“They definitely drive me to be the better version of myself and to try new things. They were the ones who told me to apply for the student ambassador role. They saw the opportunity even before I did.”

As a student at Unity High School in Illinois with no family farm or ag background to speak of, what started as a push from friends quickly grew into a passion rooted in curiosity, hard work and community. Now entering her junior year, Grace is following in Avery’s footsteps as this year’s Student Ambassador for Nutrien Ag Solutions, working alongside Thaddeus Bates, Sr. Manager, Innovation Farms and Keith Gingerich, Champaign Innovation Farm Manager. In the second year of her agribusiness project, Grace is once again applying her entrepreneurial skills to planting, nurturing, growing and selling sweet corn. Her journey into agriculture is an inspiring reminder that the future of farming is for anyone willing to dig in.

Grace joined FFA during her freshman year of high school and now serves as a Unity FFA chapter officer and manages Unity’s two school plots, while balancing her involvement in basketball and softball.

“You don’t have to come from an ag background to be part of it. If anything, I hope I can be a role model for other students who are curious but unsure where to start.”

She credits Thaddeus and Keith for helping guide her first growing season, where she planted and sold her own sweet corn crop for the first time. Supported by the team at Nutrien Ag Solutions, Grace has taken ownership of the sweet corn plot, making it very much her own. She chooses where to sell, how to price it and even how to promote it (usually through Unity FFA’s social channels and word-of-mouth in her community).

“It was just a small patch behind the Innovation Farm building, but getting to watch it grow, harvest it and then actually sell it—that was a huge learning experience.”

She’s trying something new this year by planting in stages to spread out the harvest and hopefully extend her selling window. She’s excited to see the results of these changes in this year’s conditions.

And while Grace has her eye on a potential future in psychology, she knows the skills she’s learning in ag will stick with her for life. “Hard work, dedication and commitment,” she says. “You can’t just plant something and walk away.”

As Grace prepares for another sweet corn season, follow along on our Facebook and Instagram for her updates from the field.