Hi fair managers and State Staff,
I just wanted to send a quick update on two things.
1: I just spoke with the Illinois Department of Ag and the Illinois Court of Claims. The new director of Fairs & Racing learned that the old pro-rata requests had been sitting on someone's desk for over a year and forced IDOA legal team to get them processed. He signed off on the payment review last week , so HOPEFULLY things will move faster and the funds will flow within the next couple of weeks. I'll keep following up with them weekly from now until I learn they get paid. One fair manager told me today their school received an envelope from the state- so be on the lookout for those.
2. The IAVAT board approved a contract for the development of new Vo-Ag Fair management software. Luke Adams, a former Section President that's now a data analyst for a large Ag company in Illinois, is finishing the development work within the next couple of weeks. We will begin testing soon with one or two Sections who have winter fairs, with the goal of offering use of the software by late Spring. We plan to allow those with late spring/early summer fairs to begin using it, but July 1 is our first offical contract use (so those with early July fairs will be able to have Ag teachers make entries in the system before school gets out). That's our GOAL- but remember, software rollouts sometimes encounter bugs that need to be worked out. My advice is to continue using the Google Sheets solution we have provided for any fairs happening in the next few months. We will get you an update as soon as we can.
We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to build a better long-term solution. If you need any help, feel free to contact Luke Allen, Jessica Chipman, or Kirsten Wyatt if you have questions.
-- Lucas Allen
Facilitating Coordination in Ag Education (FCAE)
Phone: 815-530-2065
Cell: 815-530-2065
Email: lallen@ilaged.org
Improving and Expanding Agricultural Education Pre-K through Adulthood