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Northview Grad Singleton Lobbies Legislative Committee For FFA Education Bill

Northview High School graduate Mitchell Singleton lobbied a Florida legislative committee Wednesday on behalf of a bill to benefit agricultural education and the Florida FFA.

Mitchell currently serves as the Area 1 State Vice President of the Florida FFA Assocation. He spoke to the members of the Florida House PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee in favor of House Bill 3053, Next Generation Agricultural Education Student.

The bill would provide a $1.25 million appropriation — $1 million would go toward making each of over 60,ooo agricultural education students in Florida members of the FFA at no cost to them, and $250,000 would go toward updates to the FFA’s Leadership Training Center in Haines City which used by thousands of FFA members each year.

“For  me personally, my FFA story doesn’t being like most of you may think,” Mitchell told the committee. “I don’t have a background in agriculture. None of my family are farmers. I joined the FFA in the sixth grade at Ernest Ward Middle School because some of my friends were doing it and I thought that would just be the cool thing to do. So at that time I was a shy little sixth grader that would not even be caught dead speaking in front of this committee this morning, but also I didn’t know that I could have a place in agriculture because at that time my plan wasn’t to grow up and to be a farmer. But through the seven years that I have zipped up that blue corduroy jacket, I have realized that I can take every opportunity that is given to me to step out of my comfort zone, to grow myself as as individual, to grow myself as a leader.”

“But equally as important, I realized even I have a place in the agriculture industry,” he said.

He told the subcommittee members that the FFA and agricultural education is about much more than production agriculture, with positions such as social media marketing, scientists, or Singleton’s personal choice of education.

He said there are hundreds, or even thousands of FFA members with similar personal growth stories.

“This funding will allow us to truly change the future of Florida FFA forever,” he said. “We are asking your support to be able to open the door for every student in ag eduation courses in Florida so that we can build a better future for them, a better future Florida and a better future for the United States of America.”

Following Mitchell’s speech, the PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee voted 12-0 in favor of the bill. It next goes to the full House Appropriations Committee.

Pictured: Mitchell Singleton addresses the Florida House PreK-12 Appropriations Subcommittee Wednesday in favor of the Next Generation Agricultural Education Student bill.  Image courtesy The Florida Channel for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.