By DEBORAH BEHRENDS
Illinois Correspondent

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Any driver in Illinois can support the Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom (IAITC) program, thanks to a specialty license plate that salutes farming.

Henry Haupt, deputy press secretary for the office of Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White, said the plate has been available for purchase since May 30, 2008.

“Although the secretary of state handles license plates, I think it’s an important distinction that the General Assembly has the authority to establish specialty plates,” he said.

Candace Wanzo, administrator of special plates, said about 1,170 ag plates are on the road right now.

“One Farm Bureau purchased something like 500 or 600 for all their people,” she said.

Wanzo is unsure who created the final design, but said it was based on a design suggested by the Farm Bureau. It shows an American flag flying atop a grain silo, a farmhouse next to a group of silos, cows standing in front of the silos and the words “Saluting Agriculture” at the bottom of the plate.

The ag plate is available for all cars, pickup trucks, vans and SUVs. Drivers buying the special plate are assessed a $25 fee on top of the cost of the plate. That fee goes directly into the IAITC fund.
Teachers of grades kindergarten through high school are encouraged to apply for grants of up to $250 to fund projects promoting agriculture literacy in the classroom.

IAITC is a consortium of agriculture-education groups that guides the IAITC activities to provide resources to hundreds of teachers, who then teach tens of thousands of Illinois school children the importance agriculture plays in their everyday lives.
The grant application can be found online at www.agintheclassroom.org and the deadline for grant applications is Oct. 1.

The license plates may be ordered as vanity, personalized or random plates. They may be found by calling the secretary of state’s office at 217-782-7758, online at www.cyberdriveillinois.com or by visiting any state driver’s license facility.