Agriculture cultivated her happiness
Marian Conrad found her calling in the Flowing Wells agricultural department. |
By Andy Viner
Special to The Arizona Daily Star
"I'm a very stubborn person, persistent in the fact that I
want to achieve in life," said Flowing Wells High School
senior Marian Conrad.
Looking at the hardships she has overcome to place herself far up
the ladder of excellence, it is clear she will live up to her
self-description.
Conrad's life took a turn in November 1995 when, at the age of
15, she suffered a serious stab wound to the head from her sister
during a fight over a videotape. She underwent brain surgery and
subsequent physical therapy.
The physical harm she received in the incident, coupled with her
emotional pain, caused the courts to order that she be legally
separated from her mother.
After a year of bouncing around - sleeping on couches in the
homes of her father, stepsister and friends - Conrad transferred
from Sunnyside High School to Flowing Wells.
She flourished there after enrolling in the school's agricultural
department. At Flowing Wells, Conrad found what she calls her
"new family."
Among those people was Stacey Rich, a teacher whom Conrad has
stayed with permanently for more than a year.
"The agricultural department," Conrad said, "was
the first place where I was treated like a real person."
In addition to spending 21/2 hours a day in agriculture classes,
she has served as president of the Flowing Wells chapter of the
Future Farmers of America.
Through FFA, she competes nationally each year in Kansas City,
Mo., in such events as evaluating livestock.
She was selected as Arizona's outstanding vocational student. She
was also honored as one of Tucson's Ten Outstanding Teen Citizens
by Mayor George Miller in 1996.
Conrad hopes to continue her education this fall by attending the
University of Arizona and pursuing a degree in agriculture. After
attaining the degree, she plans on teaching in the agricultural
field before heading to law school.
Finally, Conrad hopes to settle into a position as a specialized
agricultural lawyer.
Conrad has a strong magnetism to agriculture that is reflected by
her interests outside of school. She spends much of her time
concentrating on FFA activities, but she also involves herself in
showing and training horses for the Arabian Horse Circuit.
She also holds a position on the staff of the Tucson Citizen's
school section, which she received after calling the paper to get
recognition for her FFA team's accomplishments at a national
competition.
Conrad holds the people in the agricultural department dear to
her heart because they helped show her the path she wishes to
follow after high school, and because they recognized her for her
accomplishments and not her personal tragedies.
Conrad will continue to work and be recognized for the
"stubborn and persistent" person she is, with her
agricultural department teachers serving as her models on how to
live her life.
Andy Viner is a senior at University High School.
Clementina Lopez is a senior
