Dolores High School graduate Tel Hamilton was appointed a state officer at the annual Colorado FFA convention.
The convention was a meeting and a competition for members of Colorado Future Farmers of America.
According to Hamilton, he and 22 other Coloradans arrived three days before the convention to interview for state officer positions.
During the three-day interview process, the candidates competed in speeches and were interviewed one-on-one.
The candidates helped run the convention as “interns” to give them an idea of what being an officer entailed. At the final session, 10 candidates including Hamilton were nominated. He will spend the next year learning to develop and facilitate meetings and work with Colorado’s Commissioner of Agriculture Don Brown.
“The big conversation term is ‘advocates for agriculture,’” Hamilton said. “It sets you up for a place in the field of agriculture.”
Hamilton, who has participated in FFA since he started high school, said it shaped him into the person he is today. He graduated in 2018.
“I was this quiet kid until I went to high school, and it put me in the position to succeed and meet people,” Hamilton said. “I can’t speak enough for what FFA has done for me.”
Hamilton plans to study agriculture business with an emphasis in finance at West Texas A&M University.