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Agri Institute to celebrate 25th anniversary with benefit auction

By SARAH B. AUBREY
Indiana Correspondent

DANVILLE, Ind. — The 12th annual ALP Benefit auction will be held March 21, 2009 at Primo West in Plainfield, Ind.

Agri Institute, formerly known as the Indiana Agricultural Leadership Institute (IALI), is celebrating the 25th anniversary of leadership development that began with its first class of 30 agricultural trade professionals and producers in 1984. Proceeds from the auction directly benefit the Indiana Agri Institute and make up about 15-20 percent of the group’s annual funding. The theme for this year’s auction is “Pride.” The program was almost entirely funded by the Lilly Endowment for the first few years. Its last grant was in 2000 and since that time the entire funding stream comes from corporate and individual contributions,” said Beth Archer, executive director of the program.

Interested people and organizations can donate cash or auction items to the program. A wide array of items are accepted including restaurant gift certificates, travel/overnight packages, memorabilia, unique handcrafted items, unique services, and much more. These donations will be auctioned in live and silent auctions during the evening’s activities. The event is open to the public for the price of a $65 per-person ticket. Donations directly allow current class members a cost of tuition offset for the program.

“Basically, contributions amount to a $15,000 investment in each class member,” Archer said, noting that all of the program’s cost, except for $3,000 required of each class member, is paid for by the Institute.

Agri Institute is now in its thirteenth class representing a cross section of modern agriculture including farmers, members of ag trade groups, professionals in the crop production sector as well as individuals representing the food industry. Each class experience consists of twelve seminars held at various locations in Indiana. Further, the group recently spent a week of study in Washington, D.C., one of the highlights of the program that Archer said is extremely important for developing leaders.

“The trip to D.C. is so relevant because of the opportunity to influence leaders and see federal policy. It will never be less important to be actively engaged in and understand the role of policy in agriculture,” Archer explained.

The capstone of the program includes a two-week foreign travel study experience which will take place in 2010. Participants in the program gain leadership skills and a broader understanding of public policy issues affecting agriculture. Over 300 individuals have participated in this program since its beginning. Archer said that once the class experience is past, she encourages recent ‘graduates’ not to feel like alumni, but rather as part of a broader network of Indiana agricultural professionals who are all working toward the advancement of agriculture in their respective disciplines.

“The term network indicates someone who is actively, not passively engaged,” Archer said. “This engagement has always been critically important.”

The Institute is a nonprofit 501 (c) (3) organization; all contributions are tax-deductible as allowed by state and federal tax laws.  Contact Agri Institute at 317-745-0947 or e-mail beth@iali.org to donate and/or register to attend the annual Benefit Auction. Recently, the Institute added pages on Facebook and Twitter.

3/11/2009