Ag Mag - Northern IL_Fall 2020

AG Mag North Central Illinois

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PUBLICATION • FALL 2020

AGRICULTURE AND COVID-19 Farm shows reschedule n Classrooms adapt n

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INDEX

Ag Mag

Tales from the crypt ������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 5 Peoria Farm Show reset for March 2021 ���������������������������������������������� 8 Quad Cities show victim of COVID-19 ������������������������������������������������� 10 Farmer adds to on-farm storage capacity ������������������������������������������� 11 Prevent combine fires this harvest ������������������������������������������������������ 13 COVID and the classroom �������������������������������������������������������������������� 15 Providing agricultural education inside and outside the classroom �� 19 How well do you know your farm’s financials �������������������������������������� 21

Bureau County Republican 526 S. Bureau Valley Pkwy., Ste. F Princeton, IL 61356 815-875-4461 Publisher Dan Goetz Editor Jim Henry Advertising Director Jeanette Smith

jmsmith@shawmedia.com

Writers Martha Blum Tom C. Doran Darren Frye Jeannine Otto Doug Schroeder Photographers Tom C. Doran Jeannine Otto Designer Liz Klein

Monarch Action Plan takes flight in Illinois ���������������������������������������� 22 Articles are the property of AgriNews. No portion of the North Central Illinois Ag Mag may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Ad content is not the responsibility of the Bureau County Republican. The information in this magazine is believed to be accurate; however, the Bureau County Republican cannot and does not guarantee its accuracy. The Bureau County Republican cannot and will not be held liable for the quality or performance of goods and services provided by advertisers listed in any portion of this magazine.

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Tales from the crypt FFA students reveal life stories from tombstones

By Jeannine Otto

AGRINEWS PUBLICATIONS

SENECA, Ill. — Not much is known about Mary Carey, who was born in London in 1871 and died, just after her 20th birthday, in northern Illinois.

The same can be said for Daniel Smith. Smith was a quartermaster sergeant in Company F of the 3rd Wisconsin Cavalry during the U.S. Civil War. How he came to be buried in a small cemetery on the outskirts of Seneca is a mystery. But it’s one that Alanna Chapman, a senior at Seneca High School and a member of the Seneca FFA, is determined to solve.

“I am in the process of learning how he ended up here because he was born in Wisconsin,” Chapman said.

Levi Maierhofer, another Seneca senior and fellow FFA member, is doing his own research into the life of Mary Carey.

“Every day I am learning more about her,” Maierhofer said.

Seneca FFA members have been busy uncovering the stories and restoring the tombstones of those buried in Mount Hope Cemetery and Mount Calvary Cemetery in Seneca as part of a community service and learning experience.

“This is our project now.

I call it ‘Extreme Makeover: Gravestone Edition,’” said Jeff Maierhofer, ag teacher and FFA adviser at Seneca High School.

UNIQUE ASSIGNMENT Maierhofer, who also is the president of the Seneca Historical Guild, gave 20 of his students a unique assignment.

“They had to pick two

AGRINEWS PHOTO/JEANNINE OTTO

Alanna Chapman, Seneca High School senior and FFA member, couldn’t read the name on the tombstone she chose to restore as part of the Seneca FFA’s tombstone project. After some cleaning, Chapman found out that the stone marks the grave of Daniel Chapman, a quartermaster sergeant in the Civil War. tombstones they wanted to fix up. One of them had to be a veteran or a farmer. They had to clean those two stones, and they had to research that person and do a written, twopage report, a biography, of that person,” Maierhofer said.

He was inspired to do the project after he saw a story about a teacher in Italy, who taught next door to a church that had a graveyard. The teacher taught students in the graveyard, using the cemetery and tombstones for lessons in everything from math to his-

tory to spelling.

“This has always been in the back of my mind, ‘How do we go back and fix our cemeteries?’” Maierhofer said.

He applied for and received a “Living to Serve” grant through National FFA. Most of the students chose a veteran, whose tombstones are marked with American flags. Maierhofer, with his knowledge of local history and local farming families, pointed out the graves of farmers, for those who wanted to start cleaning those stones

and do their assignments on those lives.

The biography of the person whose stone they clean is just part of the assignment.

“The next step is they have to do a first-person oral report, in front of the tombstone, as that person,” Maierhofer said.

Maierhofer said that in addition to sprucing up the cemetery and cleaning the older tombstones he wanted students to learn how those buried there really lived.

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TALES FROM PAGE 5

“I’m trying to tie in more than just, hey, clean a tombstone. I want them to realize things about these people right here — he died in the Civil War. The idea of doing the farmer was: what did they raise, what did they use for power, where was their farm?

