Mellisa McMillan’s classroom supply list is not your everyday school supply list.

“We need welding gloves and welding tongs. I know we need another new saw out in the woodshop,” said McMillan, the agriculture teacher and FFA adviser at Ashton-Franklin Center High School.

McMillan teaches agriculture to students from seventh grade all the way up to high school seniors. She has around 85 students in agriculture classes this semester.

Earlier this year, McMillan applied for and received a $4,500 grant through the Sauk Valley Area Chamber of Commerce Agribusiness Committee’s agriculture education grant program.

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A student reaches out to touch the class pet, a young sheep Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, at AFC High School. (Alex T. Paschal)

She plans to use the funds to purchase some of the more unusual items for her program.

“I thought I’ll just apply, we can always use new and updated equipment for the classroom and the shop,” she said.

The supplies needed for an agriculture classroom and workshop are a little out of the ordinary because the classes offered in a typical agriculture education curriculum can vary from plant science and horticulture to welding and construction.

“An ag department is such a different animal when it comes to the supplies we need and use,” McMillan said.

Lab tables are another item that McMillan needs for her classroom and plans to purchase with the grant funds.

While the supplies on McMillan’s list may differ from those in other classrooms, the items have one thing in common.

“All of these items will help students succeed. We have items we need to help them succeed, and I want to see these students succeed in the area of agriculture in which they feel most comfortable,” she said.

SVACC boosts agriculture education

The ag education grant program that the Sauk Valley Area Chamber of Commerce administers is just one of the committee’s efforts to boost agriculture and vocational learning in the region.

“We raise funds for ag education. That can be for local FFA and agriculture education programs, the University of Illinois Extension, for 4H programs. The CEO program at the Whiteside Area Career Center receives funds from that as well,” Dallas Knack, executive director of the Sauk Valley Area Chamber of Commerce, said.

The Agribusiness Committee’s primary fundraiser is the Steak Fry in the Country event, which takes place every year in early August.

“Funds from that event also are used toward workforce development as well as our scholarship program. The funds specifically from that event go to our ag scholarships,” Knack said.

The SVACC Agribusiness Committee has 10 members.

“We have representatives from Extension, FFA, 4H, we have ag lenders, insurance, other agribusiness and from Sauk Valley Community College,” Knack said.

The SVACC and the Whiteside Area Career Center CEO program are putting the finishing touches on the chamber’s biggest event of the year, the annual meeting and dinner.

“It’s a chance for all of our members to get together and learn about what we did as an organization in 2025 and look at goals for 2026,” Knack said.

This year, the theme of the Jan. 29 event at the McCormick Center in Rock Falls is “Dinner Undercover.” That theme and the night’s activities are planned by students in the Whiteside Area Career Center’s CEO program.

“The CEO students choose the theme, they provide the entertainment, and they also act as hosts for the event,” Knack said.

This year, the event, which is also the SVACC’s annual awards night, will see some firsts.

“Our Sauk Valley Under 40 initiative will be presenting their first emerging leader award,” Knack said. The SVACC’s Chamber Champion and Ambassador of the Year awards will be presented at the dinner.

The event is only open to SVACC members. Jan. 20 is the deadline to purchase tickets for the event, and tickets can be purchased at the SVACC office in Sterling or by calling 815-625-2400.