FFA Executive Secretary Jim Ertl to Retire

The 86th State FFA Convention wrapped up Tuesday afternoon at the University of Minnesota. This was the last State FFA Convention for Executive Secretary Jim Ertl. Ertl has held the position since 1982 and will be retiring in January. In the picture are two life-size cardboard likenesses of Ertl. They will be moving around Minnesota with the theme "Where is Ertl." While the likeness look like Ertl, I did point out that they seemed to be taller!

Ertl has seen a lot of changes in the FFA since he was an adviser and executive secretary. Until the late 1960s, the FFA was farm boys planning on going into farming or production agriculture. When I was a member in the late 1960s, the bylaws were changed and girls could join the FFA. Over the years there was a transition from just members planning on farming to members looking toward careers in agri-business, too. No matter what your passion is, we need the best and brightest in agriculture to produce more food on less land.

If you like computers, we need people developing hardware and software for agriculture applications. If you like genetics, we need plant and livestock breeders. If you like chemistry, the seed and chemical companies need lots of chemists. If you like sales, someone has to sell all kinds of products to farmers. The list goes on. Plus, another strength of the FFA is leadership development. By the way, soon there will be an announcement on Ertl's replacement. Ertl will work with whomever that is on a smooth transition.