Do they still have family here in the community? I want them to learn the history,” Maierhofer said.

The students use D/2, a biological cleaning solution that is designed to clean dirt, mold, algae, lichens and other grime from stonework, including tombstones.

The process involves spraying the D/2 on the stone, then carefully scrubbing the dirt away with sponges and a soft brush, then rinsing. Due to the age and condition of the older tombstones, it takes a few times before the students find out who is buried beneath their stone.

“I couldn’t even see the color of the stone,” Alanna Chapman said.

She chose a veteran’s grave toward the front of Mount Hope Cemetery. It took some elbow grease and a few days before Daniel Smith’s name and details emerged.

“The first day we did it was our last class before the weekend. I came back after the weekend and I thought, ‘Oh, my goodness, this can’t be the same stone.’ It looked so different,” she said.

The process takes some time, Chapman said.

“You spray the D/2. You wait a little bit, scrub it, rinse and then continue,” she said.

If students can’t read the name even after the stone is cleaned, Maierhofer said the Mount Hope Cemetery has a cemetery inventory on file so the student can research the grave.

Levi Maierhofer is Jeff’s son. Levi and his brother, Calvin, a sophomore at Seneca, have worked this year as groundskeepers for the cemetery. That involves mowing, trimming and general landscape work around the cemetery. So, he’s been looking at these stones since April.

“There were a lot of names

AGRINEWS PHOTO/JEANNINE OTTO

Levi Maierhofer, along with his brother, Calvin, looked at the tombstones in the Mount Hope Cemetery in Seneca all summer. The brothers have a job as cemetery caretakers, which includes mowing and trimming around the cemetery. They also noticed that some stones were unreadable. Levi is part of the Seneca FFA’s cemetery restoration project, with FFA members in two cemeteries in Seneca cleaning some of the oldest tombstones. The students also research the person whose stone they clean and give an oral report about that person. on the stones, like the one I’m working on, that I couldn’t read before, and a lot of the artwork that we can see now on the stones,” Levi said.

The students’ interest grew as they cleaned their stones and found out names and stories.

“Most of them have done their two and they are so excited that they are trying to do all the stones around here.

I have never had a group of kids so engaged in a project.

To a kid, every one of them is excited,” Jeff Maierhofer said.

When it comes to the research, the local history buff in Maierhofer takes over.

“I give them just enough to get them started and off they go,” he said.

The news of the project also has taken off.

The Facebook post that Maierhofer made on the Seneca FFA’s page has had over 1,500 likes and has been shared over 3,000 times. The post had reached over 39,000 people in the United States and abroad.

Many people have reached

out to find details about how the cleaning process works.

Maierhofer didn’t waste the opportunity to teach another lesson.

“I told them we’ve got a lot of pressure. People are going to be stopping by and looking, so your stone better look good,” he said.

Jeannine Otto can be reached at 815-223-2558, ext. 211, or jotto@agrinews-pubs.com.

Follow her on Twitter at: @AgNews_Otto.

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Peoria Farm Show reset for March 2021

By Martha Blum

AGRINEWS PUBLICATIONS

PEORIA, Ill. — The 39th annual Greater Peoria Farm Show has been rescheduled for March 9-11, 2021.

“We are rescheduling the show because of the local area restrictions due to the COVID-19 vi-rus concerns,” said John Riles, president of Midwest Shows.

“It doesn’t look like the restrictions are going to be lifted in time for our show in December,” Riles said. The farm show was originally scheduled for Dec. 1-3.

Rescheduling is better than canceling, Riles said, about the show that will be held at the Peoria Civic Center.

“Now we have an opportunity to explore a show at a different time of the year for this

area,” he said. “We do other shows in the spring that work well because we generally don’t have a problem in early spring that impacts shows.”

Agricultural equipment and service companies will be exhibiting at the show.

“We expect the number of exhibitors to be from the upper 200s to lower 300s for a show in Peoria,” Riles said.

Educational seminars will be held during the three-day event.

“This is a nice opportunity to expand the agenda of the seminars and speakers,” Riles said. “The topics might be more timely in March than late fall, and we always like to have a speakers related to the weather and the commodity markets.”

Along with the agricultural community, Riles said, the

farm show is also important to the Peoria community.

“We’re happy when the people in the community rally around changes like this,” Riles said. “Peoria is eager to make this show work in March.”

“It could be a great time to hold a show in Peoria,” he said. “I’d love to see it work as great in March as it does in December.”

