Judging livestock doesn't sound very exciting but it has allowed students at a valley high school to reach the national spotlight.

Our Hometown Headline Wednesday comes from Newton, Illinois and the FFA chapter at Newton High School.

Since agriculture is the number one segment of Jasper County's economy a four-member livestock judging team from Newton has grabbed the spotlight by competing at a national competition in Denver. The FFA members finished third in the country and could compete in Scotland.

Team member Michael Finley says it's taken a lot of commitment from the students and Jasper County as well. "There was quite a few nights that we spend giving here at school, giving reasons at practice and put a lot of time and effort into it and I guess it paid off," he said.

Brock Tarr, an Ag teacher who is one of the sponsors of the team, says they couldn't have done it alone. "We couldn't have done it, any of this without our community support and our school support. they've been a big help, you know, with our national trip, they've supported us financially and also our community has done a lot of things," he said.

Newton High School has nearly 200 students in its vocational/agricultural program. This was the first trip to the nationals for a Newton team in several years.