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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to congratulate Dean W. Dittmar on the
4occasion of his retirement as coordinator of Facilitation
5Coordination in Agricultural Education (FCAE) at the
6University of Illinois; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Dean Dittmar was born to Lyle and Charlotte
8Dittmar in Jo Daviess County near Galena in 1963, and he was
9raised on the family dairy, beef, and grain farm; he attended
10Galena High School, where he completed agriculture courses and
11served as chapter president of FFA, earning his State FFA
12Degree; his Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) projects
13included managing 200 laying hens while selling the eggs to
14restaurants and neighbors as well as raising two beef cows and
15feeder calves; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Dean Dittmar initially majored in agricultural
17engineering in the College of Agriculture at the University of
18Illinois before deciding to study education instead to pursue
19a career as an agricultural education teacher; during his
20studies, he was actively involved in the Ag Education Club,
21serving as president, and was named an outstanding junior and
22senior member; he completed student teaching at Rochelle High
23School; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Dean Dittmar taught agriculture at Waterloo High
2School from 1985 to 1990, teaching an average of 110 students
3annually out of 550 students; he guided students as they
4participated in FFA, which resulted in students earning nine
5State FFA Degrees, one American FFA Degree, 26 section
6proficiency awards, 10 district proficiency awards, and two
7state proficiency awards, placing second as a state
8agribusiness management team, and their alumni chapter
9receiving a gold rating; he received the Illinois Association
10of Vocational Agriculture Teachers (IAVAT) Outstanding Young
11Member Award and was named the Waterloo High School Teacher of
12the Year in 1989; he assisted in organizing the 50th Waterloo
13FFA Anniversary Banquet in 1990, where over 600 individuals
14attended; he also served as the secretary/treasurer and
15chairperson of IAVAT's Section 22; and
 
16    WHEREAS, When the Illinois Leadership Council for
17Agricultural Education (ILCAE) and the Illinois Committee for
18Agricultural Education (ICAE) were formed in the 1980s, Dean
19Dittmar was selected to be the field advisor of District 5 of
20Facilitating Coordination in Agricultural Education (FCAE),
21which began on July 1, 1990; through the position, he provided
22assistance, improvements, and opportunities for success to a
23broader network, and his work with educators allowed for a
24greater impact on thousands of students; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, During his 33 years as a FCAE program advisor,
2Dean Dittmar assisted in the start of 33 new agricultural
3education programs and 24 FFA alumni chapters; he also
4presented agriscience curriculums, hands-on activities, and
5resources at more than 675 workshops to over 17,000
6participants; and
 
7    WHEREAS, For the past five years, Dean Dittmar has served
8as coordinator of FCAE, guiding the best use of funding for
9schools, teachers, and students with a budget of $1,024,500,
10including agriculture courses fulfilling graduation academic
11requirements, additional funding for programs and teacher
12contracts, Ag In The Classroom(AITC) county partnerships, and
13involvement with Minorities in Agriculture Natural Resources
14and Related Sciences (MANRRS); he has been instrumental in
15maintaining, improving, and expanding agricultural education
16programs in schools and increasing the quality talent pipeline
17for agribusinesses; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Dean Dittmar is also a member of the St. Louis
19AgriBusiness Club, where he served as president in 2006; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Dean Dittmar has been married to his wife, Eva,
21since 1997, and they have two daughters, Taylor and Jesse;
22therefore, be it
 

 

 

HR0328- 4 -LRB103 32676 LAW 62382 r

1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
2HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
3we congratulate Dean W. Dittmar on his retirement as
4coordinator of Facilitation Coordination in Agricultural
5Education (FCAE) at the University of Illinois, and we commend
6his dedication to students and educators in agriculture; and
7be it further
 
8    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
9presented to Dean Dittmar as an expression of our esteem and
10respect.