The organizers for the Midwest Ag Expo are also proceeding with their plans to host a farm show on Jan. 27-28, 2021, at Gordyville USA, near Gifford in Champaign County.

“We will make a definite decision whether to have a show or not by the end of November,” said Gary Manke, president and CEO of the Midwest-SouthEastern Equipment Dealers As-

sociation. “That will be about 60 days prior to the start of the show.”

If the in-person show is canceled, Manke said, there will not be a virtual show.

“We’ll try our best to have a show, but we’ll error on the side of caution,” he said.

“We’ll have to wait and see.”

Hours for the Peoria Farm Show will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday.

For more information about the Greater Peoria Farm Show, go to www.greaterpeoriafarmshow.com.

Martha Blum can be reached at 815-223-2558, ext. 117, or marthablum@agrinews-pubs. com.

Follow her on Twitter at: @AgNews_Blum.

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Quad Cities show victim of COVID-19 Farm equipment event canceled

By Martha Blum

AGRINEWS PUBLICATIONS

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — The Quad Cities Farm Equipment Show is canceled for 2021 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The QCCA Expo Center building is still closed, and we don’t know when the state will open it,” said Dick Sherman, managing director of the Quad Cities Farm Equipment Show. “And when the building is open, we don’t know if there will be restrictions.”

Canceling the show, which was set for Jan. 17-19, was not

an easy decision for Sherman.

“I started this show almost 30 years ago, and I didn’t want to cancel it,” he said.

“But I don’t want to be responsible for people getting sick. That didn’t make any sense to me.”

When the virus became a major problem in March, Sherman said, he didn’t consider canceling a January show, but only about half of the typical number of exhibitors had planned to participate in the 2021 show by the middle of September.

“It surprised me how many of the exhibitors did not respond,” Sherman said.

“Canceling the 2021 show is like giving up a little piece of yourself,” he said. “But because of the virus we didn’t

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Sherman comes from a family that organized boat and sports shows and got involved with farm shows about 39 years ago when he started a farm show in Indianapolis.

“I was speaking with the manager of the building in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and he said I should look at running indoor farm shows because ag companies don’t want to spend 10 to 14 days at a fair,” Sherman recalled.

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ings in the farming area,” he said. “I went to Indianapolis and told them I want to rent the building for a farm show, and they thought I was crazy.”

Ten years after starting the farm show in Indiana, Sherman decided to add a show.

“I took the map again and looked at the Quad Cities and thought it would be a perfect location for a show,” he said.

“There will be a show in January 2022,” Sherman said.

“We’re just not doing it for a year.”

Martha Blum can be reached at 815-223-2558, ext. 117, or marthablum@agrinews-pubs. com.

Follow her on Twitter at: @AgNews_Blum.

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Farmer adds to on-farm storage capacity

By Tom C. Doran

AGRINEWS PUBLICATIONS

GRANVILLE, Ill. — Andy Gehm opted to be better prepared for weather-delayed and long, drawn-out harvests that create bottlenecks in the grain movement system.

For the past 17 years, Gehm has been adding onfarm storage that provides him with greater efficiency and flexibility at harvest.

The most recent addition was the installation of a 60-foot GSI bin with about 100,000 bushels of capacity along with a catwalk and conveyor that connect to the existing storage and drying system. This addition gives Gehm roughly 300,000 bushels of on-farm storage capacity.

Gehm’s path toward expanding his on-site storage began in 2003 when he met with Tom Quick of T&S Quick Enterprises, a GSI dealer in Blackstone.

“We came up with a plan to get some drying and storing capacity on the farm.

Two 48-foot grain bins were erected in the spring of 2004 with holding capacities roughly of 60,000 bushels plus each. A dry leg and horizontal farm fan dryers were installed. I purchased an existing grain bin on the farm from my grandfather and we moved it to this site to use as a wet holding bin,” Gehm said.

The system worked well and in realizing the number of benefits for having onfarm storage and drying he had a third 48-foot bin with overhead conveyor and catwalk installed by T&S Quick in 2009.

“I really liked the extra storage and the lack of necessity of having to take grain to town,” he said.

Gehm’s experience during the delayed 2009 harvest moved him to make further improvements to his on-farm capabilities.

