Within the FFA organization, there are several opportunities for members to compete in various contests. The two categories of events are Leadership Development Events and Career Development Events.  

Career Development Events or CDEs build on what is learned in agricultural classes and encourage members to put their knowledge into practice. These events or contests are designed to help a member prepare for a career in agriculture by testing and challenging the student's technical, leadership, interpersonal and teamwork skills as well as their knowledge of the subject matter. CDEs answer the question, "When will I use this knowledge in the real world? 

The Frenship FFA members and advisors are heavily involved in the various contests throughout the year. One of the contests Frenship students are competing in this year is the Tractor Technician CDE.  

This contest is particularly challenging for FFA chapters in the Texas Panhandle since there are so few practice contests of this variety available for the area. In previous years, Frenship students did not have any practice contests before they competed at the state qualifying event in January. 

With this in mind, the Frenship FFA decided to host their own Tractor Technician CDE Invitational. Schools from across the state attend, some traveling over seven hours away to compete.  

“It was our hope to provide opportunity, not just for Frenship FFA, but for any school that would like to have the chance to compete,” stated Frenship FFA Advisor, Angela VanGundy.  

The Tractor Technician CDE is a three-part competition: team members appraise components and parts of tractors and agricultural implements and make recommendations for services needed, complete a written exam, and finally, the team will compete in locating and correcting five deliberately placed malfunctions in diesel-fueled tractors and safely navigate the repaired tractor through a driving course within the 30-minute time limit. 

This contest is scored by a panel of judges. For this invitational, Frenship brought in 2023 Frenship FFA alum, Cade Clark. When looking for potential judges, VanGundy stated that Clark has proven himself to be an expert in this field, having competed in this contest and winning several Tractor Restoration contests. Most recently, Clark was awarded 3rd place at the National FFA Tractor Restoration Competition.  

“It is important for our program to continue to foster strong student leadership,” said VanGundy."Asking him to come help judge shows our younger students they are always welcome in the Frenship FFA, and hopefully it will encourage young students to reach for greater success in their favorite events.” 

The Frenship FFA Tractor Technician team will be competing later this month in Abilene and at Tarleton State University and their state qualifying event is January 19 at West Texas A&M University in Canyon.