Note: At the end of this article is a clip from Gov. Raunder's speech where he talks about his Swedish dairy farming grandfather and announces the reinstatement of the Ag Ed Line item.

When Governor Bruce Rauner’s advance team met with FFA leadership last week prior to his speech at the 88th annual Illinois FFA Convention, they discussed potential talking points, including eliminating smaller budget line items and raising the general education budget.

Mindy Bunselmeyer, Illinois FFA executive director, told them that would cause a “great deal of concern from the audience” – some 5,000 passionate agricultural education students.

“I didn’t want anything to happen that would be disrespectful of him and of the office,” she recalls.

Within a couple hours, the Governor had arrived and was escorted to the convention floor by FFA members. Bunselmeyer sat in the front row with him and they chatted about the motivational speaker and the talent act. He asked questions about FFA members and programs.

Then he took the stage, talked about his background and made an announcement.

“I listened to you and I told our budget guys, ‘We are going to put more money in our school system and we’re going to restore the special line item for agriculture education here in Illinois,’” Rauner told the convention audience, to rousing cheers.

“I’m all in for your success and it’s a privilege to be here with you all,” he added. (Listen to audio below, as well.)

Earlier in the spring, Rauner zeroed out the $1.8 million Ag Education line item along with many other line items, and outcry from the agriculture community was immediate and organized.

Bunselmeyer is unsure what may have ultimately swayed his decision – or even whether it was actually made on the spot. The Ag Ed line item was part of all three budget bills introduced so far in the House and Senate during the spring session, and the Governor personally highlighted his support for the Ag Ed line item during his budget pressconferences late last month.

“We got some indication of his support at the end of May when he supported two bills with the ag education line item,” says Jess Smithers, director of Facilitating Coordination in Agriculture Education – the organization supported fully by the line item funding. “I was still pleased that he came out and said it, though.”

Related: 10 things to know about Illinois ag ed

Bunselmeyer credits the ag industry’s grassroots efforts, legislative efforts and their industry supporters’ efforts for sharing information with the governor’s office about how the line item affects agricultural education in Illinois.

“I get his idea about raising the general education fund but administrators are so strained right now,” she says. “When it comes down to it, administrators don’t have to fund their ag ed program. So that plan doesn’t protect ag education at all, and certainly not the way the line item does.”

Jesse Faber, Pontiac ag teacher and president of the Illinois Association of Vo-Ag Teachers, says now they’re just awaiting the Governor’s signature on another piece of legislation. That bill would identify agricultural education as a teacher shortage area, and would make younger teachers eligible for federal student loan forgiveness. It would also protect retirement pensions for retired teachers who might be needed back in the classroom, and – if money were appropriated – would offer extended contracts for ag teachers to be paid for work outside the classroom. The bill passed the House unanimously and passed the Senate with only one no vote.

Bunselmeyer says Rauner wanted to stay longer at their convention but with 497 State FFA degrees to hand out, he instead stayed and visited with FFA members in the lobby, meeting, greeting and taking photos together.