Urbana, Ill. -- Illinois 4-H members headed to the showring for the 2025 State Livestock Judging Contest held at the University of Illinois campus Jun. 16. Instead of leading animals, these young members acted as judges, evaluating groupings of cattle, hogs, and sheep against a standard for breed characteristics, physical conformation and structure, and gain efficiency.
While the focus of the program is livestock, youth learn and develop many different skills throughout the program.
Shelby Carlson, University of Illinois Extension 4-H youth development educator, stated, “These 4-H members amaze me with their abilities to sort and evaluate livestock. Illinois 4-H is committed to creating youth who are beyond ready for college and the workforce, and competing in livestock judging is a great way to ensure that happens. Members who participate are building their skills in critical thinking, memory recall, teamwork, communication, and so much more. Whether these young people go on to work in an animal science profession or not, these are essential skills that will benefit them for their entire life.”
Team coaches help teach technical judging skills, and positive youth development is also a continued focus during the year-round preparation.
“Many of these young people will graduate high school with offers to judge at the collegiate level, ensuring that they continue to experience the same sense of belonging that we so carefully created during their 4-H career,” says Carlson.
Members of the State 4-H livestock team will advance to national competition at the North American International Livestock Expo in November. Members of that team will be selected in additional tryouts this summer.
The results of the 2025 Illinois 4-H Livestock Judging Contest include:
High Teams Overall Senior Division: Champaign County #1 in 1st place, Livingston/McLean/Woodford/Green County in 2nd place, and Henry-Stark County in 3rd place.
High Individuals Overall Senior Division:
Sam Nightingale in 1st place from Henry-Stark County, Callie Turner in 2nd place from Champaign County, Lane Beyers in 3rd place from Champaign County, Morgan Huls in 4th place from Champaign County, Taylor Crouch in 5th place from Macon County, Hannah Miller in 6th place from Livingston McLean Woodford Green County, Avery Knupp in 7th place from Henry-Stark County, Mabrey Schick in 8th place from Livingston McLean Woodford Green County, Ava Johnson in 9th place from Knox County, and Paisley Schick in 10th place from Livingston McLean Woodford Green County.
High Teams Overall Junior Division: Knox County Gold Team in 1st place, Shelby County in 2nd place, and Christian County Team 1 in 3rd place.
High Individuals Overall Junior Division:
Luke Thurman in 1st place from Knox County, Parker Wise in 2nd place from Shelby County, Logan Suits in 3rd place from Champaign County, Alexis Main in 4th place from Knox County, Levi Paulek in 5th place from Christian County, Kenzie Shepherd in 6th place from Knox County, Maylee Adams in 7th place from Marion County, Kwyn Goebel in 8th place from Crawford County, Amelia Wise in 9th place from Shelby County, and Landon Loschen in 10th place from Champaign County.
The Illinois 4-H Foundation and Illinois Farm Bureau supports livestock judging teams participating in national competition.
Source: Shelby Carlson, University of Illinois Extension 4-H youth development educator, srcarls2@illinois.edu
Writer: Sophia Schneider, Communications Intern, 4-H State Office, sschn1@illinois.edu
About Illinois 4-H:
Illinois 4-H is the flagship youth development program of University of Illinois Extension, administered through the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences. Through hands-on learning and life-changing experiences, Illinois 4-H prepares youth to be Beyond Ready — ready for college, career, military service, entrepreneurship, and more. Young people build confidence, leadership, and resilience as they explore interests from agriculture to computer science. Independent research and national surveys confirm the powerful outcomes of 4-H: participants are 40% more likely to pursue a college degree, twice as likely to obtain technical training, and two times more likely to serve in the military. With a legacy of cultivating leaders, Illinois 4-H continues to grow the next generation who are equipped to thrive in life and work today and beyond.
University of Illinois Extension develops educational programs, extends knowledge, and builds partnerships to support people, communities, and their environments as part of the state's land-grant institution. Extension serves as the leading public outreach effort for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences in all 102 Illinois counties through a network of 27 multi-county units and over 700 staff statewide. Extension’s mission is responsive to eight strategic priorities — community, economy, environment, food and agriculture, health, partnerships, technology and discovery, and workforce excellence — that are served through six program areas — 4-H youth development, agriculture and agribusiness, community and economic development, family and consumer science, integrated health disparities, and natural resources, environment, and energy.