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More than 30 students from
Hartsburg-Emden High School and Lincoln Community High School
attended the “Get to know CEO” presentation at Central Illinois Ag
in Atlanta on Tuesday, November 3rd.
The purpose of the event was to give students an outline of the CEO
program in Logan County and encourage participation in the 2027-28
school year.
Class facilitator Lisa Kuhlman was
joined by LLCEO board president Michelle Bauer, as well as Charlotte
Judd, Colby Merriman, Cooper Freitag, Dylan Gordon, Eli Delay,
Elijah Blackburn, Owen Berlin, and Reece Entwistle, all members of
the LLCEO Class of 2027.
The morning began with Kuhlman introducing herself, Michael Schmidt
and Abby Coers with CIA, Bauer, Hartem Business teacher and LLCEO
board member John Robinson and asking the Class of 2027 students to
introduce themselves. Some of the students told their grade and the
high school they attend. This year there are students from Greenview
High School, Lincoln, and Olympia high schools.
Three minutes into the event, students were told to look for the
letters C, E, or O on their nametags. This would designate what
group they belonged to. The first two groups (C & E) were taken out
of the room for business tours of CIA led by Schmidt and Coers. The
third group stayed in the training room to hear an overview of the
program presented by Kuhlman with assistance from Bauer.
Once the two groups were dismissed, Kuhlman went on to talk about
the CEO program with the remaining group. She began by asking how
many had already heard of the Land of Lincoln Center for
Entrepreneurial Ownership. Only one student raised a hand. Kuhlman
asked who they knew, and it turned out to be the two current
students who were in the room, Charolotte Judd and Colby Merriman.
Kuhlman went on to explain that the CEO program was very informal,
students addressed her by her first name. She said that CEO is for
everyone who is hard working and motivated regardless of their
future career aspirations. A question was posed as to what future
aspirations were in the group, one student said farming was his
future. Bauer stepped in and said that farming is one of the most
entrepreneurial professions there is because as farmer, the
decision-making process, marketing, and leadership play key roles in
success.
Kuhlman went through a couple of slides on the large screen in the
room, outlining the mission, vision and culture of the program. She
said that students would build a business from the ground up
starting with the idea and working through the details until it
became reality.
She moved on to explain a bit of
the history, noting that the program began in 2005 in Effingham
Illinois by a man named Craig Lindvahl. Kuhlman said that Lindvahl
had a specific goal in mind, to show students that there were
opportunities at home for good careers.
She asked how many students thought
that they would need to leave Logan County to practice their chosen
profession. Some raised their hands in the first group, but in the
second group none did. She commented on this and added that the goal
of the LLCEO was to show young people that there were opportunities
at home, that careers could be successfully built in smaller
communities such as are in Logan County.
In the history of CEO. She noted that the first graduating class had
been the class of 2015 and that this would be the 12th graduating
class for the LLCEO. She explained that the qualified participating
schools included all those in the Lincolnland Technical Education
Center area, and that includes
Greenview, Hartem, Illini Central in Mason City, Lincoln Community
High School, Mt. Pulaski High School, and Olympia High School. She
said that there are dual credits available between LLCEO and LTEC,
and in the second semester of the school year there are also dual
credits available through Heartland Community College. In addition,
the LLCEO counts as one credit in Consumer Education in high school.
Kuhlman went on to explain the class structure, noting there are no
official classrooms for the program. Students attend classes at
various business locations.
She asked Colby Merriman to say what had been his favorite business
visit thus far in the school year. He said it had to be the visit to
Integrity Data. He noted that the meeting area was in the basement
of the building, very casual and comfortable and had a ping pong
table.
In the second group of the day the
students present were Reece Entwistle and Cooper Frietag. The spoke
first about the visit to Spirited Republic but also spoke about
Integrity Data, and Lincoln Memorial Hospital, where students
sometimes went early to enjoy a big, inexpensive breakfast before
classes began.
Bauer said that perhaps it sounded
unusual for leadership to take a group of high school students to an
establishment involving alcohol, but there was an incredible story
of entrepreneurship tied to Spirited Republic as the business began
in a garage, worked into a brick and mortar and has continued to
grow and expand even to this day.
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Kuhlman went on to speak about
the business experience students get, first through building a
group business then the individual businesses that would take up
most of their time in the second semester of the school year.
This year, the group business is just getting off the ground and
ready to go out to the public. The group decided on selling
“Candy Crates.” Frietag explained the idea had come from
“Snackleboxes” which are plastic tackle boxes with each
compartment holding a different kind of snack food. He said they
worked through the concept, identified some issues with offering
to the public, so they did a pivot and came up with the candy
crates which are similar, yet different, concepts.
The students will be calling on area businesses to purchase
crates to give out as gifts to employees at holiday time, or
whatever purpose they might wish.
Kuhlman also explained that the program has one small textbook
that is really about life lessons. She asked the current
students to explain the three most important aspects of being a
good leader and businessperson. In all the groups, the students
knew instantly that the answer is “Do what you say you will, do
it when you say you will, and communicate while you are doing
it.”
Kuhlman also noted that every student is taught to be proactive
when entering a room, eye contact, self-introduction, and
handshakes make a lasting impression.
Other points made included that there are no formal tests or
quizzes in the program. Final grades are based on the work done
for the group businesses in the first semester and the
individual businesses in the second.
In addition to learning business
skills, the program also stresses community involvement, Kuhlman
showed a slide illustrating activities students participated in
previously including volunteering at a community garden and
decorating a tree for the Lincoln Winter wonderland.
The groups switched out every 20
minutes. When one group left the training room, another entered, and
the discussion would repeat. Outside the training room, Abby Coers
and Michael Schmidt were giving tours around the building. Coers met
group three outside the training room doors and spoke to them about
her personal career choices. She said the career she had in mind at
college ended up not being ideal. She came to CIA where she was able
to use her training in a setting that was comfortable and familiar.
As the marketing specialist for the company, she spoke about the
activities she gets to do for her job, such as flying drones taking
video, building and scheduling social media posts effectively,
writing, and more.
She said that even figuring out the
right algorithms on social media is part of her job. She explained
that the company posts for hits and views. They have developed a
pattern of adding something new to social media every two hours all
day long. She added that some entries get big hits like for example
combines. She said she didn’t know why, but people hit on the images
and videos of the back end of a combine. So, on slow days, she will
add a combine into the mix just to bring up hits and views.
Coers spoke briefly about marketing then said she would take the
students downstairs to the parts department managed by Matt Voelker.
After that, they would be handed over to Schmidt who would give them
a guided tour through the service area. She said one area the
students would probably not go into is the sales-staff area simply
because CIA prides itself in knowing that the sales team is out in
the field interacting with current and potential customers.
The event was scheduled to wrap up at 10 a.m. so students could be
transported back to their respective schools for the balance of the
day.
Anyone who is interested in learning more about the Land of Lincoln
CEO can start by visiting the
website.
[Nila Smith]
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