The 67th edition of the Wilmington College Aggies' annual Harold Thirey Memorial Judging Contest on Wednesday (March 5) promises to continue the tradition of offering a top-quality judging experience for high school students engaged in 4-H, vocational agriculture and Future Farmers of America.
Last year, the WC student-run event — billed as among the first in the nation each year and the largest east of the Mississippi — attracted some 1,400 participants from Ohio and three neighboring states. They came to hone their skills in agronomy and judging equine, dairy and general livestock. This year, a judging category in poultry has been added.
The competition will again this year be held at the Champion Expo Center at the Clark County Fairgrounds from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
The Aggies' Judging Contest is Wilmington College's largest student-run event and is named in memory of Harold Thirey, a WC alumnus, long-time agriculture professor and Aggies' adviser who died unexpectedly in 2021.
Aggies President Aubrey Schwartz is a senior from Washington Court House majoring in agricultural education and agri-business. She has been impressed with the “longstanding tradition” — 67 years — of the Judging Contest, which she noted connects her and the other Aggies of 2025 to WC’s agriculture alumni going back to the 1950s. “It’s a testament to WC’s long tradition of providing hands-on learning opportunities,” she said. “It’s been cool to have been a part of something that started for me as a student at Miami Trace High School and now for five years at the College.” Schwartz, who will graduate in May, took time off from her studies in 2022-23 to serve as Ohio’s FFA president. “When I return to the Judging Contest next year, I will be taking my students to participate.”
She is proud the Aggies are so nimble and dedicated each year that returning students step up and take on leadership roles in staging the signature event.
Indeed, students run the show. They secure the animals, organize the logistics and get the word out to schools in Ohio and neighboring states, 4-H groups, FFA members and vocational agriculture classes. The contest represents a real-life application and a hands-on learning experience for both the high school students and WC’s agriculture students who stage the event. Participants use those judging skills fine-tuned at WC's contest at upcoming county and state fairs and other judging competitions.
“This is a unique Wilmington College opportunity that students at many larger colleges and universities don’t have,” she said about the student leadership aspect of staging such a large event, which requires time-management and problem-solving skills, working together as a team and successfully managing people, animals and the use of equipment. “Being able to learn from your peers and teaching your peers can be difficult, but it’s ultimately very fulfilling to see the Judging Contest come together for the benefit of the younger students in high school.”
PICTURED: The Aggies Judging Contest is a major student recruitment opportunity, in addition to serving as an educational outreach to high school students. Pictured is swine judging at the 2024 event.
This year will be particularly special for Schwartz, who looks forward to seeing many student participants she met when she was FFA president and traveled to high schools throughout the state. Also, some of her former Wilmington College peers are now teaching and will bring their high school students to the competition.
“For me, it will be really special, a reunion!”
Agriculture constitutes the largest academic area at Wilmington College. WC’s Bachelor of Science in Agriculture degree program features hands-on learning experience on the College Farm and other learning laboratory sites outside the classroom. The agriculture program features concentrations in agricultural business, agronomy, animal science, equine business management, agricultural communications, agricultural education and a new concentration in resource conservation & regenerative agriculture. WC also offers an ag-related major concentration in food policy and agriculture advocacy housed under political science. Related academic minors include agriculture, equine studies and sustainability.