Illinois Agri-Women announces scholarship winners

ROCK FALLS, Ill. — The Illinois Agri-Women organization has awarded four scholarships for females studying agriculture.

One $1,500 IAW Helen Henert Agriculture Education Scholarship has been awarded to Dana Merriman, an agriculture education major who will be finishing her undergraduate degree in the next year.

Merriman will be a senior at Illinois State University in Bloomington-Normal this year finishing her degree in agriculture education.

“Agricultural education is essential for the future of Illinois and the United States. In Illinois, agriculture is a major economic driver, with crops like corn, soybeans and livestock being key exports,” Merriman said.

“By providing students with the skills and knowledge needed to keep farming efficient and competitive, agricultural education is shaping the next generation of leaders in farming, agribusiness, research and policy — ensuring that students become the future of agriculture.”

WCFA Scholarships

Three $1,000 WCFA Agent of Change Scholarships were offered to students who have attended at least one Women Changing the Face of Agriculture Conference. Eligible applicants include past attendees of the WCFA career exploration event.

One scholarship has been awarded to a high school senior, one awarded to a current college student and one scholarship awarded to a current graduate student.

Two WCFA Agent of Change Scholarships this year are provided as memorial scholarships. The first, the Phyllis Johnson Memorial Scholarship, is provided by a daughter of the Johnsons, Penny Lauritzen.

In 1951, Phyllis and LaVern Johnson moved to his parents’ farm as they retired and moved to town. Phyllis worked alongside her husband to plant and harvest the corn, oats and alfalfa that they grew to feed their hogs and cattle.

She raised chickens and was very active supporting her six children in their school, 4-H and FFA activities. She served several years as the Parent-Teacher Association president and chaired hundreds of fund-raising banquet committees at their church and for various school organizations.

This experience led her to establish a catering business and eventually build a new home with a large commercial kitchen and serving area called “Your Home and Ours” — thus creating “farm to fork” before connecting production agriculture to the family table was considered “cool.”

Phyllis and LaVern were insistent that their six children secure post-secondary educations, from farm finance to meat science to farm management to nursing to hospitality to psychology.

She believed that supporting young women as they prepare themselves to be self-reliant and serve as leaders in their field of interest was an important effort.

The second memorial scholarship, the Joan Loeb Memorial Scholarship, provided by a daughter of the Loebs, Karen Westbrook, is also an interesting story.

In 2001, Joan and Herb Loeb purchased their first farm as an investment. This investment became Joan’s passion.

Living her whole life in Chicago, Joan was intrigued by the processes of farming from soil fertility to harvest. She also loved riding in the equipment.

Joan was fascinated by the education and information required to run a profitable operation. She felt it was important to explain to her city friends that farmers are more than people in bib overalls and farming is much more than plowing a field.

Her daughter, Karen, is a board member of IAW and a graduate of Annie’s Project and pursued graduate level classes at University of Illinois to help oversee the farm operations. Joan believed that women in agriculture was an important effort to support.

The 2025 Women Changing the Face of Agriculture Agent of Change scholarship recipients are:

Hannah Miller received the $1,000 Phyllis Johnson Memorial Scholarship. She is the daughter of Matt and Tammy Miller of Cabery.

Miller is majoring in agriculture business and animal science at Black Hawk College East.

“Through my National FFA-winning swine production Supervised Agricultural Experience project, I found a specific passion for helping agricultural businesses thrive. Through this project I also found a love for studying genetics and tracking how genetics pass down from parents to offspring,” Miller said.

“Additionally, studying animal science with a focus on genetics will allow me to help the food supply, specifically the pork industry. I have a goal of making swine operations more sustainable and help the swine industry decrease our global footprint.”

Libby Larkin, Western Illinois University, is the recipient of the $1,000 Joan Loeb Memorial Scholarship. Her parents are Dale and Jenny Larkin, of Pontiac.

Larkin’s plans are to major agriculture business and agronomy, with an emphasis on precision agriculture technology.

“Once I complete my bachelor’s at WIU, I will promote the use of precision agriculture and agronomy to optimize production and maximize land potential. My goal is to help farmers reduce expenses, increase production and ensure profitability while maintaining sustainability,” Larkin said.

“Additionally, I will inspire young women to be involved in 4-H, FFA and Farm Bureau and encourage them to return to our rural communities to grow our local agricultural industry for generations to come.”

Emma Ennis, Southern Illinois University, the daughter of Stan and Linda Metzger from Charleston, will also receive $1,000. She completed her degree at Lake Land Community College and SIU, receiving her bachelor’s degree in agriculture education and leadership.

Continuing at SIU, Stevens is pursuing a master’s degree in agriculture education and leadership.

“My career goal of achieving a master’s degree, with the help of this scholarship, would expand where I am at. It would allow me to work with our local community colleges to have dual credit classes,” Ennis said.

Illinois Agri-Women

The IAW organization supports the agriculture industry, works for legislation to support and preserve family farms, communicates with other agriculture organizations and strives to educate the public and promote agricultural awareness.

To find out more information about scholarships, visit womenchangingthefaceofagriculture.com or www.illinoisagriwomen.org.