If it weren’t for her high school agriculture instructor, Lisa Moss Chaudion might never have joined FFA, and as a result, her life would probably have taken a very different direction.
Chaudion was one of a handful of girls recruited to join the formerly male-dominated Clay City High School FFA in the early 1980s.
She quickly found her footing in the organization. Today, she leads the Indiana FFA Foundation as executive director – supporting, funding and promoting FFA programs across the state.
“Sometimes it just takes one person to believe in someone and encourage them to try something new, and it changes their life,” Chaudion says. “I was a small-town kid from Clay City who didn’t have many big dreams, and FFA opened my eyes to a world of possibilities.”
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Finding a Home in FFA
After graduating from Clay City Junior-Senior High School in 1983, Chaudion went straight into the workforce while also serving as president of the Indiana FFA Band. She was encouraged to run for a state FFA officer position. In 1985, Chaudion became the first female Indiana FFA state president – a role she credits with helping her decide to pursue postsecondary education.
“I didn’t plan on going to college, but after being elected and serving as a state FFA officer, I realized my career could be different than what I had imagined,” she says.
In 1988, Chaudion earned an associate of science degree in agriculture from Vincennes University followed in 1991 by a bachelor of science degree in agribusiness from Western Kentucky University. After college, her first job was in her hometown with Mycogen, a seed company, where she worked as a district sales manager, but it didn’t take long for her to shift gears to ag education.
“The Indiana Department of Education called me and said a position I’d worked in [with the Indiana Young Farmers’ Association] between my time at Vincennes and Western Kentucky had opened up, and they wanted me to return full time,” Chaudion says. “I worked there as the executive director for 16 years.”
While still with the Indiana Department of Education, Chaudion transitioned to a position as a state agriculture education specialist in 2009, working alongside educators on classroom curriculum and serving as the Indiana FFA state adviser.
Chaudion stepped into her current role in 2011.
“It’s an honor to support an organization that I believe in wholeheartedly,” Chaudion says. “I’ve seen the impact FFA can have on kids firsthand. With agriculture education and leadership development at the forefront, FFA helps young people from all walks of life broaden their horizons in ways they might never have imagined.”
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Paying It Forward
Chaudion’s work with the Indiana FFA Foundation largely focuses on fundraising. After all, more than half of the Indiana FFA’s funding is provided by generous individuals and corporations.
For example, in 2020, the Lilly Endowment Inc.’s Youth Program Resilience Fund gave the Indiana FFA Foundation a $37,000 grant to help support the Indiana FFA during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lilly Endowment Inc. has also provided funding in previous years, including a grant of nearly $400,000 in 2016 to assist the Indiana FFA Foundation in launching its Learn-Lead-Succeed project for middle and high school students from underserved communities.
Additionally, donors support the 170-acre Indiana FFA Leadership Center in Trafalgar, which has hosted more than 100,000 FFA members since its establishment in 1971. The facility offers leadership workshops, retreats, youth camps and career development events, plus it houses the Indiana FFA state officers throughout their terms.
“Farm Credit Mid-America has been a longtime sponsor, and they give to us annually,” Chaudion says. “Their contributions over the years total around half a million dollars and have helped us renovate and update the Leadership Center, including the officers’ house. Indiana Farm Bureau is a longtime sponsor that’s given the Indiana FFA Foundation nearly half a million dollars, too.”
When Chaudion looks back at her career and the impact she’s made, she credits her family for their unconditional support as well as her late agriculture instructor, Gerald Runyon, for helping her lay a strong foundation in FFA as a young woman – something she likely never would have considered without his encouragement, especially considering women weren’t able to join FFA until 1969.
Today, 44% of the national FFA membership base is female, and young women hold approximately half of all top national positions and state leadership roles.
Chaudion, who has been part of this shift as both an FFA member and a professional working in the organization, says the influx of young women reflects FFA’s commitment to inclusivity that has only grown stronger over the years.
“FFA is for anyone who is willing to work hard and wants to grow their leadership and communication skills,” Chaudion says. “You are welcomed into FFA with open arms no matter your gender, economic background or ethnicity. There’s room for everyone here. I’m a perfect example of someone who found an unlikely home in FFA, and I hope my story inspires others to give it a try.”
See more: FFA Facts & Figures
