The Collegiate Crops Team from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville is celebrating top-tier finishes at the 91st annual National American Royal Kansas City Collegiate Crops Contest and the 96th annual National Chicago Collegiate Crops Contest this month. The team achieved second place overall at the CME Group and third place overall at the American Royal, contributing to a legacy of 51 years of achievement.
Team members Anna Koehler, a senior from Jefferson, Wisconsin; Sydney Rider, a senior from Sauk City, Wisconsin and Delaney Salm, a junior from Kendall, Wisconsin achieved individual placements in both contests. Marissa Folkers, a junior from Morrison, Illinois, served as the alternate in both events. Additional alternates in Chicago included Ava Armstrong, a junior from Watertown, Wisconsin; Payton Bunger, a first-year student from Whitewater, Wisconsin; Faith Hull, a first-year student from Fox Lake, Wisconsin and Norah Mungle, a junior from Woodstock, Illinois. The students received guidance from Dawn Lee, manager of Pioneer Greenhouse and Gardens and lecturer in the School of Agriculture. Jack Lichte, a senior from Baraboo, Wisconsin, served as assistant coach and Dr. Roger Higgs, professor emeritus, assisted the team.
The National Collegiate Crops Judging Contest provides students with an opportunity to assess their competencies in plant and seed identification, commercial grain grading and seed analysis. To prepare, students commit to two four-hour practice sessions each week, beginning in the first week of the semester. Although these practices require significant effort, they play a crucial role in equipping students with the skills necessary for evaluating crops in terms of quality, certification, viability and marketing. Ultimately, this rigorous preparation resulted in recognition for the team this fall.
The American Royal Kansas City Collegiate Crops Contest, conducted at the National Grain Center in Kansas City, Missouri, brought together teams from six universities. Six universities also took part in the National Chicago Collegiate Crops Contest, hosted by the CME Group in Chicago, Illinois.
The UW-Platteville team has participated in both competitions since 1970, securing third place twenty-three times, second place twenty-nine times and first place ten times, thereby attaining All-American status by ranking in the 95th percentile. Funding for team travel is sourced from the Doug and Jean Buhler Undergraduate Travel Impact Grant as well as from the generous contributions of alumni and friends to the UW-Platteville Foundation – Soils and Crops Teams Endowment Fund.
Students are now preparing for the annual North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture Judging Conference at Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois, in April.
For more information about the UW–Platteville Collegiate Crops Team, contact Dawn Lee at leedaw@uwplatt.edu.