Ellison takes them all: Ag student graduates with eight degrees, certificates

INA, Ill. – Rend Lake College has no shortage of degrees and certificates to choose from, and there’s something for everyone. But that story is different for one Southern Illinois student who decided he couldn’t just choose one – he needed them all.

Austin Ellison of Belleville graduated last week with eight Agriculture-related credentials, becoming the second Agriculture student to complete such a feat. Though many courses overlap between the credentials, Ellison still completed upwards of 135 credit hours, or more than 40 classes, at RLC.

Those credentials include five degrees: Agriculture Business, Agriculture Mechanics, Agriculture Production & Management, Diesel Technology, and Heavy Equipment Technology; and three occupational certificates: Agriculture Mechanics, Agriculture Production & Management, and Diesel Technology.

Agriculture graduate Austin Ellison of Belleville accepted his diplomas Saturday morning from RLC Board of Trustees Chair Randy Rubenacker.
(ReAnne Palmer/ RLC Public Information)

Ellison works part-time on his family’s farm as well as in the heavy equipment industry. His decision to attend RLC – a school farther away from home than for most – wasn’t one he made lightly.

“I knew I wanted to farm when I was real little. Honestly, I never planned on going to college. I was just going to stay home and work, but then I started working for a neighbor in heavy equipment, and they wanted to know what my plans were,” said Ellison. “I decided then that I wanted something more than just a high school diploma. I wanted to learn more about agriculture and the heavy equipment side. I wanted something new.”

For the past three years, Ellison has been chipping away at the many classes he needed to graduate, taking full-time class loads in addition to his two part-time jobs. He also secured spots on the Spring and Fall 2017 Vice Presidents’ lists for a high grade point average.

“We farm at home and I work in the heavy equipment industry. I’m in it every day. I knew I wanted to take some business classes to better myself and that they’d help with our farming operations. It was a good way to expand my knowledge at home, combined with the mechanical side, to help with work and maintenance. It just dawned on me that I wanted to get a little of everything, that I wanted to get them all,” he said.

Now after graduation, Ellison is returning home to farm and continue working in heavy equipment with plans to take over the family farm in the future when his dad decides to retire and step back. He said, though it took a while to complete, he would recommend the same path to others in similar positions.

“If someone is in a situation like me where they work at home on a farm, but also in the industry, I’d say go and get the best of both worlds. It’s the business side plus the mechanical side,” said Ellison.

Kathy Craig, Agriculture Associate Professor, said Ellison was a standout student in all of the programs. In 2017, he was named the Agriculture Production Outstanding Student of the Year at the end-of-the-year recognition banquet. This year, he earned a similar honor at the same banquet as the Agriculture Mechanics Outstanding Student of the Year.

“Austin was a great student. He rarely missed class and was very determined from the very beginning that he wanted to complete all five degrees,” said Craig.

To learn more about RLC’s Agriculture programs, visit www.rlc.edu/asat/12-academics/divisions/applied-science-technology.