Parkland College Welcomes AGCO's Agriculture Service Technician Associate Degree Program

AGCO Corporation, a global leader in the design, manufacturing, and distribution of agricultural machinery and precision agriculture technology, announced on Tuesday a significant expansion of its technician training programme in collaboration with Parkland College in Champaign, Illinois, USA.

The college will build a new cutting-edge training centre on its campus, thanks to a $5 million donation from AGCO Corporation. The facility will house a new AGCO Agriculture Service Technician Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degree programme, which will teach students about AGCO-branded equipment and cutting-edge precision ag technologies from Fendt and Massey Ferguson, as well as general agricultural concepts.

The programme will accept students sponsored by AGCO dealerships, with classes beginning this fall in existing Parkland College space. The new 25,000-square-foot building that will permanently house the programme will break ground in the summer of 2023.

Due to AGCO's significant growth in North America, there is a greater demand for technicians to service equipment from its popular brands.

The two-year programme will use a work-based learning model to rotate students between classwork and fieldwork, and successful participants will receive fully accredited associate degrees. Students will also receive AGCO certification upon completion of the AGCO Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 curricula. This certification covers AGCO equipment operation, basic troubleshooting, and the application of technical service information.

Students will also gain knowledge and experience with AGCO-based information systems, such as service, warranty, and parts information.

Seth Crawford, AGCO SVP and GM, Precision Ag and Digital stated that “the AGCO Agricultural Service Technician A.A.S. degree programme at Parkland is an exciting commitment that will help train the technicians of tomorrow that our dealers and farmers need to keep feeding the globe. Parkland College is the ideal place to train AGCO's future technicians because of its historic reputation for excellence in agriculture education and diesel technology."

Dr. Pamela Lau, President of Parkland College, said, "Parkland is thrilled to deepen its collaboration with AGCO to address the rising need for qualified technicians to support agricultural equipment dealers and farmers.” He continued further, "By utilizing this AGCO-specific programme and facilities, we look forward to enhancing the expertise of our academics and building on the success of our Midwest Center for Precision Agriculture. We applaud AGCO leadership for their strategic direction and are excited to welcome this fall's class of new technicians to campus.”

AGCO Press Release 

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