Sandburg Approves Lease for 20 Acres of Farmland on Campus

  Aaron Frey
  Thursday, February 4, 2021 4:09 PM
  Campus News

Galesburg, IL

The Carl Sandburg College Board of Trustees during its regular monthly meeting on Jan. 28 approved a lease agreement for 20 acres of tillable farmland on its Main Campus in Galesburg that it plans to use in cooperation to further its agriculture program.

The Board awarded a three-year lease to Ryan Ricketts of Monmouth for $7,000 per year, with an option to extend the lease for two more years. Ricketts was one of three bidders for the land on the southeast corner of Sandburg’s campus. It had been leased to Munson Hybrids Inc. since 2007. 

The College plans to work with Ricketts to advance its recently re-established agriculture program. Bidders were encouraged to use the ground as a test plot and asked to describe outreach and education opportunities they could make available to Sandburg students. The College offered an agriculture program for several years before bringing it back in 2019 as a two-semester certificate to meet the needs of students in its district. It also saw the return of transferable agriculture courses in 2019 for students seeking to transfer to a four-year institution.

The Board also approved the use of $64,400 in Operations and Maintenance funds to replace the HVAC units at the Center for Manufacturing Excellence and Building B on the Main Campus. The funds will cover 25 percent of the total estimated cost ($257,600) of the project. The remaining 75 percent ($193,200) will be paid for by the Illinois Capital Development Board. 

Additionally, the Board accepted a $15,000 grant from the Illinois Green Economy Network to support the replacement of an air handling unit in the College’s computer server room. 

In other business, the Board approved the following:

• Employment of Amy Burford as director of the TRIO Student Support Services program and Gale Scholars advisor, effective Feb. 1.
• Resignation/retirement of Jeffrey Lundeen as building maintenance staff, effective Jan. 31.
• Resignation/retirement of Gaila Crump as grant/accounting technician, effective Feb. 28.

 The Board’s next scheduled meeting is 7 p.m. Feb. 25. Due to the coronavirus, a location has yet to be announced.