URBANA, Ill. – Students in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are empowered, innovative leaders focused on solving some of today’s biggest challenges.

Each spring, the College of ACES presents top awards to outstanding junior and senior level students. Last week, ACES shared the great news with the 2022 recipients of the Hugh P. Morrison Award, Robert M. Harrison Leadership Award, and Warren K. Wessels Award at a Senior Send Off celebration.

Hugh P. Morrison Scholarship Award

The winner of the 2022 Hugh P. Morrison Scholarship Award is Seth Mitchell, a senior from Olney, Illinois. Mitchell is double-majoring in animal sciences and agricultural and consumer economics, with concentrations in food animal production and management, and public policy and law.

The theme of Mitchell’s career goals is to support farmers and their operational success through legal mechanisms. After graduation, he will pursue a law degree concentrating on agricultural issues.

The Morrison Award is made possible by an endowed gift from Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. to the college in honor of Hugh Morrison, a former president of their organization. The earned interest funds a Hugh Morrison Scholarship each spring. Recipients must be a senior in an agricultural curriculum with a strong academic record, evidence of leadership, and a demonstrated commitment to agriculture.

Robert M. Harrison Leadership Award

The winner of the 2022 Robert M. Harrison Leadership Award is Lauren McMillan, a junior from Tiskilwa, Illinois. McMillan is majoring in agricultural leadership, education and communications, with a concentration in organizational and community leadership. She is also minoring in food and agribusiness management and media.

McMillan currently serves as the ACES Council president, and has also held leadership roles in organizations such as Collegiate Farm Bureau and Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow. She has also worked as a marketing intern on the Global Marketing Distributions Team for Caterpillar.

The Harrison Award goes to an outstanding junior in the College of ACES. This award is a memorial tribute to Robert Harrison following his death in 1986. It recognizes a student who demonstrates a commitment for service, achievement, and leadership in a diversity of ways.

Harrison was actively involved in diverse campus activities during his enrollment at the University of Illinois from 1929-1933. He was active in agricultural clubs, Sachem and MaWanda honoraries, and served as senior manager of the 1933 football team. Following his graduation in 1934, he embarked upon a professional career that included employment with the Livestock Bureau of Armour and Company, the War Food Administration, the Rural Electrification Program, and advertising sales with numerous agricultural magazines.

Warren K. Wessels Achievement Award

The winner of the 2022 Warren K. Wessels Achievement Award is Seth Mitchell, also the recipient of the Morrison Scholarship Award.

The Wessels Award goes to a graduating senior. Warren K. Wessels (1929-2018) was an assistant dean in the University of Illinois College of Agriculture for 36 years from 1958-1994. During that time he worked with thousands of students as recruitment coordinator, orientation class instructor, and placement director. His encouragement for excellence; demanding, yet fun-loving personality; and sense of commitment to each individual student was well known.

Selection of the Wessels Award recipient is based on scholarship, leadership record, participation in professional development activities, and contribution to the overall quality of life within the College of ACES.

Finalists for the award included ACES graduating seniors: Mitchell Clodfelter, Sydney Trimble, Jacopo John DeMarinis, and Jacob Dalen.

ACES will celebrate nearly 740 undergraduate and graduate students this spring at ceremonies this weekend on the UIUC campus.

To learn more about ACES majors and programs, visit us online.