Ready to level up your leadership game? The Lead Conference isn’t just an event; it’s the ultimate event for Angus Junior members looking to sharpen their leadership skills, make lasting relationships and learn about agriculture. Whether you’re a long-time LEAD attendee or a first-timer, LEAD is a place where learning meets opportunity, and every handshake could be the start of a lifelong friendship.   

Once you turn 14, you have the opportunity to go to the LEAD Conference. At this event, we focus on educating juniors on topics related to the Angus breed, college and career preparation, and agriculture in different parts of the country through different tours and farm visits. The LEAD Conference truly has something for all juniors. Each year it is held around the beginning of August, and is in a different location every year, for example, recent host states have included Louisiana, California and Kentucky. LEAD keeps kids coming back year after year because of the relationships that they can form with juniors from coast to coast.   

LEAD is so special because the people who attend are people you see at Angus shows and events. This experience allows us to get away from the cattle and our stalls and get to know each other through team building, experiencing new places, visiting operations and learning about new farming technologies within the breed and throughout the agriculture industry.   

Some recent stops on our travels and tours have included Ratto Bros Produce, Tabasco, Horstman Cattle Co., E. & J. Gallo Winery, Sankey Angus, and many other agriculture businesses and Angus operations. Another key part of the LEAD Conference is the workshops that are led by the junior board. Through these workshops, the junior board teaches attendees important skills, such as college preparation, workplace readiness, interview tips and other skills that could help them in their young adult lives.   

If you are a NJAA member between the ages of 14-21, I WANT YOU at the 2025 LEAD Conference, in Washington, D.C.! There are so many friendships to be made, places to be explored and Angus operations to see. If you are interested in attending, there are some states whose associations help juniors pay for their trips to the conference. Check with your state advisor or state junior board for more details.