Three Autauga County FFA Members Win National SAE Grants

On December 26, 2025, Adriana Rasberry of Jones, Caleb Cook of Plantersville, and Caleb Hornady of Billingsley were each awarded a $1,000 National FFA Supervised Agricultural Experience grant. Rasberry was funded by Farm Credit, Cook by Cencora Impact Foundation, and Hornady by Phibro Animal Health. The three students are members of the Billingsley FFA Chapter and were selected from 1,468 applicants nationwide.

SAE grants are intended to help FFA members create or expand supervised agricultural experience projects, a requirement for all FFA participants. An SAE requires students to develop and operate an agriculture related business, work at an agriculture related business, or conduct an agricultural research experience. Upon completion, members must submit a comprehensive report detailing their career development experience. This seed funding of $1,000 per recipient can underwrite startup costs for feed, seed, small equipment, testing supplies, or other inputs that convert classroom learning into marketable skills.

This year 23 different sponsors funded SAE grants, reflecting a broad mix of corporate and nonprofit support for agricultural education. The awards come as part of the National FFA Organization, a school based national youth leadership development organization with more than 1,042,245 student members in 9,407 local FFA chapters across all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. That scale highlights how a relatively small grant can have outsized impact locally by enabling students to build track records that attract further investment or grow into revenue generating operations.

For Autauga County the grants reinforce a pipeline from local schools to farm and agribusiness careers. Practical funding reduces barriers for students who might otherwise be unable to start hands on projects, supporting workforce development in production agriculture, animal health, and agri research. Over time these opportunities can increase local agricultural productivity, help retain young people in rural communities, and support small scale entrepreneurship that complements larger county employers.

Local leaders and school officials can view the awards as a prompt to continue investing in agriscience programs and to connect SAE participants with mentors, markets, and technical assistance so the initial $1,000 investments translate into measurable career and economic outcomes.