Kentucky Department of Agriculture

INDIANAPOLIS - Alexander L. Richardson of Meade County FFA is one of four finalists for the American Star Farmer award, National FFA's highest honor.

Zachary Cotton of Spencer County FFA is a finalist for American Star in Agribusiness. Richardson and Cotton are among 16 finalists for the four American Star honors.

The star awards — Star Farmer, Star in Agribusiness, Star in Agricultural Placement, and Star in Agriscience — recognize students who have developed outstanding agricultural skill and competency through their career development programs, demonstrated outstanding management skills, earned the American FFA Degree — the organization’s highest level of accomplishment — and met other agricultural education, scholarship and leadership requirements.

Each star finalist receives $2,000 from the National FFA Foundation and earns the opportunity to participate in an international experience tour to Costa Rica. A panel of judges will interview the finalists and select one winner for each award at the 85th National FFA Convention, October 24-27, in Indianapolis, In. Winners will receive an additional $2,000 award.

The American FFA Degree recognition programs and tours to Costa Rica are co-sponsored by Alltech Inc. of Nicholasville, Ky.; Case IH of Racine, Wisc., Farm Credit of Greenwood Village, Colo.; Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont Business of Des Moines, Iowa; and Syngenta of Greensboro, N.C., as a special project of the National FFA Foundation. “Stars Over America,” a special audiovisual presentation featuring the star award winners, is produced by Alltech Inc. as a special project of the National FFA Foundation.

The finalists for each award are:

Star Farmer
Clayton N. Carley – Cissna Park FFA – Illinois
Andrew Kenneth Edson – Nashua-Plainfield FFA, Iowa
Alexander L. Richardson – Meade County FFA, Kentucky
Jeremy Weichel – Cordell FFA, Oklahoma

Star in Agribusiness
Bradley Robert Weaver – Dawson County FFA, Georgia
Zachary Cotton – Spencer County FFA, Kentucky
Austin Crissman – Bells FFA, Texas
Jacob Paul – Randolph Cambria-Friesland FFA, Wisconsin

Star in Agricultural Placement
Kurt Parsons – Porterville FFA, California
Justin Cochran – Franklin County FFA, Georgia
Matthew Marcellus – West Holt FFA, Nebraska
Cody Jackson Walker – Warren County FFA, Tennessee

Star in Agriscience
Kaylyn Stout – Lowndes County FFA, Georgia
Kayleigh Warner – DeKalb Central FFA, Indiana
Rachael Claire Arkfeld – Syracuse-Dunbar-Avoca FFA, Nebraska
Taylor Runyan – Atoka FFA, Oklahoma