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1917
The Smith Hughes Act was published. It has bettered the quality of life not only for rural and farm families, but everyone across the world who is clothed and fed by a farmer. The Act provides federal support for vocational education in general, but vocational agriculture in particular. As one of the first federal grant-in-aid programs, the Act provided federal aid on a matching basis to states an established requirements regarding how the money was to be used. It was signed by Senator Hoke Smith and Representative D.M. Smith, who are both from Georgia.

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1925
Virginia Tech agricultural education teachers, Henry Groseclose, Harry Sanders, Walter S. Newman, and Edmund C. Magill, organized the Future Farmers of Virginia, or the FFV, for boys only in agricultural classes. The FFV served as a model for the Future Farmers of America, or the FFA. The original meaning for the abbreviation FFV stood for the First Families of Virginia. Harry W. Sanders, a founder of FFV, was nicknamed the Father of FFA.

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The First National Congress of Vocational Agriculture Students assembles for a National Livestock Judging Contest at the American Royal Livestock and Horse Show in Kansas City. Missouri.

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H.O. Sargent, a federal agent for agricultural education for African-Americans at the U.S. Office of Education, and G.W. Owens, a teacher at Virginia State College, wrote the first constitution and bylaws for the New Farmers of Virginia (NFA), an organization for African-American agriculture students. The organization also held its first state rally the same year.

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Future Farmers of America is established in Kansas City, Missouri, for boys in rural, farming communities. Its original purpose was the education of youth in the agricultural fields of study. The first National FFA Convention is held in Kansas City. Thirty-three delegates from eighteen states are in attendance. While at the first National Convention, Leslie Applegate from New Jersey was elected as the first president.

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National blue and corn gold are adopted as the official FFA colors. The blue was taken from the blue field of our nation's flag. The gold stems from the golden fields of ripening corn. Together, the blue and gold provide the FFA with unity, and therefore the colors should be displayed with pride.

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The official FFA creed, written by E.M. Tiffany, was adopted. The FFA creed puts into words what FFA members believe and what they should strive to accomplish throughout their lifetime. It reminds us why agriculture is the most important industry in our world and gives us the motivation to know that we can make a difference in the future of agriculture. It was created to allow the members to focus on the benefits of agriculture, the rich history of the industry, and their future role in agriculture.

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The first official Dress Uniform was adopted, which consisted of a dark blue shirt, blue or white pants, a blue cap, and a yellow tie. The official dress provides identity and gives a distinctive and recognizable image to the organization and its members.

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The blue corduroy jacket was adopted as the Official Dress. The jacket unifies members in a long-standing tradition and reminds them that they are part of something larger than themselves. We know that symbolic blue corduroy is far more than Official Dress, but an icon of American tradition-instilling pride and responsibility to those who wear it.

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Twenty-eight and a half acres were purchased near Alexandria, Virginia. This was the first FFA-owned headquarters. The land was part of President George Washington's estate.

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A bill was passed by the Eighty-First Congress of the United States that granted FFA a federal charter and specified that a US Department of Education Staff member be the national FFA advisor. President Harry S Truman signed the bill, and it became Public Law 81-740. The charter serves as National FFA's articles of incorporation and as the organization's governance document.

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The first issue of The National Future Farmer magazine was published. The magazine is for FFA members, their families, and supporters. It reflects the activity and events in the agricultural industry. It also documents the growth and expansion of the industry beyond farming to include sales,  marketing, and research.

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The US Post Office department issued a special stamp to celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the FFA. A campaign was held in hopes of getting this stamp. In a special ceremony, the stamp was unveiled in Kansas City at the National FFA Convention.

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The New Farmers of America joined with the Future Farmers of America. This increased the FFA membership by more than fifty thousand. Due to this, the FFA membership fees were raised from 10 cents to 50 cents. This also allowed all members to receive the official FFA magazine, The National Future Farmer.

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FFA opens membership to females, making it possible for them to hold office and participate in competitive events at regional and national levels. However, in the fifty-two years since the formal acceptance of female membership, women have become an integral part of the organization. They have achieved significant milestones, and they continue to shape the future of agricultural education and the industry of agriculture.

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The National FFA Alumni Association was established. The delegate body of the National FFA Convention established the alumni class of membership as part of the National FFA Constitution. Adult membership is open to anyone interested in supporting and advocating for FFA, agricultural education, agriculture or volunteerism through their gifts of time, talent, and financial resources.

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The FFA magazine's name was changed from Future Farmers of America to FFA New Horizons. They changed the name to represent the growing diversity of agriculture.

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The National FFA Convention is held in Louisville, Kentucky, for the first time. There were 46,918 members in attendance.

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The seventy-fifth National FFA Convention was held in Louisville, Kentucky. To celebrate this special event, the time capsule from the fiftieth National Convention was opened.

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The National FFA launches Seeds of Hope. This is a fundraising campaign to rebuild Gulf Coast states' agricultural education and FFA following Hurricane Katrina. $835,699 in donations was distributed to affected programs.