Abigail Osness (CHS 2024) doesn’t fit the mold of a typical diesel mechanic.
Afterall, over 96 percent of them are men.
But being a woman in a male-dominated field didn’t deter her, she said, and she recognizes her strengths and weaknesses. While she may not be able to lift as much as her male coworkers can, her size and slighter hands allow her to more easily get into tight spaces.
“I’m smaller, so I’m better suited to work on smaller equipment.”
Osness (above) was one of the speakers at CHS’s FFA Career Speaker event on February 7. She and Kevin Dick, Ag and Diesel instructor at South Central College in North Mankato, presented to a group of students in the commons.
Osness, who, by the way, is a member of the CHS National Honor Society and was an Honor Graduate, is an intern technician at Ziegler CAT in North Mankato while she studies Ag and Diesel Mechanics at South Central. She hopes to continue at Ziegler after she finishes her studies.
Osness compared her work to figuring out a puzzle. She likes the troubleshooting aspect, and that fueled her career choice.
“In all service jobs you get called to solve problems.”
Each speaker (or speakers) at FFA Career Speakers day was assigned to present to several classes during SOS, the open study hour of school. Students in grades 7-12 attended.
Besides introducing their organization, the speakers talked about the classes they were interested in in high school, what they did after high school, and if they went to college, what classes there they enjoyed the most. They talked about their first job, how they got to where they are today, what they do and what skills are needed and their pay range.
The speakers were Joe Faugstad, regional sales manager at Crystal Valley Coop; Sam Ziegler, director of GreanSeam; Kevin Dick, Ag and Diesel instructor at South Central College and Osness; Tim Koppelman (CHS 2000), assistant area wildlife manager, MN DNR; Chris Baker (CHS), operations manager and Terry Kahle, Assistant Agronomy Department Manager at Ag Partners; Judi Baker of Seneca and Kaleb Moses of Pioneer Seed.
FFA president Sam Baker thought the event went well.
“Everybody was interactive with it.”
“The speakers were all relatable with what they went through,” added CHS ag instructor Jordan Kuehl.
Katie Mons of Junior Achievement helped with arranging the speakers.
About FFA: FFA is a dynamic youth organization that changes lives and prepares members for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agriculture education.
About Junior Achievement: JA programs align to three pathways: Financial literacy, career readiness and entrepreneurship. Through a continuum of experiential learning opportunities, JA helps K-12 students acquire the competencies they need to reach their full potential.
