After growing up showing animals in 4H and FFA (Future Farmers of America) and graduating from the University of South Florida, Leanne John began her Pasco County career at West Zephyrhills Elementary School and served students there for 14 years. In 2017, she decided to combine her love for 4H, agriculture, and Pasco County Junior Cattlemen by accepting the agriculture instructor position at Zephyrhills High School.

When Ms. John took over the school’s Agriculture Program it had around 90 students. Leanne realized that the FFA program needed new life and created three main goals: to grow student enrollment with enough consistency to earn a second AG teacher allocation, to have students winning awards on a National Stage within 5 years, and to create a Junior FFA chapter. Leanne achieved all of those goals within 3 years! Under her guidance, the Zephyrhills FFA program has grown to over 200 students, has two instructors, and earned National Chapter 2 Star recognition.

Leanne also serves as a Mentor Teacher and as the District Career, Technical, and Adult Education PLC (Professional Learning Community) Lead for Agriculture. She was selected to participate in the Agriscience Educational Leadership Program in the 22-23 school year, and her passion for helping students grow into leaders in the Zephyrhills and agriculture communities is evident in the activities, events, and challenges she incorporates into her lessons and student experiences. She has created a leadership standard that her students carry forward when working with new and younger students. The culture and climate she has created in her classroom, lab, and barn encourage students to be creative problem-solvers and incorporates critical thinking with real-world applications.