Ten young people were recently honored for their accomplishments in the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest. The top three honorees were Amber Ettinger, of Kinards, S.C., Kyle Schirm, of West Salem, Ohio and Cassandra Chittenden, of Schodack Landing, N.Y.
The contest recognizes outstanding achievement by junior Jersey breeders in four areas: work with Registered Jerseys™, related dairy activities, relative progress, and future goals. They were selected from 17 outstanding youth nominated by state Jersey associations, based on their cumulative record through December 31, 2010.
Amber Ettinger, daughter of Ed and Cheryl Ettinger of Kinards, S.C., is the winner of the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest. A junior majoring in dairy science at Virginia Tech, she has completed 14 years with Jersey youth projects. Over that time, she has developed a herd of 28 cows and 25 heifers with the cows averaging 19,265 lbs. milk, 892 lbs. fat and 663 lbs. protein, mature equivalent, in 2010. For the past three years, Amber has placed first in the South Carolina Jersey Production Contest. In 2010, she was second alternate in the National Jersey Queen Contest.
Ranking second was Kyle Schirm, the son of Paul and Dawn Schirm, West Salem, Ohio. By making key purchases at the Pot O’Gold Sale and more recently utilizing sexed semen, he now owns 19 cows and 11 heifers. The average of 11 lactation records completed in 2010 was 17,589 lbs. milk, 818 lbs. fat and 648 lbs. protein, with four of his cows scored Excellent. Selected for the first Jersey Youth Academy, Kyle is majoring in finance at Ashland University. In 2010, Kyle received the Peter Jackson Scholarship and earned his American FFA Degree.
Third place went to Cassandra Chittenden, a fourth-generation Jersey breeder from Schodack Landing, N.Y., and daughter of Brian and Beth Chittenden. She now owns a herd of 28 cows, averaging 20,381 lbs. milk, 1,003 lbs. fat and 709 lbs. protein in 2010. She is a sophomore at Cornell University, majoring in animal sciences with plans to minor in agribusiness. As a student at Cornell, she is a member of the Red Carpet Society, an organization that hosts prospective students and provides guests with college experiences. Cassandra was a member of the first class of Jersey Youth Academy classes and received numerous state and national scholarships last year.
Ranking fourth through tenth in the contest were:
- Kelli Ann Carstensen, a junior at California Polytechnic State University majoring in dairy science with an agribusiness minor with plans to attend law school.
- Stacey A. Theobald, the daughter of Charles and Amy Theobald, Creamton, Pa. Stacey is a student at Penn State University majoring in animal science.
- Cassandra Krull, the daughter of Cindy Krull and the late Brian Krull of Lake Mills, Wis. She is a freshman at Allen County Community College in Kansas, majoring in agribusiness.
- Kara Maxwell, daughter of John Maxwell, Donahue, Iowa. During her 13 years of participation in Jersey youth activities, she has developed a herd of 22 cows and 24 heifers with the cows averaging 20,065 lbs. milk, 1,021 lbs. fat and 760 lbs. protein.
- Tera Koebel, daughter of Terry and Jennie Koebel, of Three Oaks, Mich. She is a senior at Michigan State University majoring in agribusiness management.
- Avery Lutz, daughter of Wayne and Karen Lutz, Mocksville, N.C. A student at New River Community College Avery has achieved considerable success with her Jerseys.
- Corbin Wood, son of Steve and Christine Wood, Littlestown, Pa. He is a sophomore at the Pennsylvania College of Technology, associated with Penn State University, majoring in building construction technology.