Four Oxford High School students and members of the Oxford Horticulture program will be traveling to Indianapolis, Indiana, to represent the state of Mississippi at the 97th annual National FFA Convention & Expo.

Lilly Ambrose, Uno Estialbo, Meghan Goins and Anastasiia Sikorska will be competing in the Floriculture Career Development Event, showcasing their skills as both individuals and as a team.

They will have to identify various plants, craft flower arrangements, take a general floriculture knowledge exam, and engage in a collaborative team activity that highlights their knowledge and skills of the floriculture industry.

In April, the team competed and excelled in the state FFA competition, held at Mississippi State University, by winning first place in the Floriculture Career Development Event. This fall, they have been diligently working and practicing multiple times a week to prepare for the prestigious national convention. A special thank you to Oxford Floral for generously donating supplies to the FFA team for practice, as well as Danielle Ambrose, David Naron, and Elizabeth Bryant for providing additional floristry instruction and their professional expertise. 

“Having students compete in FFA Career Development Events (CDEs) is one of my favorite aspects of my job,” said Ken Hearn, OHS horticulture teacher. “Not only is it rewarding when they do well, but as an educator, it enables me to truly measure the progress of my students.” 

The FFA convention, taking place Oct. 23-26, brings together members from across the nation.

For additional information regarding the Oxford Horticulture program, please contact Mr. Hearn at kthearn@oxfordsd.org.