Ag Student Credits Lake Land for Cultivating His Smooth Transfer to U of I

Transferring was the easiest process you could ever think of. I didn’t even have my university choice narrowed down while I was here, but my advisor made sure I got all the right classes I needed to give me a lot of different options for a smooth transfer.

For Tanner Mickey, the decision to study agriculture in college was easy. Having grown up on a family farm in Taylorville, he developed a passion for the industry at a very young age. Tanner’s decision to begin his college journey at Lake Land was also easy, which he credits to the reputation of its agriculture program.

As a student at Lake Land, Tanner earned academic honors for his agriculture studies and participated in the college’s Livestock Judging Team. His greatest takeaway from the experience however, was the strong sense of community made possible through smaller class sizes.

“I would describe Lake Land as a tightknit family,” Tanner said. “You know everybody here, and you get to have one-on-one relationships with your instructors.”

Since graduating from Lake Land in 2022, Tanner has continued to excel in the agriculture field. As a member of the FFA, he manages corn, soybeans, wheat and cattle as part of a supervised agriculture experience. These efforts garnered national recognition in 2023, when Tanner was named one of four finalists for the American Star Farmer Award.

Tanner also elected to continue his education at the University of Illinois to complete his bachelor’s degree in Agribusiness Markets and Management. He notes that some students assume the transfer process to be a daunting task, but he found his experience to be exactly opposite. He credits the role of Lake Land’s university agreements and the work of his former advisor, Ryan Wildman, for helping him seamlessly discover his next steps.

“Transferring was the easiest process you could ever think of,” Tanner said. “I didn’t even have my university choice narrowed down while I was here, but my advisor made sure I got all the right classes I needed to give me a lot of different options for a smooth transfer.”

After he graduates from the University of Illinois in May, Tanner is eager to return home and work with his family on the same farm where he was raised. One day, he hopes to take over the business full time and carry on the legacy his family built. Wherever life leads, however, he is thankful that Lake Land provided a first step toward his dream career.

“Some people give community college a bad rap, but I certainly think it made me more prepared for my time at the University of Illinois,” Tanner said. “It let me get my feet wet before taking the jump to a university, and I don’t think I would have enjoyed it as much if I hadn’t gone to Lake Land first.”

AGRICULTURE AREA OF STUDY

• Agriculture Transfer

• Agriculture Business & Supply

• Agriculture Production & Management

• Crop Production

• Diesel & Ag Power Technology

• Horticulture Production & Landscape

• John Deere Tech

• Livestock Production

• Pre-Veterinary Medicine

• Agriculture Exploratory Area of Study

LEARN MORE

For more information or to get started in an Agriculture Area of Study visit LakeLandCollege.edu.