“We had a terribly wet fall in 2009 and I realized that I didn’t have sufficient drying capacity for the operation

AGRINEWS PHOTO/TOM C. DORAN

The 60-foot bin (far right) with a capacity of about 100,000 bushels was the most recent addition to Andy Gehm’s grain storage and drying system on his farm. This addition gives Gehm about 300,000 bushels of on-farm capacity and is all interconnected with GSI’s WatchDog automated system. Gehm’s storage expansion began in 2003 when he met with Tom Quick of T&S Quick Enterprises, a GSI dealer in Blackstone, Illinois, to develop a plan. that I wanted to run. So, in 2010 I went back to Tom Quick at T&S Quick again and we came up with a plan to install a tower dryer and a wet leg. I’ve been very pleased with every expansion project that I’ve done,” the fifth-generation farm explained.

The latest project began in the spring of 2020 when he contacted Dale Middleton of T&S Quick and plans were made to erect the 60-foot bin and add onto the catwalk and conveyor to service that bin. The bin was ready for service in August.

AUTOMATED SYSTEM The interconnected grain system includes GSI’s WatchDog that allows Gehm to remotely monitor and control dryer functions such as moisture, temperature and dryer status from a web-accessible device.

“That’s really convenient to

capabilities.

“Back in that terrible fall of 2009 my father and I sat down after that harvest season and we looked at the savings here with this facility in comparison to taking those bushels to town. The savings were absolutely staggering.

So, I immediately saw the value of having your own dryer system. I knew it before, but that really magnified the value of having your own system,” Gehm said.

“Not only did I realize the value of the drying system, equally I realized the value of on-farm storage somewhat for exactly the same reasons. I was able to keep my combine running that year when a lot of others in the area had to be stopping at noon give or take an hour or so because the local elevators just couldn’t handle the glut of such high ADVANTAGES Gehm noted the advan- moisture grain. tages he’s found in expanding his on-farm grain handling See STORAGE, Page 12 be at home and have an idea of what’s going on with the dryer or you could be hauling grain into the facility, running the combine, it doesn’t matter where you’re at, you can remotely monitor what the dryer is doing for you. It’s awfully nice. It let’s you know when you’re out of grain,” he said.

“Everything is pretty much automated. When the dryer calls for grain, it receives grain from the wet bin. It’s constantly flowing out of the dryer and going into the bins.

It’s full automation and then during the evening when I run out of grain, everything automatically shuts down and things are waiting for me in the morning to get a few loads in and get the dryer going again.”

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STORAGE FROM PAGE 11

“The local elevators have also come a long way since 2009, but I really enjoy having my own setup. I enjoy the idea that nobody can kind of dictate hours to me. If I want to start early or work late it doesn’t seem to be a problem with my operation. There’s just so much freedom and flexibility when you have your own system.

“I’m looking forward this fall of not having the burden of having to haul so much grain away from the facility when I have other interests such as harvesting. I’m looking forward to the extra storage and it really fit well into my system and has worked out well.”

PARTNERSHIP Gehm said he’s appreciative of his partnership with GSI dealer T&S Quick Enterprises.

“It’s very nice to have your own system and things can

happen and that’s where I depend on Dale (Middleton) at T&S Quick. Dale’s been great to me in many different facets. Typically when they’re here building they’re receptive to any concerns I may have whether it’s concerns in fabrication, assembly, this or that he’s been great to work with. When I do have problems in-season I give him a call and I have never not received a phone call back the same day or the next morning that I’ve called.

His dedication to me as a customer has been great,” Gehm noted.

“It’s been an important partnership. I always have some questions about how does this work, what happens here, what should I do, what shouldn’t I do, this is broke, this needs fixing, and I rely heavily on them for advice and for service.”

Tom C. Doran can be reached at 815-780-7894 or tdoran@agrinews-pubs.com.

Follow him on Twitter at: @ AgNews_Doran.

Andy Gehm describes the GSI WatchDog automated system that’s part of his on-farm grain storage facility. He recently added a 60-foot bin to his system.

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Prevent combine fires this harvest Extension tips to reduce risk

URBANA, Ill. — Combine fires are one of the most common and expensive types of fire incidents in production agriculture. They also can cause substantial setback during harvest.

“Combine fires often start behind the operator’s view, so it may be difficult to easily or quickly extinguish,” said Josie Rudolphi, University of Illinois Extension associate research scientist.

Several preventative actions can reduce the chance of fires.

One major cause of combine fires is the ignition of trash and debris, such as leaves, chaff, stalks and other organic material, that build up around the engine, exhaust, or other machine parts. When those get hot during operation, they may combust.

To prevent a debris fire, frequently blow debris with a portable leaf blower or air compressor, Rudolphi said, and inspect the engine compartment where chaff may have accumulated around bearings, belts and other moving parts.

Another potential cause of fires is from a leak in the combine’s fuel or hydraulic

system. Fuel or hydraulic fluid can ignite when it comes in contact with something hot, such as an engine’s muffler and exhaust system.

