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Kasper chosen to attend leadership conference

Alexandra Kasper was one of only 40 FFA (Future Farmers of America) students in the state to be selected to attend the Sacramento Leadership Experience March 5 to 8, and she is the first Sonoma Valley High student that the administration can recall being awarded this honor. The conference is California FFA’s capstone leadership conference for its 73,000 student members. During the conference, students step into the role of one of California’s 40 senators. Students are assigned a specific California district, and spend four days in Sacramento learning learning how a bill becomes a law; the importance of demographics to their specific region; about senate bill proposals and how committees develop senate bills. Participating seniors get to meet legislators, staff and other key stakeholders in the legislative process. As a participant in the 2013 Sacramento Leadership Experience, Kasper will be working within two specific subject areas: water rights and animal welfare. She will be responsible for authoring or co-authoring a senate bill and she is busy now doing all the research needed on the history of her specific topic, as well as on other similar legislation that is currently on the books in California. “This is a terrific honor and we are so proud of Alexandra,” said Felicia Rush, Sonoma Valley High School’s FFA coordinator. Kaspar has applied to a handful of colleges for next fall but she has also thrown her hat in the ring for consideration for a statewide FFA position that might result in a gap year spent travelling around California on FFA business.