Twice the space

John Deere program, facility expanding at Arkansas State University-Beebe

Arkansas State University-Beebe students, from left, Edward Cook, James Ritter, Ray Alexander and Clay Boyett service the air-conditioner on a 6 Series John Deere tractor.
Arkansas State University-Beebe students, from left, Edward Cook, James Ritter, Ray Alexander and Clay Boyett service the air-conditioner on a 6 Series John Deere tractor.

It is not hard to spot the John Deere program at Arkansas State University-Beebe. The iconic green-and-yellow tractors parked next to the brick building are a dead giveaway, but those tractors will be hidden — and protected from bad weather — when the program’s new expansion is completed toward the end of the semester.

The John Deere Agriculture Equipment Technology program at ASU-Beebe is adding two buildings next to the John Deere Ag Tech building at the north end of campus. Construction is underway, and it includes a 5,270-square-foot main shop and a 3,920-square-foot storage building, which will bring the total facility square footage for the program to 21,382.

Mid-April is the estimated completion date for the project.

While the new storage space will be helpful, officials said, the greatest benefit of expansion is the ability to give more students hands-on experience.

“Our student numbers have increased so much right now, especially for lab space,” said Roger Long, department head of the John Deere Agriculture Equipment Technology program. “This will pretty much double our lab area. It will be nice.”

The John Deere Agriculture Equipment Technology program at ASU-Beebe is one of 20 such programs in North America. The 63 students in the program are unique in that they are already sponsored by John Deere dealers. Dealers in several states around Arkansas send students to Beebe for this program, often paying at least part of their tuition.

In the program, students learn the full range of technological advances across John Deere’s Agricultural Equipment and Turn Equipment product lines. The students earn an associate degree in applied science, and they are prepared to return to their homes with their degrees and knowledge to work in the dealerships that sent them. An estimated starting salary for technicians is $22,081 to $37,916, which is based on information from the Arkansas Occupational Employment and Wage Survey and wages reported by program graduates in the John Deere Ag Tech industry.

“Like the automotive industry, there are more electronics and computer-controlled components now,” Long said. “It’s a lot more technical, so we need trained technicians. You can’t just hire someone off the street anymore and expect them to go to work and be productive. You need this training.”

Students in the program said they are excited about the expansion, even if they will be graduating soon after it is complete. Sophomore Hunter Nash of Chillicothe, Missouri, said more space will allow more students to participate in the program without sacrificing their quality of education.

“We need it,” Nash said. “We’re at capacity now in the back of the shop that we have. I know next year, without this expansion, they wouldn’t have enough room.”

Nash said the hands-on labs are best done in groups of three students or fewer, and if the groups grew too much, it would be harder to get that experience in the classroom.

Richard Conrad from Milan, Tennessee, is also a sophomore. He was hired after high school by Tennessee Tractor, and he said his time at ASU-Beebe has given him a good foundation for when he returns home at the end of this semester.

“This has been a great program,” he said. “I know that we have all learned so much. Having room for more stuff — bringing more engines and tractors and whatnot — will help students be even more familiar with it all.”

Staff writer Angela Spencer can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or aspencer@arkansasonline.com.

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