Growing up with a grandfather who is a veterinarian and a mom who manages the veterinary office, Jackson Academy senior Ann Cole Hammons is accustomed to being around animals. She rode horses and competed for several years. A JA student since K3, she began to show animals through the Mississippi 4-H program and is now in her tenth year as a competitor.
This month, Ann Cole will travel to Louisville, Kentucky, to compete in the North American International Livestock Exposition. She qualified for the November 13-17 NAILE event through a series of shows and testing on the specific type of animal she shows.
To be invited to NAILE, students must demonstrate significant expertise in their studied animal species. Although Ann Cole first showed cattle, she began to show goats, which she now raises and sells. At the 2022 Mississippi State Fair, she was Grand Champion in the category Prospect Steer and Reserve Grand Champion in Market Goat.
“When you reach high school, there is a scholarship program called Premiere Exhibitor, and you pick one of the species to show and study about them on your own time,” said Ann Cole. “Then at the state competition, Dixie National, we take our scholarship test, and our final scoring is a combination of how we did on the exam (which takes around 2 hours to complete) and how we placed in the actual competition with our livestock.”
Scoring well on the exam leads to an invitation to participate in the state Skillathon Team. “We spend a summer taking an intro into animal theory science class provided by Mississippi State University, and we compete,” she explained. “We spend the summer studying breed IDs, different cuts of meats, different feeds, and how to feed and raise livestock in the future.” Then team members retake the test in July, and the top four scores receive invitations to compete at the North American International Livestock Exposition. There they take a team test together and compete against all other states.
At the Kentucky competition, she will take a five-hour test that includes judging agricultural products, such as wool and hay, and demonstrating quality assurance with her team. For example, her team will enter a pen with four to five lambs, catch the lambs with a halter, and administer medicines while being judged.
Participating nationally in competitions may seem daunting, but Ann Cole feels relaxed in raising, showing, and developing expertise in livestock. She also has developed a group of lifelong friends and has found something that is stress relieving to her. Being out in nature and around livestock brings her joy and relaxation, helping reduce any anxiety she might feel. “When you reach the show barn, you don’t care about how popular you are in school, any social class, anything like that. You just leave outside, outside,” she said. “Most of us are there being competitive, but we’re also there to enjoy ourselves.”
While Ann Cole hopes to minor in graphic design or art in college, her intention is always to be connected with agriculture. She is considering a business degree that would align well with agriculture.
Susan Ingram has taught Ann Cole for three years in her studio art classes. She is impressed with how Ann Cole manages her school work with her out-of-school responsibilities. “As a senior, she is completing an AP Art portfolio. Her sustained investigation for her portfolio involves her backstory of caring for animals and preparing for the show, as well as the actual competition of showing the goats and cows,” said Ingram. “She has a working depth of knowledge of ‘all things’ animals. Ann Cole is involved on a daily basis with her goats and cows, and her off-campus work translates into her on-campus work at JA … she will get it all done!”
According to the Mississippi State Extension Service website (http://extension.msstate.edu/4-h), the 4-H youth program is one of the oldest and largest informal educational efforts in public education in the United States. Participating in 4-H is a tradition passed down from generation to generation. Through 4-H, young Mississippians reach their full potential through experiential learning, leadership development, character building, life skills and personal development, and civic responsibility. Participation in livestock shows provides opportunities for travel, such as the five district shows throughout the state and the Dixie National Junior Round-Up in Jackson, as well as national opportunities, such as NAILE.
