The McLean County Farm Bureau donated $2 million to Heartland Community College to help build a new agriculture facility.
The donation will help fund a flexible learning lab space inside the larger Heartland agriculture facility. This donation is the first substantial local investment towards the new facility.
“It will also have what would be considered more conventional classrooms, but the flexible lab space is a large open area that a lot of events can occur in both public and for the school,” President of the McLean County Farm Bureau Mark Hines said.
Hines hopes this will create a source of employees for his industry.
“McLean County Farm Bureau sees it as a long term …. once in a lifetime opportunity to invest in building a future in agriculture in McLean County,” Hines said. “It should support our workforce and the people in our county that want to employ young people in the agricultural field.”
Community groups and K-12 students in summer camps and on field trips will also be able to use the new space.
Heartland plans on beginning construction sometime this spring with the hope of completion in 2023. The projected cost will be $20 million.
Heartland students have a variety of pathways and majors to guide them down the agricultural direction.
