The National FFA Board of Directors, once the stewards of American agricultural education, have veered sharply off course and are in need of a dramatic course correction.
In today’s FFA, members of faith, especially Christians, are discouraged and penalized from expressing their foundational values while participating in FFA activities. Good teachers and students are being alienated and excluded ironically all in the name of inclusion. The Board’s focus seems not to be on what is the best way to deliver agricultural education and develop leaders in agriculture but instead the best way to indoctrinate FFA members with “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” or DEI. Despite a growing repudiation in government, corporate America, and nonprofits, FFA still has yet to acknowledge much less indicate compliance with recent federal ban on harmful DEI initiatives.
Governing Body, Political Direction
The Board of Directors is the primary governing body of the National FFA Organization—tasked with setting the strategic direction, budget, and policies of a group that once proudly stood for premier leadership, personal growth, and career success in agriculture. But somewhere along the way, the mission changed.
A DEI-Fueled Rebrand
Since at least 2012, the FFA Board has moved aggressively to insert DEI language and structures into the organization’s DNA. In the January 2012 minutes, DEI is framed as a “strategic priority” under the banner of “Relevance.” The goal? To “increase participation in Ag Ed and FFA by underserved students” and to “develop a more inclusive and diverse culture.”
While there’s nothing wrong with outreach, what’s been sacrificed is focus. Traditional agricultural instruction is now second-fiddle to “diversity celebrations,” equity metrics, and intersectional programming. Entire teams were created—like the Director of Diversity and Inclusion—subsuming traditional FFA functions under a politically correct bureaucracy .
Biden-Era Bureaucracy Lives On
Even after administration changes in Washington, the DEI apparatus installed during the Obama and Biden years continues to be embedded in FFA. The National FFA has kept several key DEI advocates in place, with USDE holdovers maintaining a firm grip on policy direction. It’s hard to tell where the DEI agenda ends and the FFA Board begins.
Ignoring the Trump-Era Rebalance
President Trump’s 2025 Executive Orders 14151 and 14173 — “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing” (Jan 20, 2025) and “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit‑Based Opportunity” (Jan 21, 2025) — explicitly directed the federal government to dismantle nearly all DEI programs, offices, contracting mandates, and employment preferences in favor of strict merit-based standards. Yet the National FFA Board of Directors — bound tightly to a set of DEI consultants, advocates, and activists — has shown no sign of aligning with these sweeping federal directives. The absence of any mention of Trump’s 2025 DEI orders in the January 2025 board minutes is telling evidence of willful inattention.
The DEI Playbook: Official Board Proposals
The Board’s own documents show how far they’ve drifted. Over multiple meetings, Board members proposed:
- Embedding DEI “woven through the Strategic Priorities” of the organization.
- DEI-specific celebrations at conventions, focusing on identity over agriculture.
- Creating student programs that “reflect real career opportunities” while sidelining family farms and production agriculture.
- A strategic shift toward “global engagement” and “cultural relevance,” with less emphasis on the agriscience, mechanics, and business programs that rural students need to thrive .
What’s Been Left Behind?
While the Board’s DEI agenda grows, what has been neglected?
- Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs in real agriculture.
- The rising cost and barriers to SAE (Supervised Agricultural Experience) participation.
- Recognition of students from multi-generation farming families.
- Advocacy for rural America in Washington.
Time to Reclaim FFA
FFA is not a playground for social experiments. It is a legacy institution, built on the backbone of American agriculture and American values. It’s time the Board stopped using students as pawns in their DEI chess game and returned to its roots—developing future farmers, agribusiness leaders, and ag educators who are proud of their heritage and unapologetic about American values.
Let FFA be FFA again.