By Jennifer Dorsett
Field Editor
Thirteen students from Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) member-families across the state won district contests in the TFB Free Enterprise Speech Contest and earned the right to advance to the statewide competition.
In this year’s virtual district contest, eligible students who had attended TFB’s Virtual Leadership Conference (VLC) over the summer delivered a speech about the advantages of the free enterprise system and constitutional government.
“Although we had to move everything online this year, the kids were still able to learn about and recognize the importance of our constitutional government and free enterprise system during VLC,” Mia Balko, TFB director of Youth Outreach, said.
Contestants are judged on speech organization, language, use of notes, persuasiveness and application of the topic in the speech.
“The contest helps students learn more about our country, our economy and communicating with an audience. And this year, it also taught students about adapting to difficult circumstances and finding different delivery methods while still being an effective communicator,” Balko said. “These skills will help students succeed in their personal, academic and professional lives.”
The 13 district winners, who each received a $1,500 college scholarship, will advance to compete in the state competition to be held in 2021.
Four finalists at the state level will receive additional funding to total $2,000 each, including the district scholarship.
The state runner-up’s scholarship will increase to $3,000, and the state winner’s scholarship is worth $6,000 total.
An expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., next summer to meet with Texas Congressional leaders and tour historic sites is also included in the prize packages.
The winners of each TFB district are listed below.
District 1: Sarah Stovall, Moore County
District 2: Bryson Stone, Lynn-Garza County
District 3: Lillianna Gonzales, Jack County
District 4: Callie Welty, Johnson County
District 5: Hannah Ritchie, Smith County
District 6: Jonathan Connell, Mitchell County
District 7: Avery Flanagan, Runnels County
District 8: Cassidy Halfmann, Falls County
District 9: Caroline Alders, Nacogdoches County
District 10: Faith Geistweidt, Gillespie County
District 11: Laura Beth James, Fayette County
District 12: Holly Alderson, Guadalupe County
District 13: Trevor Martinez, Jim Wells County
Click here for more information on the Free Enterprise Speech Contest and other youth opportunities through TFB.