Welcome back, FFA Family! What better way to start your week than with one of our favorite emails of the year - the release of the 2025-2026 Illinois FFA Leadership Conference series.
This year, we have 20 amazing past state officers returning to facilitate Middle School, Ground Zero, and BUILD Conferences at 10 different sites with a capacity for over 3,100 students. Over the past 10 years, our conference capacity has tripled, but most excitingly, the experience has become more engaging for every student who attends. Utilizing current and past section presidents to fill over 230 team leader roles, members who attend will engage with other students from across the state in both large and small group curricula designed specifically for their age range. For more information regarding each conference, please see below or visit Event Registration and Information on judgingcard.com.
General Conference Registration Information
Teacher Assistants Needed!
Conference Facilitators need your help! In an effort to allow conference facilitators and team leaders to dedicate their time and attention to providing the best experience possible for members, we need additional assistance managing student logistics during the conferences.
Selected Teacher Assistants will be requested to supervise student programming each day in return for a free advisor registration. Multiple advisors will be selected for larger conferences to share supervision responsibilities. Advisors will sit in the conference room for sessions to coordinate role calls with team leaders ensuring students are in their correct groups, elevate any behavior issues to conference staff, elevate any mental health issues to conference counselor, elevate any health issues to the conference nurse, assist in corresponding with other advisors as necessary to assist with student issues, assist with capturing photos during the event, ensure students are not leaving designated conference facilities, and routinely walk conference facilities to ensure students are in session.
Please submit this form at least 1 month prior to each respective conference at which you may be interested in serving as a teacher assistant so that confirmations can be made with those selected well in advance of the events for PD planning purposes.
Returning Student Policy
Overall conference capacity has been increased, and the curriculum is once again being updated to allow returning students for both Middle School and Ground Zero Conferences. Students attending for the first time will be given priority, but returning students can be signed up under the waitlist line on registrations (no charge initially). If a conference does not completely fill to capacity, students will be accepted, and the chapter’s invoice will be updated to reflect the additional students attending.
New Processes for Discounts
There are no separate line items for discounted/free registrations (Ground Zero Golden Tickets, Alumni scholarships, teacher assistants, etc.). All participants should initially register for full registration to best track the total conference capacity. To claim your relevant discount, please follow the instructions found on the General Conference Registration Information page regarding invoice updates (here).
Middle School Conferences
7th & 8th Grade Students
Fall flyer
Spring flyer
Date: November 10, 2025
Location: Lincoln Land Community College Trutter Center
Cost: $65/student
Registration Deadline: October 27, 2025
Date: November 14, 2025
Location: Richland Community College Agriculture Building
Cost: $75/student
Registration Deadline: October 31, 2025
Date: April 13, 2026
Location: Sauk Valley Community College Dillon Mall
Cost: $60/student
Registration Deadline: March 30, 2026
Date: April 15, 2026
Location: Lake Land College
Cost: $75/student
Registration Deadline: April 1, 2026
Date: April 17, 2026
Location: Lincoln Land Community College Trutter Center
Cost: $65/student
Registration Deadline: April 3, 2026
Ground Zero Conferences
9th and 10th Grade Students
Two Day Conference flyers
One Day Conference flyers
Dates: January 21-22, 2026
Location: Northfield Conference Center (Springfield, IL)
Cost: $95/student
Registration Deadline: January 7, 2026
Date: January 26, 2026
Location: Thelma Keller Convention Center (Effingham, IL)
Cost: $80/student
Registration Deadline: January 12, 2026
Dates: January 28-29, 2026
Location: Northfield Conference Center (Springfield, IL)
Cost: $95/student
Registration Deadline: January 14, 2026
Date: January 30-31, 2026
Location: Southern Illinois University Carbondale Student Center Ballrooms
Cost: $85/student
Registration Deadline: January 16, 2026
Date: February 2, 2026
Location: Joliet Junior College U Building Auditorium
Cost: $70/student
Registration Deadline: January 19, 2026
Date: February 3, 2026
Location: Joliet Junior College U Building Auditorium
Cost: $70/student
Registration Deadline: January 20, 2026
Date: February 5, 2026
Location: Western Illinois University Student Union Grand Ballroom
Cost: $70/student
Registration Deadline: January 22, 2026
BUILD Conference
11th & 12th Grade Students
*NOT designed for students to attend more than once
Conference flyer
Dates: November 24-25, 2025
Location: Illinois State University Bone Student Center
Cost: $95/student
Registration Deadline: November 10, 2025