To prevent a fire in the fuel or hydraulic system, check lines before harvest and replace any leaking, cracked, or worn-looking lines. Keep fuel and hydraulic lines away from sources of heat.

“It’s important to perform routine inspections throughout harvest to ensure lines are not leaking,” Rudolphi said.

“Never refuel a combine with the engine running. Turn off the engine and wait 15 minutes to reduce the risk of a spill volatilizing and igniting.”

Combines should be equipped with at least two readily accessible fire extinguishers that an operator can reach and use before a fire becomes uncontrollable. Have additional fire extinguishers in the tractor, grain cart and pickup truck.

“Most importantly, have an emergency plan in place so all employees know what to do in the event of a combine fire,” Rudolphi said.

In the event of a fire, turn off the machine and exit the cab immediately, Rudolphi said. Call 911 before attempting to extinguish the fire and maintain a safe distance while using the extinguisher.

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COVID and the classroom Getting ag literacy message to Illinois students, teachers

By Jeannine Otto

AGRINEWS PUBLICATIONS

DANVILLE, Ill. — Hopefully, by the time the butterflies in the Pollinator Kits hatch, students will be back in their classrooms to see them up close.

For now, Thea Gernand is enjoying the response of Vermilion County teachers to the new kits.

“We just got the word out about them and we are fully booked for our spring sessions and we are very excited about that,” said Gernand, the coordinator for the Vermilion County Ag in the Classroom program.

The Illinois Ag in the Classroom program provides lessons on agriculture and farming to students in grades kindergarten through eighth grade. The program is administered at the county level, and county Farm Bureaus have an AITC coordinator, who is responsible for putting the program together and getting the information out to schools in their county.

County coordinators are adapting their programs this year to a variety of classroom and learning situations.

AgriNews talked to the people who are keeping ag in the classroom — wherever that classroom happens to be.

A QUICK TURNAROUND Kevin Daugherty isn’t just the education director at Illinois Farm Bureau.

He is also the president of the Leroy CUSD #2 School Board. So, when the word went around that the governor was going to make an announcement on March 20 about COVID-19, Daugherty pretty much knew what was coming.

“Knowing the school board stuff, we were pretty sure the governor was going to make the announcement for the shutdown and that’s what he did,” Daugherty said.

Anticipating that some disruption to in-person classroom learning was coming, the Ag in the Classroom staff at Illinois Farm Bureau quickly pivoted.

“We made a video on Friday, and we said starting Tuesday, every day at noon until the end of the school year, we will provide a hands-on lesson and a STEM activity. We came up with new material that students and teachers could access with interest about what was going on in agriculture. We did something every day

Thea Gernand, like her fellow Ag in the Classroom coordinators across Illinois and the nation, is making sure that students and teachers in Vermilion County continue their ag education. When schools shut down in March, Gernand was able to convert her “Ag Bag” event, where teachers are supplied with lessons and materials on a specific agriculture topic or product, to meet the needs of students who were at home. She’s continued that event into the current school year.

She is also offering the Pollinator Kit, where teachers can sign up to bring the kit into their classrooms and hatch butterflies next spring. until June 12,” Daugherty said.

The goal was to provide content that was not just educational, but fun and stimulating, as well.

“We found some sort of fun video, whether it was the Peterson Brothers or something that went along with that topic or something goofy, just to try and have a little bit of fun, as well as learning

about something,” Daugherty said.

The program’s Summer Ag Institutes, where teachers visit farms and agribusiness in their counties and learn about agriculture, went virtual by way of tours, conducted by the state’s grain and livestock commodity groups, along with See COVID, Page 16

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COVID

is working on finding ways to continue to get the ag message to the teachers and students in the county. She shares the lessons created by the state program and the national Ag in the Classroom program on the county’s AITC website.

“We had an ag literacy committee meeting recently.

I have a wonderful blend of farmers and educators at different levels. I had questions for them, like what is the best way for me to assist teachers and promote ag literacy now?

What is going to work and what is not going to work?”

Collins said.

She was reminded of how much has changed when she glanced at a copy of the minutes of the March 10 ag literacy committee meeting.

The committee discussed an awards night, the annual local history expo for DeKalb third-graders and an annual field trip for Sycamore eighthgrade students.

“I looked at those minutes and none of that happened.

It’s just been a weird year,” she said.

FROM PAGE 15

one-hour training sessions for teachers.

All of the information was uploaded onto the program’s blog site, beyondthebarndoor. wordpress.com, and also at the agintheclassroom.org website.

