Jaton Schaffer, University of Illinois

​My name is Jaton Shaffer, and I am currently a Junior at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. I am studying Agriculture and Consumer Economics with a focus in Markets and Management. Within my studies at the University, I have been focusing mainly on the commodity futures markets and learning the forces and factors that drive these markets. I may not fully know what my future career will look like. I have taken a serious interest in the grain industry. For my job shadow as a part of the GFAI scholarship program I was paired with Leland Dean at the Deland Farmers Cooperative in Deland, IL. My time spent with Leland this fall was very insightful. During my time I learned more about how elevators protect themselves from losses on the grain they purchase from farmers by hedging using the futures markets. How elevators manage to make money using basis and making timely sales the end user markets that are available to them. As well as how important record keeping is in managing the overall state of the elevator. It wasn’t just the management side of the business that Leland taught me about. Leland shared a lot of the important parts of keeping in touch with your customers, providing advice and wisdom where you feel comfortable, and just how important personal relationships are within the business. Many people stopped by or called the elevator during the day and Leland was always there to visit with them and help them make the best decisions for themselves. I cannot wait to return to Deland this spring and learn more about managing an elevator