On Oct. 11-12, eight members from the Gilroy FFA chapter attended a Regional Leadership conference where more than 300 other students, all involved in the FFA, united at the 2025 South Coast Region FFA Chapter Officer Leadership Conference in Hollister.
As an organization, the FFA’s mission is to promote premier leadership, personal growth and career success, which is exactly what attendees to this two-day conference gained. At this annual event, students attended various workshops that served to encourage and motivate these leaders to return to their schools with a new outlook on life and a positive attitude, bringing new ideas with them.
All in attendance also had the opportunity to hear from various speakers and participate in workshops conducted by State and Regional FFA leaders. The conference wouldn’t be complete, however, without the Saturday night program, where the different schools had a chance to perform a lip-sync dance routine to help liven up the crowd.
The many workshops and activities taught these elected leaders to have a positive attitude and influence, as well as to stay away from negative aspects of society, such as drug abuse, hateful bigotry and low self-esteem.
According to Nipomo FFA’s Nola Zavala, the Regional FFA President, “This conference was truly a unique experience where people from different communities and backgrounds were able to come together not only to learn, but to have a positive experience.”
With the knowledge gained from this conference, FFA members gained a new outlook on life, creating an important and lasting impact on their personal journeys and on the society around them.
For the first time since its establishment in 1931, Gilroy FFA was named the Santa Clara Section FFA Chapter of the Year, marking a historic milestone. This distinguished honor recognizes overall chapter excellence based on the number of State FFA Degrees earned, success in Leadership Development Events (LDEs) at the regional level, achievements in Career Development Events (CDEs) at the state level, and accomplishments in both regional and state Proficiency Awards.
Consideration is also given to chapters that have had regional or state FFA officers within the past year.
“It is nice to see our students’ work has paid off,” said Gilroy FFA Advisor Mrs. Allyah Pulido. “From being one of the smaller chapters in our section, it was nice to see that our students were finally awarded this honor. We have been working on trying to achieve this award for the past five years, and it’s exciting to finally see the success of our effort.”
This recognition highlights the dedication, leadership and excellence of Gilroy FFA’s members and marks a proud moment in the chapter’s legacy.
Attending the conference with the students were local FFA Advisors Mrs. Allyah Pulido, Ms. Angelique Gutierrez, and Ms. Britney Bean, who also participated in a professional development meeting on Sunday.
Kaylee Gamble is the Gilroy FFA Reporter.
