Superintendent John Lavoie is pleased to share that Greater Lawrence Technical School students earned accolades competing in their first Future Farmers of America event last month.
Rainier Burrows-Severino, Rudy Guzman, Hermin Then, and Engel Balbuena represented the School at the FFA Safe Equipment Operations Career Development Event at Smith Vocational and Agricultural School in Northampton. The students competed in safe loader and skid steer operations, and farm tractor driving, displaying the knowledge and skills they have acquired at Greater Lawrence Tech.
Burrows-Severino, Guzman, and Then had to overcome several unforeseen challenges, including operating a manual transmission for the first time and using larger equipment than planned.
As a team, the students led Greater Lawrence Tech to a strong showing, surpassing schools that participate in this FFA event regularly. Guzman took second place in the two-wheel trailer portion of the driving contest, competing against 14 other students.
“Rainier, Rudy, Hermin, and Engel performed impressively, especially considering that this was their first competition,” Superintendent Lavoie said. “Landscaping is about care of the land, but also how to use the right tools to get the best outcome. Congratulations to our students, and to Landscaping teachers Peter Leonard and James Griffin for their guidance and support.”