Registration

2026 Incubation & Embryology Program | Will & Grundy Counties

Teachers, are you looking for a hands on science program for your classroom? Families, are you looking for something unique to do at home that is exciting and a great learning opportunity? Illinois Extension is once again offering the University of Illinois Incubation & Embryology Classroom program.

The Program:

This course is designed to provide elementary and high school teachers, youth facilitators, and educators with knowledge on the chicken's egg, its importance to man, and its role in reproduction of the species. Course content will be oriented to train teachers to conduct classroom incubation and embryonic development projects.

Virtual Training for 2026:

The 2026 training will be offered in a LIVE Virtual Format. All teachers NEW to the program are required to take the training; returning teachers are always welcome to attend as a refresher and to share their experience with others (we'd love to have you!). Classroom assistants are also welcome to attend. Training is provided by Retired University of Illinois Extension Poultry Specialist, Dr. Ken Koelkebeck. ISBE Professional Development Hours (PDH) are available for this virtual LIVE training. Sessions will be recorded, but new teachers MUST attend LIVE and only the LIVE versions of these trainings qualify for PDH credit.

Beginner Trainings

Wednesday, February 11 – 4:30–6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, March 3 – 4:30–6:30 p.m.

Advanced Trainings

Thursday, February 12 – 4:30–6:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 5 – 4:30–6:00 p.m.

Egg Pick-Up:

Please see below for egg pick-up dates in your County. Chicken egg incubation is 21 days. Pick-up location is listed below.

GRUNDY: April 15 from 8:00-4:30 @ Grundy County Extension Office (4004 N Divison St. Morris, IL 60450)
WILL: April 15 OR April 22 from 8:00-4:30 @ Will County Extension Office (100 Manhattan Rd. Joliet, IL 60433)

Hatched Chicks:

Teachers are required to make arrangements and deliver their chicks to a long-term care provider after the program has ended. Chicks may also be placed with family members who own a farm or through other appropriate arrangements made by the teacher, subject to the approval of the University of Illinois Extension staff. It is strongly advised that arrangements with a long-term care provider are made prior to the hatch. Chicks may never be taken home by students unless the family is already experienced with poultry, has agreed to all logistics in advance, and is properly set up for poultry care. If chicks are not delivered to an approved long-term care provider, the teacher may be subject to a $50 fee and/or becoming ineligible for future embryology program participation.

Demographic Information: University of Illinois Extension receives federal funding for its educational programming and must report demographic information for individuals served. Please complete the survey on student demographics ASAP after it has been emailed to you. If your embryology program is shared by classrooms, or in some cases, put in a common area, please count all of those students. This form is required and your registration will be canceled if forms are not submitted by the deadline.

Registration Fee:

Due to a substantial increase in cost from our fertilized egg supplier, the price this year is higher than is typical.

New Teachers (& teachers attending training) - TWO DOZEN OPTION: $38 ($30 two dozen egg fee + $8 mandatory class cost)
New Teachers (& teachers attending training) - ONE DOZEN OPTION: $23 ($15 one dozen egg fee + $8 mandatory class cost)
Returning Teachers (with no training needed): $ 15 per dozen

For teachers wanting more than the two dozen fertilized eggs, each additional dozen is provided at $15 each.

Requests for fee waivers: Extension is committed to ensuring that educational opportunities exist for all. A limited number of fee waivers may be available for this program. If you truly cannot afford the costs of this program, please get in touch with the coordinator to discuss.

Before the date of egg pickup, you must also have access to the following items:

You will need to have access to a working incubator. Please test your incubator before using. If you need purchasing suggestions, contact the coordinator. A chick waterer and chick feeder - these can also be purchased at farm supply stores relatively inexpensively.

Refunds NOTE:

NO refunds will be given for this program as pre-ordering fertilized eggs has to be done in advance. If your situation changes substantially after you've submitted your registration, this program can be presented virtually! Other, remote options include live streaming the hatch for students, posting videos to social media or virtual classroom, posting pictures, etc. If you need ideas, contact the coordinator at the info below.

