Illinois National Guard soldier balances military service and agribusiness studies

Brad Carroll joined the Illinois Army National Guard after high school in 2007 and served in Afghanistan in 2011, according to agrinews-pubs.com.

While enrolled in college, Carroll trained one weekend a month and two weeks a year with his National Guard unit based in southern Illinois.

Deployed for about a year, Carroll worked as a heavy construction equipment operator and combat engineer, focusing on road repairs damaged by improvised explosive devices.

After returning from Afghanistan, Carroll completed his last semester at Illinois State University to earn his degree in agribusiness and accounting.

His military role involved construction tasks such as building forward operating bases and repairing roads using equipment like backhoes and concrete mixers.