Lincoln Land Community College’s (LLCC) foundation will receive annual earnings from an $18 million charitable trust that will benefit the college’s agriculture program.
The gift from the late farming couple Irene and Charles Kreher will enable the college to increase the number of students served, boost local job opportunities filled with qualified LLCC graduates and improve agricultural literacy in the local communities. College leaders hope to develop LLCC into a center of excellence in agriculture education.
Irene and Charles Kreher
“The Kreher’s gift is beyond ‘once in a lifetime,’ it’s in the realm of ‘I can’t believe this is really happening,’” said Bill Harmon, LLCC agronomy professor and agriculture program coordinator.
The trust also directs the LLCC agriculture program to implement an education program on the Kreher Farm, Harmon said.
“Our mission is to have LLCC be the first choice for potential agriculture students, with a goal to double our enrollment by 2020,” he said. “Additionally, we want to be the agriculture leader for businesses seeking new employees.”
Serving a growing need
LLCC is in the process hiring a full-time program specialist, who will help recruit potential students, as well as expand partnerships with local agriculture-related community businesses and agencies to identify opportunities for employment, Harmon said. The college also has started discussions on offering LLCC agriculture classes to nearby high schools and improving its marketing.
Harmon noted the timeliness of the gift and expansion of the agriculture program. He cited a Purdue University report that anticipates that the U.S. will need 57,900 new workers in agriculture, natural resources and environmental sciences, but that U.S. colleges and universities will only produce 35,400 qualified graduates to fill them. He said this national trend holds true in central Illinois as well, providing many employment opportunities for graduates.
“Agriculture is deep-rooted at LLCC,” said President Charlotte Warren. “We were founded by a group of farmers, among others, and agriculture was one of the original programs we offered. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to recognize a gift that will continue that storied history for the agriculture program and that will impact the lives of so many people.”
LLCC’s agriculture program offers an associate in science degree in agriculture, designed for students planning to transfer to a four-year college or university to complete a bachelor’s degree. For students preparing to enter directly into the workforce, LLCC provides two-year associate in applied science degree programs in agri-business management, horticulture and precision agronomy/fertilizer, as well as certificate programs in fertilizer, agricultural watershed management and landscape design/turf management.