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Requests for reasonable accommodations:

If you require reasonable accommodations to participate in this program (such as translated materials, closed-captioning, high black/white contrast material, etc.) please contact Brittney Muschetto-DePatis (blm3@illinois.edu) or Emilia Elabed (eelabed@illinois.edu) - Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time for meeting your access needs.

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Contact Information

First Name

Last Name

Street Address

Street Address 2

City

State

ZIP

Daytime Phone

Evening Phone

E-mail Address

Name of school/organization: If you are an individual family, please type "Family"

Please describe your school/organization

What grades/ages will be working with this program?

Please choose your County/Date WILL is picked up in Joliet and GRUNDY is picked up in Morris

How many dozen eggs would you like? Recommended minimum of two - one dozen can be chosen, but note that not all eggs will hatch and with only one dozen, it becomes more likely that none or very few chicks might hatch.

Dozen ($15.00)

Which date would you like to drop-off chicks? Please note that you will probably want to do the earlier date if you do the first date for pick-up.

May 8

May 15

Other - I have made prior arrangements with Extension staff

How many years have you been conducting the University of Illinois Incubation & Embryology Program in your classroom?

This is my first year.

One to two years not including this year

Three to four years not including this year

Five years or more not including this year

Please choose your training option All NEW teachers are required to attend the training. Returning teachers are welcome to attend for a refresher and to provide input on their experience. It is the requirement that returning teachers take a refresher course every 5-years.

Beginner Training - Feb 11, 4:30-6:30pm / 2.0 PDH ($8.00)

Beginner Training - March 3, 4:30-6:30pm / 2.0 PD ($8.00)

Advanced Training - February 12, 4:30-6:30 pm / 1.5 PD Hours ($8.00)

Advanced Training - March 5, 4:30-6:30 pm / 1.5 PD Hours ($8.00)

In-Person Training at the Kankakee Office - Wednesday, March 18, 4:00-6:00pm / 2.0 PDH ($8.00)

I'd like to view recordings of the training (NOT ISBE PDH OR New Teacher eligible!) ($8.00)

I am a returning teacher and am not attending training

IF ATTENDING TRAINING: If you would like to receive ISBE Professional Development Hours (PDH), please provide your IEIN number If you do not have one, do not want to receive PDH, OR not attending the training, please enter N/A

Please list the names AND emails of any additional TA's/staff/volunteers that will be attending training with you. There is no additional fee for these staff to attend. Email addresses are required to send training Zoom information. IEIN number is required if wanting PDH

Please confirm that you've read and understood the refund policy REFUND POLICY: NO refunds will be given for this program as pre-ordering fertilized eggs has to be done in advance. If your situation changes substantially after you've submitted your registration, this program can be presented virtually! Other, remote options include livestreaming the hatch for students, posting videos to social media or virtual classroom, posting pictures, etc. If you need ideas, contact the coordinator at the info above.

I confirm I have read the policy and understand there are no refunds available for this program

Please confirm your understanding to the Demographic reporting requirement University of Illinois Extension receives federal funding for their educational programming and must report certain demographic information for individuals served.

The survey for demographic information will be emailed to all participants. If your embryology program is shared by classrooms, or in some cases, put in a common area, please count all of those students.

I understand that I will receive and complete an Embryology Program Demographic Form with accurate information about the youth participants, and return the form before egg pick-up. I will respond with raw numbers (not percentages) that include all the youth in all classrooms benefiting from this program.

Please confirm that you've read and understood the chick return requirements. I acknowledge that I am responsible for making appropriate long-term care arrangements for all hatched chicks, that has been approved by the University of Illinois Extension. Students may not take chicks home unless all requirements outlined above are met. I understand that failure to deliver chicks to an approved provider may result in a $50 fee and/or becoming ineligible for future embryology program participation.

I confirm that I have read and understand the Chick Return and Long-Term Care Policy.

Refund Policy

NO refunds will be given for this program as pre-ordering fertilized eggs has to be done in advance. If your situation changes substantially after you've submitted your registration, this program can be presented virtually! Other, remote options include livestreaming the hatch for students, posting videos to social media or virtual classroom, posting pictures, etc. If you need ideas, contact the coordinator at the info below.

Total Registration Cost $