IVCC Ag Program Gains Tractor

IVCC ag students recently checked out new equipment available to the program including a Case IH M340 tractor. They are McKenzie Cain of Princeton, left, Catie Nowakowski of Hennepin, Jon Yaklich of Princeton and Gavin Garcia of DePue. – Photo IVCC

OGLESBY – Illinois Valley Community College’s agriculture program has gained a new piece of equipment thanks to a corporate donation. Ag coordinator Willard Mott took delivery of a new Case IH Magnum 340 tractor through a Case IH School-Program, President Jerry Corcoran announced at Thursday’s board meeting. Use of the tractor was facilitated by Kyle Dooley of CNH International and a vertical tillage tool has also arrived compliments of Stoller International Equipment of Ottawa. Corcoran said Stoller also donated a utility tractor to support research being conducted on college land in partnership with University of Illinois Extension.
“Thanks to CNH, we may soon have a planter for some of our own work and the hardware needed to collect field data from the tractor and combine,” he said.
“It has been a great partnership. Our ag students are the beneficiaries of this tremendous support. We have everything we need to prepare the seedbed and monitor field conditions. Willard is now working on how to control the weather,” Corcoran said with a smile.
Mott said earlier this week, “Our partnership with CNH Industrial’s agriculture brand Case IH will have a profound impact on students as they will be driving a new M340 tractor, working the field with a new vertical tillage tool, and planting both corn and soybeans. Our program has been elevated to a new level thanks to Kyle Dooley and CNH Industrial.”