What do you get when you give $25,000 in scholarships to 25 FFA students? The answer: Twenty-five future agriscientists, biotechnologists, agronomists, food scientists, ag journalists, ag marketers and other promising leaders for the field of agriculture.

At least that’s how Garst Seed Company views its recent donation of $25,000 in scholarships to high school and college students in the National FFA Organization.

As part of its 75th anniversary celebration last year, Garst committed $75,000 to the FFA Collegiate Scholarship Program to be awarded over a three-year period. Each year, 25 FFA students will receive a $1,000 scholarship.

“It’s not often that you can truly impact a young person’s future, but through the FFA Collegiate Scholarship Program, Garst is doing just that,” says Steve Klein, director of marketing for Garst. “FFA is the starting point for many of our agriculture leaders, and it was a natural fit for Garst to partner with it for this scholarship program. It’s important for our company to financially support students who are interested in agriculture as they work toward a college degree.”

Each year, five scholarships are awarded to students studying ag communications or ag education; 10 for an ag marketing, merchandising or sales degree; and 10 to students pursuing any ag-related degree.

“These scholarships are more than just a monetary award, they show our students that Garst Seed Company and FFA believe in them and want them to succeed in the field of agriculture,” says Dennis Sargent, executive director for the National FFA Foundation. “This is a tremendous gift that Garst Seed Company has given the FFA program, and we’re thrilled to be working with them to find students deserving of these scholarships.”

Garst’s commitment to FFA goes beyond scholarships. Each fall the Slater, Iowa-based seed company creates and distributes a unique, hands-on classroom curriculum to FFA instructors to help them teach students about the importance of marketing and promoting agriculture. New to the curriculum this year is a public relations component that exposes students to career possibilities in public relations and prepares them to be better consumers of public communications.

As a bonus incentive for using the curriculum, FFA chapters can compete in Garst’s FFA Commercial Competition and vie for $7,500 in cash and prizes. Students develop advertisements, either for radio or television, or a public relations campaign based on each year’s theme. The 2006 theme is “America’s Farmland. Today’s Solution to Tomorrow’s Energy Needs.” Winners will be announced at the National FFA Convention. Ag instructors may request the curriculum and competition materials by sending an e-mail to askgarst@garstseedco.com or by logging onto Garst’s Website at www.garstseed.com to download the materials, which will be available early this summer.

The following high school and college students were awarded a $1,000 FFA scholarship this spring from Garst Seed Company:

·     Stephanie Bailey, Broadview, N.M.
·     Travis Black, Sedgwick, Kan.
·     Colby Cunningham, Rose, Okla.
·     Stuart Dill, Taylorsville, Ky.
·     Adam Heishman, Mount Jackson, Va.
·     Allen Heishman, Mount Jackson, Va.
·     Nathan Hejl, Caldwell, Texas
·     Anna Marie Limbaugh, Fruitland, Idaho
·     Holly Marshall, Redfield, S.D.
·     Hannah Hess, Bushnell, Ill.
·     Samuel Landholm, Lyons, Neb.
·     Heather McLean, Newbern, Tenn.
·     Megan Meharg, Cantonment, Fla.
·     William Meteer, Blue Mound, Ill.
·     Bradley Nicholson, Danville, Ind.
·     Jared Niewohner, Lyons, Neb.
·     Justin Paul, Ft. Branch, Ind.
·     Bradley Pilcher, Paxton, Ill.
·     Cory Reinle, Bardstown, Ky.
·     Daniel Schwager, Bartlett, Neb.
·     Brigham Scott, Westernville, Neb.
·     Whitney Siegfried, Holly, Colo.
·     Lucas Sjostrom, Lafayette, Minn.
·     Krystina Southern, Prairie Grove, Ark.
·     Jacob Wooley, Vilonia, Ark.
 
Students interested in applying for Garst’s 2007 FFA Collegiate Scholarship should ask their FFA adviser or the National FFA Organization for an application.

Garst Seed Company, with headquarters in Slater, Iowa, provides innovative seed solutions for growers across North America with high yielding corn, soybean, sorghum, alfalfa and sunflower products. For more information about Garst products, contact your local Garst ProSeller or visit Garst’s Website at www.garstseed.com.

Garst Seed Company is affiliated with Syngenta, a world-leading agribusiness committed to sustainable agriculture through innovative research and technology. The company is a leader in crop protection, and ranks third in the high-value commercial seeds market. Sales in 2005 were approximately $8.1 billion. Syngenta employs more than 19,000 people in over 90 countries. Syngenta is listed on the Swiss stock exchange (SYNN) and in New York (SYT). Further information is available at www.syngenta.com.