Continuing forward, Daugherty and his team are putting together monthly themes and the materials and activities to go along with those themes.

With field trips canceled, he and his team are posting virtual field trips that teachers and students can enjoy.

The September virtual field trip was to an apple orchard and October will be a tour of a pumpkin farm.

“We are getting ready to go to Heap’s Giant Pumpkin Patch in Minooka,” Daugherty said.

The program also promotes a book that goes along with each month’s theme. “Pick a Pumpkin” by Patricia Toht, an Illinois author, is the featured book for October.

The state program continues to provide material weekly for teachers, posting the new lesson on Thursday for the next week. In addition, the state program also is offering professional development credits through a program called “PD in your PJs,” that offers Saturday morning sessions to earn those credits.

‘A WEIRD YEAR’ Rhodora Collins is looking at school this year not just as the DeKalb County Ag in the Classroom coordinator, but as the mom of a student who is doing remote learning.

The DeKalb County program serves students and teachers in 42 schools throughout the county. While Collins focuses her outreach at the elementary and middle school levels, she also works with high school ag teachers to provide materials and information.

Collins said the program is teacher focused, providing teachers with training and resources to incorporate agriculture into their classroom lessons.

Rhodora Collins has been the Ag in the Classroom coordinator for DeKalb County for 22 years. Collins is working to find a balance to keep ag literacy lessons flowing to classrooms and to find material that brings the ag message while keeping students occupied.

“We do some classroom outreach, but we are not in classrooms every week as a lot of counties are,” Collins said.

When schools sent students home in March, Collins knew what other parents were going through, trying to keep kids occupied while also trying to adjust to the new normal of doing their own jobs from home.

“I’m at home as a parent, trying to keep my daughter occupied and seeing what her

teacher is facing and what other parents are facing and thinking, ‘Is there anything I can do?’” she said.

So, she found activities that continue the ag learning and that families could do together.

“It wasn’t a lot, but I knew they were getting pummeled with stuff from all directions,” she said.

Moving into this school year, with field trips and in-person events canceled, she

FAMILIAR FACES However she can do it, Jennifer Glover is determined to get her Ag in the Classroom volunteer presenters back in front of students.

“We are trying to get them back with the familiar face that they are used to, who comes into their classroom.

That was my goal, and they all jumped on board,” said Glover, coordinator for the Peoria County Ag in the Classroom program.

Recording lessons using Zoom instead of standing in front of students pushed Glover and her volunteers out of their comfort zone, but it was a move they made willingly.

“It’s pushed us all out of our comfort zones to do these recordings. All of my presenters from last year came back and said, yes, it was pushing them out of their comfort zones, but they know that building this connection and this relationship with our students is important,” Glover said.

The Peoria County AITC program serves some 250 classrooms in the county and 50 schools. Glover of-

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fers seven topics for teachers. Each topic has a 15- to 20-minute presentation and a hands-on activity.

This year, the seven topics remain, those were chosen earlier than usual, at the meeting of the AITC committee in February versus the usual May. But how the lessons are being delivered to students and classrooms has shifted.

Glover is still offering the in-person option and said a handful of schools have chosen that option and are allowing presenters into schools. A second option is a recorded Zoom lesson for students, and a third option is a virtual live meeting, where students can have a question-and-answer period with the presenter and can also see the hands-on activity.

While the response hasn’t been as robust yet as Glover hoped, she is encouraged that the numbers of teachers and students participating will continue to grow.

“It’s not as big as in the past, but we still are able to get the information out to all the teachers so they can share the information and we are doing our best to provide some other options,� she said.

IN THE AG BAG When schools closed in March, Thea Gernand didn’t close up shop for the Vermilion County Ag in the Classroom. She kept the ag literacy messages going. “I let the teachers get a handle on things. In the meantime, I was delivering ag mags to the school lunches and also in the packets that students took home. I was doing that through the end of the year,� said Gernand, who just started her second year as the county AITC coordinator.

Gernand’s Ag Bags, a bag containing the ag-themed lesson, lesson plan and all the materials that teachers and parents needed for the lesson, proved popular for the remainder of the 2019-2020

school year. “I started to do our Ag Bag events in mid-April. Teachers and parents would give me a call and reserve however many they needed for their classroom or their student. Then I had the Ag Bags on a table at the front of our office and they could pick their Ag Bags up.

We had four of those events.

I know the teachers were still trying to figure things out, but good educational way to give the kids something to do at home,� Gernand said.

This year, Gernand has carried on with the Ag Bags. She introduced herself in a video that took the place of the open house she usually has in August for teachers.

