opening session to more than 67,000 attendees later in the week, the scale of the convention is unreal. Students heard speeches from national officers, celebrated award winners, and saw what it looks like when a passion for FFA, service, and leadership all come together in one place.

At the Expo, especially in the college area, students had the opportunity to connect with representatives from more than 80 colleges and universities, as well as a handful of trade schools. Those conversations allow students to see just how many paths agriculture can lead to, and how skills from the classroom can open doors in almost any career field.

We also fit in some fun. The Three Hills Rodeo, incredible food, a jump park, and a Pacers game where our students even got to shoot a free throw on the court after the final buzzer.

A Trip That’s Never the Same Twice

Although we make this trip annually, no two years ever look exactly the same. Agriculture changes, and our itinerary changes right along with it. Over the years we’ve toured Kansas State University’s ag college and greenhouses, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, John Deere’s See & Spray technology, the Indy 500 track (yes, we kissed the bricks), Corteva Agriscience, Hunter’s Honey Farm, Fair Oaks Farm, Anderson Orchard, Black Shirt Feeders, the Horseshoe Horse Racing Track, and even taken a riverboat tour on the Mississippi and visited the Gateway Arch in St. Louis.

Students who go more than once don’t repeat the same experience; they build on it. That’s what keeps this opportunity exciting, relevant, and worth doing every time.

The Big Picture

By the time we pull back into Holyoke and finally into Grover, the students are exhausted, the bus smells like a locker room, and everyone’s ready to see their families and get a good night’s sleep. But they’re also full of ideas. They’ve seen where agriculture can take them—in science, engineering, business, and education. They’ve networked with colleges, met professionals, and learned more in one week than you can pack into a semester of slideshows and classroom or lab work.

Trips like this don’t just check the “field trip” box. They build leaders, connect learning to real life, and remind every kid on that bus why they joined FFA in the first place.