30 August 2022
The students (and cattle!) of Denmark’s College of Agriculture shone at the recent Beverley Show, with the girls leading the way.
“The college has a strong breeding program, and this is evident in our livestock,” Principal Rebecca Kirkwood said. “Our students handle our cattle from a young age, which makes them calm and easier to manage.”
The college’s female students performed particularly well, with Ella Smith gaining first place in “Junior Paraders” and Bree Skinner securing third.
Ella Smith and Yasmin Pages at the Beverley Show.
“As the first female principal of WACoA Denmark, I am extremely proud,” Ms Kirkwood continued. “As an agricultural college it is important that we promote agriculture as a viable pathway for both our young men and women.
“We currently have an almost even balance in enrolments across the genders. This is a great acknowledgment given that agricultural colleges initially only catered for male students. We have definitely come a long way in our 80-year history. I look forward to further advancements and acknowledgements of the great role that women play in agriculture.”
According to Ms Kirkwood, Zoe Skinner was excellent in the “Junior Judging” and confidently came first. Phoebe Mottram came second in this difficult section, demonstrating strong public speaking skills.
“Junior Judging incorporates the skills of visual assessment of livestock and public speaking. The students are given a clipboard and time (about 10 minutes) in the arena with the livestock – normally four heifers or four bulls.
“They rank the livestock in order of strongest to weakest in terms of their features and write notes justifying their ranking order. Students are then invited to speak on a microphone to the crowd, justifying their response.”
The college’s cattle won: Grand Champion Bull, Reserve Champion Bull, Reserve Champion Heifer, First in the Steer Class.
Ayla McMaster with a prize-winning cow.
WACoA Denmark also won most successful exhibitor.
On September 10, the college is hosting its own Royal Agricultural Society sanctioned event. “We are doing this to make sure that our students, and those in neighbouring schools, have an opportunity to qualify to compete at the Perth Royal Show.”