Teachers can sign up for a virtual lesson with Gernand appearing virtually in the classroom via SMARTBoard or, for remote learners, Gernand joining their classroom in a remote session or they can sign up to have a link to a YouTube video of the lesson.

All of the options come with

Jeannine Otto can be reached at 815-223-2558, ext. 211, or jotto@agrinews-pubs.com.

Follow her on Twitter at: @AgNews_Otto.

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the Ag Bags, which Gernand is delivering.

The Ag Bags have been popular with teachers and so far, the YouTube video option has received the largest number of requests as teachers juggle multiple classrooms. “The teachers like it because they don’t have to prep and everything is right there for them,� Gernand said.

While some schools and students have had issues with connectivity, Gernand said everyone is learning to work with technology that may be unfamiliar. “It’s new for the teachers.

It’s the first time doing this.

We are working together and solving technical issues. It’s a learning curve for everyone, but it’s a good one because it’s going to have us grow and that’s a good thing,� she said.

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Providing agricultural education inside and outside the classroom Farmers head into harvest season about the same time teachers head back to school every fall. I Doug come from Schroeder a long, proud line Illinois of teachers, Soybean including my grandAssociation mother, mother, sister, daughter and daughter-in-law. And what I’ve learned most from watching them in their line of work is that it’s important to share the facts and create learning opportunities wherever they might arise.

A fact we know today is that a large portion of consumers are generations removed from the farm. In order to connect the public with agriculture and develop agricultural literacy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture established Ag in the Classroom in 1981.

From lesson plans to industry trips, interactive learning activities, grants and scholarships, eLearning and more, it is a robust classroom resource designed to supplement and enhance existing curriculum and

engage students of all ages with agriculture.

In Illinois, 463,000 students and 25,600 teachers experienced agriculture and made connections to family farms through IAITC lessons last year. The impact this organization is making on students across the country, and specifically within Illinois, is widespread.

IAITC brings agriculture to light for many who would otherwise have no opportunity to engage with the industry.

However, it’s no surprise that early 2020 brought challenges for teachers.

IAITC quickly adapted to remain steady in its commitment to enlighten school students about farming and agriculture. The program has been busy hosting virtual field trips, activity presentations and cooking demonstrations to expose more students and adults to agriculture.

During the pandemic, IAITC provided students and teachers with lesson links, interactive videos through social media and informational content through its blog, Beyond the Barndoor. Although we’re unable to interact in person, Facebook has been a successful outlet to spread IAITC’s message.

In fact, IAITC’s Facebook page grew by 33% during this time, connecting more people with agriculture than ever before. Throughout spring and summer, IAITC’s Facebook posts reached 600,000 people — and that’s 600,000 more people with the opportunity to learn a thing or two about soybeans.

The Illinois Soybean Association checkoff program supports IAITC through funding and content support. We share soybean-related content on IAITC’s social media platforms, including feature articles from the Soybeans Ag Mag. These programs are available in counties across Illinois, and any soybean farmer can get involved in local school ag literacy efforts. Visit agintheclassroom.org for details.

Speaking of educational resources, ISA also funds a program called Pod to Plate, an information hub showing how soybeans make it from the field into food, fuel or furniture.

Pod to Plate provides a host of content and resources ready for teachers to use in the classroom. The Pod to Plate story is also available in a book designed for young readers.

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Backed by ISA’s checkoff and other industry organizations, the strength of IAITC stems from a cooperative spirit and grassroots efforts to get agricultural information in the hands of students. As our population continues to grow, it’s vital to develop agricultural literacy and to continue engaging students with this industry.

The agriculture industry and related fields support 22 million jobs in the United States, 11% of the total U.S. employment according the U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service. That’s a pretty large chunk of the country that’s working in the industry that’s developing food, fiber and natural resources for our country and world.

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How well do you know your farm’s financials?

As farmers and farm leaders, many of us originally got involved in farming because Darren Frye we love production: Water Street planting, growing a Solutions crop, seeing the results of our work. Even as we move into a leader or manager role on the farm, many of us still love spending time in the field, getting our boots dirty.

It might seem obvious, but the majority of farm business leaders didn’t start farming because they love dealing with spreadsheets and financial statements.

Yet, overseeing and being ultimately responsible for the farm’s financials is part of the job description of the farm’s top leader.

This can be a challenge, partly because of what the leader might be more naturally drawn to do and partly because there might not have been many opportunities to learn and practice financial skills that apply to the farm business. But it can become a top priority for the leader. It just takes some intentional work to make it happen.

