GHS Sophomore Joe Schohr holds up his blue ribbon and award after securing the California State Championship in FFA Impromptu Public Speaking. Photo provided by Amanda Schohr

GRIDLEY, CA (MPG) - Gridley High School FFA’s Joe Schohr has been excelling all year in competition.

In February, the GHS sophomore would compete at the FFA North Valley Section Contest and win in Impromptu Public Speaking. The top four would move on to compete in March at the Superior Region Contest, which included Schohr. There he would win again, moving on to the State Championships in Fresno where he would go up against the top 4 finalists from six regions throughout the State of California.

Students are given 30 seconds to choose a topic at random and a minute to prepare a speech ranging in length from 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Impromptu Public Speaking is only open to sophomore FFA students and judges base their scores on the contestant’s overall knowledge, presentation, and format of the speech.

At the Fresno State FFA State Finals and Field Day on April 20th, Schohr says that he gave two impromptu speeches- one on the impact of Proposition 12 on the Ag industry and one about the opportunities that FFA provides students to gain valuable work experience and/or start their own business. His hard work and preparation would pay off.

Schohr earned the title of State Champion in Impromptu, receiving a blue ribbon and plaque. Impromptu is a state-level competition, so Schohr will not be moving on to Nationals in that department.

“There are almost 24,000 Sophomores in California FFA. Even making it to the State Semi-finals was a huge honor. I couldn’t imagine that all the hard work and long hours of practice would pay off in this way.” Schohr says of his win.

“Many people helped me prepare for this contest. Thanks to my FFA Advisors Ms. Vaca, Ms. Albiani, Mrs. Alvarez, Ms. Ortiz, and Mr. Dreesman, I felt prepared and ready for the contest. My family and fellow FFA members gave me the confidence I needed to perform at my best.”

In addition to being State Champion in Impromptu Speaking, Schohr also took 4th High Individual in Livestock.

 GHS Sophomore Joe Schohr holds up his blue ribbon and award after securing the California State Championship in FFA Impromptu Public Speaking. Photo provided by Amanda Schohr