December 02, 2024

2023 Illinois Livestock Leadership Institute announced

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Livestock Leadership Institute is a combined effort of the Illinois Pork Producers Association and the Illinois Beef Association that provides an opportunity for young men and women to become actively involved in the livestock industry and all of agriculture.

This program is sponsored by the two organizations and is administered by their respective staff.

ILLI is a three-day trip that focuses on leadership, citizenship and communication skills through hands-on experiences. It is hosted in a different location each year. The dates and destination for this year’s trip are June 7-9 in Fair Oaks, Indiana.

Youth will learn about pork, beef and dairy production, research, consumer information and issues that affect the livestock industry today.

ILLI participants must be 16 to 20 years old by the time of trip. ILLI participants need not be pork, beef or dairy producers or from pork, beef or dairy producing families, but must exhibit a sincere interest in the livestock industry and agriculture.

Tour locations include: Funk’s Farm Trust, Kilgus Farmstead, Fair Oaks Farm and University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana. A maximum of 20 students will be accepted.

Registration is based first on age, then on the quality of response to the prompt listed on the registration form. Notifications will be made within one week of the application deadline.

If chosen, there is a $150 registration fee to attend the trip, with all other trip expenses covered by ILLI.

Interested students must register prior to May 1. The registration link can be found on all respective organizations’ websites, plus their social media channels.