College Conference on Cooperatives
Minneapolis, MN | February 12-15, 2026
The College Conference on Cooperatives (CCOC) is the premier cooperative education event hosted by National Farmers Union. CCOC brings together students and young adults from across the country for cooperative education sessions and co-op tours around the Twin Cities.
CCOC provides students the opportunity to gain a basic understanding of cooperative business economics, become advocates for the cooperative business model, and learn about co-op career opportunities.
Interactive workshops allow participants to collaboratively work through problems that co-op boards often face, and a day of Twin Cities co-op tours offer real-world examples of the unique realities of co-ops.
Many of our student participants attend this conference with their teachers as part of a class curriculum. If you are an educator interested in attending for the first time, please reach out to Lisa Buckner for more information: lbuckner@nfudc.org.
If you would like to register for the Louis Doeing Keynote Luncheon only, please do so here.
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Agenda
Thursday, February 12, 2026
Group Arrivals
Dinner (Provided)
Friday, February 13, 2026
Breakfast (Provided)
Welcome + Icebreakers
Co-ops 101
What is a co-op, anyway? This session will cover the basics of cooperative business economics, different types of co-ops, the history of their development, and the 7 cooperative principles.
Powered by Producers: Cooperatives in Agriculture
Cooperatives have a long history in agriculture: learn how they benefit farmers and rural communities by hearing from a diverse panel of speakers.
Louis K. Doering Keynote Luncheon
Democracy at Work: The Worker Co-op Difference
What happens when employees own their workplace? This panel will explore worker-owned cooperatives, how they stand out from the competition, and how they stand up for their communities.
Decision-Making in Cooperatives: How Would You Act?
Co-op boards of directors are faced with a variety of pressing and difficult questions that don’t always have clear paths forward. Participants will interact in scenarios and will have to decide: how would YOU act?
Break
Evening at the Mall of America
Buses will provide optional transportation to the Mall of America for an evening out.
Saturday, February 14, 2026
Cooperative Tours Across the Twin Cities
Schedule to be announced
Group Tickets to CINCH World's Toughest Rodeo
Saddle up for a night of bull riding, saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, women’s barrel racing, and pre-show “down on the dirt” entertainment. Your rodeo ticket is included in your registration; participants will be responsible for purchasing their own food at the arena.
Sunday, February 15, 2026
Breakfast (Provided)
Debriefing the Co-op Tours
Co-op Feasibility Simulation
Groups will apply what they’ve learned and design their own cooperatives in a feasibility simulation that will challenge them to consider realities and limitations facing co-ops today.
Co-opportunities: What's Next?
Boxed Lunch (Provided)
Inside the Co-ops of Minneapolis and St. Paul
See some of the cooperatives National Farmers Union has featured at the College Conference on Cooperatives in this behind-the-scenes video.
