MURRAY, Ky. — The Hutson School of Agriculture at Murray State University recently honored high school students from the Purchase, Pennyrile and Green River regions as Murray State FFA All-Region Stars based on the students’ demonstrated leadership in Future Farmers of America (FFA).
The banquet was held on Murray State’s campus Monday, Nov. 20, in honor of the recipients. Several University officials were in attendance, including Murray State President Bob Davies, Provost Mark Arant, Vice President for Student Affairs Don Robertson, Senior Presidential Advisor Renee Fister and others. They joined more than 200 guests who also attended the banquet.
FFA advisors at individual high schools could nominate two students for this recognition — one as an automatic award recipient and the other as an at-large nomination (not all at-large nominees were selected for the award). Purchase and Pennyrile FFA regional officers were also selected for FFA All-Region Stars awards.
The honored FFA students attend a number of high schools in the region, including Ballard Memorial, Calloway County, Fulton County, Graves County, Hickman County, Livingston Central, Marshall County, McCracken County and Trigg County in the Purchase region; Caldwell County, Hopkins County Central, Lyon County, Madisonville North Hopkins, Muhlenberg County and Todd County in the Pennyrile region; and Henderson and Webster County in the Green River region. Students from counties in the Green River region outside Murray State’s 18-county service area were not eligible.
Students recognized during the award ceremony include the following:
Purchase Region
Rianah Fields, Ballard Memorial High School
Hayden Roberts, Ballard Memorial High School
Landon Wicker, Ballard Memorial High School
Hannah Anderson, Calloway County High School
Avery Wilmurth, Calloway County High School
Daisy Major, Fulton County High School
Margaret Caroline Morrison, Fulton County High School
Keisha Beck, Graves County High School
Alexis Cherry, Graves County High School
Jarrod Mathis, Graves County High School
Jakob Stahr, Hickman County High School
Cheyanne Johnson, Livingston Central High School
Lauren Schmitt, Livingston Central High School
Kinsey Hamby, Marshall County High School
Dalton Pea, Marshall County High School
Hannah Ferrell, McCracken County High School
Cheyenne McKinney, McCracken County High School
Bailynn Peeler, McCracken County High School
Breanna Oliver, Trigg County High School
Grace Sink, Trigg County High School
Kaylin Smith, Trigg County High School
Pennyrile Region
Mackenzie Smiley, Caldwell County High School
Hannah York, Caldwell County High School
Paxton Gray, Hopkins County Central High School
DrewAnne Herring, Hopkins County Central High School
McKenzie Rodgers, Hopkins County Central High School
Cullan Brown, Lyon County High School
Hannah Knight, Lyon County High School
Max Wadlington, Lyon County High School
Kourtney Ashby, Madisonville North Hopkins High School
Emily Fischels, Madisonville North Hopkins High School
Kaitlyn Holloman, Madisonville North Hopkins High School
Harley Slaughter, Muhlenberg County High School
Jonna Woodson, Muhlenberg County High School
Alexandra Brooks, Todd County Central High School
James Van Frogue, Todd County Central High School
Megan Haley, Todd County Central High School
Green River Region
Kaitlin Green, Henderson County High School
Sylisa Mooney, Webster County High School
Caleb O’nan, Webster County High School
Walter Steely, Webster County High School
The Hutson School of Agriculture created the awards program, which named its fifth crop of Stars this year, as a way to acknowledge FFA students in Murray State’s service area for their accomplishments. FFA advisors are also recognized each year for their service to their students and the FFA organization.
“My FFA experience provided me a solid leadership background that has served me well throughout my career, and it is a pleasure to recognize outstanding young leaders pursuing the same experiences,” said Dr. Tony Brannon, dean of the Hutson School of Agriculture.
The guest speaker at the banquet was Kirby Green, a Murray State alumna and district sales manager for Monsanto, an agrochemical company. Green was also named the 2017 Murray State Hutson School of Agriculture Young Outstanding Alumna earlier this fall.
— Murray State University
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