NDSU student is a finalist for National FFA American Star Farmer Award

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - The National FFA Organization has announced the 16 finalists for its 2023 top achievement awards: American Star Farmer, American Star in Agribusiness, American Star in Agricultural Placement and American Star in Agriscience.

Daniel Jossund one of four finalists for its 2023 top achievement award, The American Star Farmer Award. To convey the scale of this honor, National FFA consists of nearly 950,000 members in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

As a 14-year-old Ada-Borup-West FFA student, Daniel began his supervised agricultural experience (SAE) as a working member of the family farm - cultivating sugar beets, corn and soybeans, while learning how to bale straw and alfalfa from local farmers.

He bought a small square baler to start, and over time scaled his business to own numerous heavy machines and bale 1,000 acres in 2022. He is currently a student at North Dakota State University majoring in agribusiness and plans to continue expanding his farm operation after graduation.

A panel of judges will interview Daniel and the other three finalists and select one winner to be announced at the 96th National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis November 1-4.

The American Star Awards represent the best of the best among thousands of American FFA Degree recipients. The award recognizes FFA members who have developed outstanding agricultural skills and competencies by completing a supervised agricultural experience (SAE) program. A required activity in FFA, an SAE allows members to learn by doing. Members can own and operate an agricultural business, intern at an agricultural business, or conduct an agriculture-based scientific experiment and report the results.

Other requirements to achieve the award include demonstrating top management skills; completing key agricultural education, scholastic and leadership requirements; and earning an American FFA Degree, the organization’s highest level of student accomplishment.

A panel of judges will interview the finalists and select one winner from each award category for the 96th National FFA Convention & Expo in Indianapolis this fall. The four winners will be announced during the convention.