Youth from the Springfield Urban League visited the LLCC campus yesterday, taking a tour and learning about concurrent enrollment and career training programs. The session was part of a three-week series LLCC has provided this summer to share the many opportunities the college has to offer.
During the session on agriculture, students toured the simulation and soils labs and took part in hands-on activities, including practicing their drone flying skills!
Bill Harmon, professor of agronomy, was interviewed by WICS/FOX Illinois about the campus visit made by Springfield Urban League youth to learn about hands-on training programs, including the many opportunities in agriculture. The State Journal-Register also covered the event.
Jay Kitterman, consultant, LLCC Culinary Institute, wrote today’s Epicuriosity 101 column in the State Journal-Register entitled, “Gazpachos are a summertime favorite.”
The future of Illinois agriculture is gathering yesterday and today in the Kreher Agriculture Center! Forty-eight new ag teachers from across the state are learning how to run the best ag and FFA programs. Bill Harmon, agriculture program coordinator, was interviewed by WFMB about hosting the training conference, along with LLCC alum Jennifer Waters, program advisor for Facilitating Coordination in Agricultural Education (FCAE) of the Illinois State Board of Education. WICS also interviewed Bill as well as Mason Fesser, another LLCC alum and new ag teacher at Nokomis High School.
LLCC Agriculture and LLCC-Taylorville teamed up to have a presence at the Christian County Agricultural Fair July 20-24. Staff participated in livestock shows, the job fair, children’s day and the Ag Products, Horticulture and Floral Show. LLCC Agriculture was a sponsor for the event. Participating staff included Bill Harmon, professor, agronomy; Craig Beckmier, professor, agriculture; Holly Bauman, agriculture program specialist; Dee Krueger, director, LLCC-Taylorville; and Tisha Miller, LLCC-Taylorville/Litchfield enrollment coordinator.
LLCC Agriculture and the new Kreher Agriculture Center will be featured on the PBS program “Illinois Stories” today, June 3, at 7 p.m. and Monday, June 7, at 6:30 p.m. Host Mark McDonald interviewed Dr. Charlotte Warren, president; Bill Harmon, professor of agronomy; and several agriculture students.
Producers of the PBS program “Illinois Stories” were on campus yesterday preparing an upcoming episode on the new Kreher Agriculture Center. Host Mark McDonald interviewed Dr. Charlotte Warren, president; Bill Harmon, professor of agronomy; and several agriculture students. Other ag students demonstrated various simulators and assisted Craig Beckmier, professor of agriculture, with sheep in the animal science pavilion. Also assisting with the video shoot were Holly Bauman, agriculture program specialist, and Rich Teeter, professor of agriculture. The episode will air sometime in June, and we will announce the date in LincIn when it is set.
Twenty-eight LLCC Agriculture Club members competed at the Illinois Postsecondary Agriculture Student (PAS) Conference held virtually Feb. 22-25. LLCC then moved on to compete in the virtual National PAS Conference March 15-19 with students from 33 colleges and universities. These contests are designed to test their knowledge and readiness for their future careers.
Winning first place at nationals – first row: Clayton Walch, Alexis Carroll; second row: Mackenzie Harmon, Carson Lobdell
In the national soils competition, Clayton Walch (Raymond) placed first, Alexis Carroll (Carrollton) second and Sam Van Rheeden (Chestnut) third individually. As a team, they placed second at nationals and recorded a third-place finish at state.
In the employment interview competition, Carson Lobdell (Darlington, Wis.), Mackenzie Harmon (Morrisonville) and Carroll won first place in their divisions. Emily Curry (New Berlin) and Braylee Finck (Maroa) placed second. At state, Finck, Harmon, Carroll and Lobdell placed first in their respective divisions. Annie Jackson (Jacksonville) and Curry placed second, and Madison Thomas (Mt. Pulaski) placed third.
The LLCC college bowl team of Carroll, Brian Kenshol (Mt. Pulaski), Curry, Thomas and Harmon placed third overall at nationals. At the state event, this team, with the addition of Shawn Goebel (Harvel) and Walch, was undefeated in the round robin tourney and won first place for the fifth year in a row.
Other state awards include Kenshol winning first place individually in the ag sales contest, and Chase Tomhave (Jacksonville) placing second.
The crops specialist team of Goebel, Fuller Anderson (Atwater) and Ashley Johnes (Batchtown) placed second; and the team of Van Rheeden, Ben Reno (Medora) and Harmon placed third.
In the livestock specialist contests, LLCC’s swine, beef, sheep and overall teams each placed third. Swine team members are Makenzie Hereth (Woodbine, Md.), Brooklyn Wurm (Monroeville, Ind.), and Anderson. Beef team members are Wyatt Johnson (La Harpe), Brayden Freeman (Winchester) and Rachael Rogers (Kendallville, Ind.). Sheep team members are Breanna Knittel (Greenfield), Emma Peters (Versailles, Ohio), Jett Vickery (Taylorville), Griffin Harms (Chatham), Evan McClain (Albany, Ind.) and Sam Stickley (Saint Paris, Ohio). The overall team members are Colby Hough (Mount Airy, Md.), Lobdell and Kade Shiery (Camden, Mich.).
Bill Harmon, professor of agronomy, spoke to the Springfield Sunshine Rotary yesterday morning about LLCC’s agriculture programs and the growth made possible by the Kreher Farm Perpetual Charitable Trust.
Congratulations to Todd Steinacher, LLCC adjunct instructor, who has been named the statewide winner of the 2020 Illinois Certified Crop Adivser (CCA) Award. Read more on FarmWeekNow.com.
Holly Bauman, LLCC agriculture program specialist, was recognized Dec. 4 at the Illinois Leadership Council for Agricultural Education (ILCAE) meeting as the District 3 (west central Illinois) agriculture advocacy award winner for service to Illinois agriculture education over the past year.