From sweet corn farmer to agriscience professional, U of I student pursues his passion

Jack Scheffler’s interest in agriculture began in Illinois when he was 8 years old. His father worked for Monsanto producing field corn seed and asked him if he’d be interested in selling sweet corn for a friend. He started with an acre of sweet corn in Illinois and eventually expanded to 26 acres when his family moved to Pasco, Washington the summer before his freshman year of high school.

He began taking agricultural courses in high school and joined FFA where his interest in plant science continued to grow, leading him to the University of Idaho. He graduates in December 2024 with degrees in crop science and management, agricultural economics: agribusiness emphasis, a certificate in agricultural commodity risk management (ACRM) and a minor in accounting.

“I like plants. I’ve always been around row crop agriculture so it’s kind of ingrained in me,” he said. “There’s so much stuff you can do with plants. It’s such a wide variety and everything is fascinating. I’ll never get bored of plants.”

Once he discovered his interest in agriculture, Scheffler knew he wanted to pursue a plant science degree in college, but he wasn’t familiar with U of I. His first agricultural teacher was a U of I graduate and as he progressed through high school, a handful of his classmates enrolled at U of I.

He decided to take a tour of the Moscow campus and was impressed with all the agricultural facilities and opportunities. He applied to U of I and Oregon State University and once he received the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) scholarship, U of I was the obvious choice.

He originally enrolled as a dual major in crop science and management and agricultural education but quickly realized that becoming a high school teacher wasn’t the right fit. After a farm and agribusiness management course with Clinical Associate Professor Norm Ruhoff, Scheffler made the switch to agribusiness as his second major.

“I liked that it was practical knowledge and skills that I could actually see and use,” Scheffler said.

In the ACRM program, Scheffler was able to gain experience trading commodities using real money.

“I think it’s really good experience and I’ve really enjoyed the whole process because it’s an area that not a lot of people, especially in production agriculture, really look at and it can be such a good managerial tool for locking in bottom lines and making an actual profit,” he said.

Scheffler continued to run his 26-acre farm in Pasco while attending school full-time, driving home on weekends and enlisting help from his father. He also completed two internships during his summers with the J.R. Simplot Company. One in Moses Lake, Washington as a field operations intern working with potato researchers to determine dig schedules and estimate quality of spuds in the field, and one in Wray, Colorado working with a sales agronomist scouting corn and dry edible beans for pests.

Scheffler has decided to further explore his love for plant science as a field testing specialist for Corteva Agriscience in Garden City, Kansas starting in January. In this role he will oversee test plots for a variety of crops.

The diverse range of experiences and the opportunities provided by U of I have given him the confidence for the next phase of his life.

“I’ve really appreciated the wide variety of opportunities and how much everyone cares,” he said. “You’re not just a number, the professors actually care and if you’re interested in something you can really explore it.”