WIU School of Agriculture

Different Expectation

Everyone here has similar agriculture interests, and everyone has unique experiences which make everyone’s stories important and valuable. I would like to share how I became interested in agr…

The Kid From Idaville

If you ask anyone that knows me, they’ll tell you that I am the most passionate about raising and selling high quality stock the highest degree that I can. I’ve worked with my parents for a long ti…

The Smith-Hughes Act Impact on Agriculture Education

Published on April 20, 2023 / BY Coy Walker Ever wonder how agriculture education came about in the classroom? Schools did not always have agriculture courses for students to take. In fact, over a …

The Nicest Neighbors you’ll ever meet!

I grew up in Midlothian Illinois which is only thirty minutes south of Chicago and nothing but suburbs for miles. I have absolutely no background in anything related to Agriculture as a whole. I gr…

Next Generation Farmer: Working Towards the Future

Lehman Farms was established in 1993 by my parents Brian and Jennifer Lehman. Both being WIU graduates, I knew that Western Illinois University would be my college home. While attending WIU I am ab…

Feeding Our Future with Trash.

On April 16, 2023 / By Jimmy Connell Spending my teenage years working in a grocery store opened up my eyes to see how much food we waste in the United States. I work at Fareway Meat and Grocery in…

A Small-Town Girl Navigating the Ag World

Growing up in a very small rural Illinois town, agriculture will always be relevant to you in some way or another. When I was younger, my perception of agriculture was very limited. When I thought …

A cannabis career? Illinois colleges and growers are partnering on classes to meet the demand for...

Coming back to the Farm, Family and Agriculture

It’s my freshman year of high school and the State FFA Officers came to visit and had us fill out these goal cards.  If you had asked me then or even at the beginning  of my senior …

EYES WIDE OPEN, BUT CAN’T SEE WHAT’S AHEAD 

Growing up, I showed pigs with my younger brother through 4-H and FFA. We did this for several years; however, I always wanted the experience of showing cattle. I begged and begged my parents to le…

Finding My Place in Agriculture

What are your connections to agriculture?  “My family owns a farm.”  “I was in FFA and 4-H.”  “I showed livestock since I was six.” One by one, my peers started sharing how they have…

Summer on a Cattle Farm

When I called my now boss for the first time to ask for a job, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Who knew that getting that farm hand job at a Black Angus farm would make me realize wha…