GETTING STRONGER Having strong financial

skills as a farm leader is a major asset and advantage for your business. This means not only being able to converse with your lenders — using and understanding the terminology they use — but going beyond and being able to explain and show them exactly what actions you plan to take to strengthen your farm’s financial position and create progress over time.

1. Do I have a dashboard set up for my operation with key metrics relevant to my operation? A key piece is to get this type of financial dashboard set up. You can seek out resources like articles, business courses and your lender or other financial adviser to help you learn the types of financial metrics to choose from. You may also want some advice to evaluate which metrics are the right ones for your operation to regularly monitor. Doing this can give you a better idea of your operation’s current financial health more frequently than waiting until the end of the year.

2. Do I understand and feel able to use my farm’s financial statements in decision-making? The financial statements for your operation that your bookkeeper or accountant are generating for you can be helpful pieces of information. But that’s true only if you have a clear concept of what each financial statement is

telling you and why it matters. If you could use more information or understanding about that, find ways to get more education around how you can use financial statements in decision-making for your business. Understanding this better helps you truly run your operation by the numbers.

3. Do I have a clear plan for the future to improve my farm’s numbers? No matter where your farm currently stands financially, there’s always room to work on strengthening its financial position. Your farm’s key metrics will come in handy here, because you can evaluate which ones will matter most to improve. You’ll also want to keep your lender in the loop about your plans and communicate exactly what you’re doing to work on improving those numbers.

DELVING INTO DATA On today’s farms, it seems there’s more information and data to digest than ever.

At times, that can prove to be both a blessing and a challenge for the farm’s CEO, since they’re the one ultimately responsible for using insights from data to make changes and benefit the operation.

But along with the other responsibilities of the farm’s leader, sifting through all the data can become overwhelming. The

sheer volume of data that’s now available from GPS-related technologies on farm equipment for production insights is higher than ever.

Many farms have recognized the value of capturing this information, so production data has become a priority.

DETAIL BREAKTHROUGH Though data can be overwhelming, it’s often in the details that farms can uncover new information to make the operation better.

To make the farm more successful overall, there must be a plan to collect and use data about multiple aspects of the operation, as well as how data will be used to create stronger business plans.

One of the major steps lenders are often excited to see as part of a farm’s business plan are dynamic, effective marketing plans.

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Monarch Action Plan takes flight in Illinois SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Illinois Department of Transportation, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and Illinois Department of Agriculture solidified their commitment to protecting monarch butterflies and other pollinators by signing the Illinois Monarch Action Plan at Conservation World on the Illinois State Fairgrounds.

“Though small, pollinators play an extremely important role in our survival here in Illinois and the world,” said IDNR Director Colleen Callahan. “This signing not only moves us as a state from plan to action, but also reaffirms our commitment as public servants to doing our part in ensuring pollinators’ survival.”

“Monarch butterflies capture the hearts of people

Colleen Callahan, Illinois Department of Natural Resources director (from left); John Kim, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency director; Jerry Costello II, Illinois Department of Agriculture acting director, sign the Illinois Monarch Action Plan at Conservation World on the Illinois State Fairgrounds. across Illinois, from schoolchildren to mayors, in cities and across rural areas. The Illinois Monarch Project and this action plan harness this enthusiasm to empower oth-

ers to take steps to help monarchs and other pollinators,” said Iris Caldwell, University of Illinois Chicago and state coordinator for Illinois Monarch Project. “We’re excited to launch the implementation of the action plan through a series of virtual events beginning in October.”

Tasked with bolstering the population of monarchs and other pollinators by protecting habitat and adding food sources, the project brings together public agencies, private organizations and residents of the state in a collaborative and coordinated effort to ensure the survival and successful migration of monarchs.

As part of a regional effort to add 1.3 billion stems of new milkweed to the central U.S. to support migrating monarchs, Illinois is tasked with adding 150,000,000 stems of new milkweed em-

bedded in diverse nectar sources by 2038. As one of the largest landowners in the state, IDOT is in a unique position to contribute resources to this goal.

“Illinois leads the nation in soybean production and is No. 2 in corn, so our state’s farmers are well aware of the importance of pollinators,” said IDOA Acting Director Jerry Costello II. “Understanding their importance to all Illinois crops, IDOA has executed a multiyear pollinator habitat establishment at our fairgrounds in Springfield and DuQuoin.

This multi-year plan, which is in its second year, will convert approximately 25 to 30 acres of land when fully completed.”

Additional information on the Illinois Monarch Project, as well as full text of the plan, can be found at: IllinoisMonarchProject.org.

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