SHOW NOTES

INTRODUCING COLE SCHOCK!

The FFA does a better job of getting students ready for the career world than any other high school program that I know of.  This is a very good thing, and it can create a question – should I go straight to work or should I go to college.  Today, that question is more valid than it has been in decades.  The price of tuition his risen sharply, well above the rate of inflation and wages over the past 10-20 years, and the value of a bachelor’s degree has dropped in many sectors because starting wages with a degree are being overtaken by wages in the trades.

So, is a student who goes to college better off?  I think the answer to that question is “it depends”.  The answer is definitely not “yes” as it was for so many years.  Today, a student who has a skill and is ready to go to work the day after graduation can get started building their salary, experience level, retirement accounts, seniority and skills 4 to 5 years before their peers who go to college.  If that same student starts investing for retirement immediately and does not incur any student loan debt they might find themselves well ahead of the fellow graduates who choose the college route financially.

In today’s interview I am featuring one such student.  Cole Schock went to work right out of college as an artificial insemination technician with Select Sires.  He knew he wanted to work with cattle in the dairy industry, and he found a way to make that happen right away.  He first moved from South Dakota to Colorado to take over a territory but has already been able to return to where he grew up and where he wants to be.

Cole is a very high achiever, and what he has already been able to do is evidence of this.  If his career achievements were not enough, Cole has continued achieving in the FFA.  This year he found himself as one of four, American Star Finalists in agricultural placement.  It was a thrill to be able to interview Cole and hear how much passion he has for his career in the dairy industry.

SUPERVISED AGRICULTURAL EXPERIENCE: Artificial Insemenation

HIGH SCHOOL: McCook Central High School; Salem, South Dakota

MASCOT: Cougars

FFA ADVISOR: Terry Reickman

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR COLE SCHOCK:

Click on the picture below to be taken to the McCook Central High School Ag. Department’s website:

Cole’s FFA Advisor’s Email Address: terry.rieckman@k12.sd.us

McCook Central High School’s Telephone Number: (605) 425-2264

FFA LINKS:

National FFA Organization

Supervised Agricultural Experiences (SAE’s)

Support FFA 

Donate to FFA – One way that FFA students are able to start small businesses is through an FFA grant of $1,000.  In 2014, 141 FFA students received these grants.  With your donations, more students can get this head start – pay it forward.

REASONS TO DONATE TO FFA:

• Only 2% of Americans grow and raise most of the food and livestock consumed by the other 98% as well as the rest of the world.  FFA is providing the needed education, training and resources to Americans that will carry that torch forward and insure that America continues to have inexpensive, quality food.
• Rural Communities will rely on entrepreneurship in the future for population growth and job creation.  The FFA is a major catalyst to that entrepreneurial growth.
• Farmers, ranchers and those working in agriculture give the rest of America incredible amounts of freedom because the search for food is as simple as going to the grocery store:

“The future of American agriculture depends on the involvement and investment in America’s youth, In order to prepare for the population of tomorrow, we need to encourage America’s youth today, and show that careers in agriculture are profitable, rewarding, and vital.”.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue

Where Off-Farm Income And Matt Brechwald Can Be Heard:

Member Of The National Association Of Farm Broadcasters