Alabama

E’licia L. Chaverest has been with the Small Farms Research Center, at Alabama A&M University for almost thirteen years. She is presently a Assistant Director and works closely with small and limited resource producers, landowners, agribusinesses, entrepreneurs and extension agents. Since her employment she has focused on biotechnology (consumers, producers, and students’ perceptions’), agricultural risk management, rural entrepreneurship, cooperative development, rural development and entrepreneurship, women in agriculture, business development, marketing strategies, and youth entrepreneurship and leadership development.   Ms. Chaverest has also held training session and conferences on women in agriculture and other key issues. She has developed manuals and modules, fact sheets on various issues including food safety, risk and farm management, business development and entrepreneurial training, and women in agriculture program.  Through the years, Ms. Chaverest has constantly focused on building partnerships to propel the SFRC program and services, including empowering underserved communities through economic development.

Arkansas

Erin Parker serves as the Assistant Director of the Indigenous Food & Agriculture Initiative at the University of Arkansas School of Law, where she supports the Initiative through program development, research and writing, and analysis of regulatory issues affecting Tribal governments, businesses, and producers. The bulk of her professional work centers on the tension between the tectonic plates of food & agricultural law and federal Indian law, and as part of this work, she is part of a team of Initiative attorneys developing a Tribal Model Food & Agriculture Code. She also trains young Native beginning farmers & ranchers on food systems and risk management issues. Erin hopes to increase her effectiveness as an educator for beginning farmers and ranchers through this workshop, and is happy to talk to anyone, endlessly, about pretty much anything to do with ag & food law.

California

Christof Bernau has been an instructor for the Apprenticeship Program at the UCSC CASFS since 1999 and serves on the UCSC Social Justice Advocacy Committee, tasked with program evaluation and looking for ways to build a safer, supportive learning environment where everyone can thrive. As part of his commitment to all learners, Christof earned a MA in Equity and Social Justice in Adult Education from SFSU in 2012. CASFS serves a diverse audience, 60% of which are women, who go on to work across the food system: as producers, educators and policy advocates.  Christof’s goal is to refine my practice and capacity as an instructor and role model, and to inform program wide curriculum development to build equity, access and voice for our students. He brings seventeen years of experiential education, curriculum development and a commitment to accessible learning environments and I am willing to share this at the conference and beyond.

Kirsten Comerchero is the Field Production Manager at the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems at the UC Santa Cruz farm. “I am also a mother, striving to find personal and professional balance,” she says. “I manage production and sales for 14-acres of row crops and orchards and am an instructor for various programs including our 6-month Apprenticeship in Ecological Horticulture, our Advanced Apprenticeship Program and our undergraduate internship program. I came to CASFS after 6 years in production farming, as a co-owner and manager of a small diversified vegetable operation.  Currently, as the only female site manager, I feel a tremendous desire and responsibility to meet our female participants, who make up more than 50% of our enrollment each year, with effective tools and strategies to maximize their potential for success in the field. Through this training I hope to develop a deeper, more articulated vision of how to do that.”

Kellee Matsushita is an instructor at the UC Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. “We provide hands-on agriculture training to a diverse audience. My background is in community education, prison justice, and youth work. I am currently teaching a multidisciplinary workshop that aspires to bring together collective wisdom through multiple facilitation methods to build a movement towards seed sovereignty. I can share experience as a community organizer working with diverse populations, and knowledge of what underrepresented communities want to see and hear in education. I want to leave with a deepened understanding of teaching styles that effectively engages all kinds of learners, as well as a better understanding of appropriate and empowering language and communication to use as a manager.”

Connecticut

Dr. Sandy Bell is an Associate Professor and Program Coordinator of the Adult Learning Program at the University of Connecticut Neag School of Education. She is passionate about understanding the role of non-conscious cognitive processes in learning; how individuals perceive, interpret, and apply feedback; and optimal ways to facilitate professional development. She is recognized as an innovator in the application of adult learning principles to support education of farmers, ranchers, landowners, and service providers in sustainable agriculture, natural resources conservation, and environmental protection settings. When she is not working with students or conducting research, you can find Sandy pulling weeds in her vegetable garden, riding her mountain bike, or learning new tricks from her dogs Moxie, Maple, and Pai.

Idaho

Katie Painter is the project coordinator for Global Gardens Refugee Agriculture Program at the Idaho Office for Refugees.  She manages two incubator farms and a network of community gardens in Boise, and connects refugees with the land, resources, and training they need to garden or to begin farm businesses.  She also works with a Native American group on the Duck Valley reservation to grow food and begin a farmers’ market on the reservation. Katie is a part of ISED’s curriculum development team for refugee farmers, and enjoys meeting with colleagues from around the country to develop curriculum and best practices for our target audience. Katie has a B.S. in Biology and Spanish from St. Mary’s College of Maryland and an M.S. in Ecology and Tropical Conservation and Development from the University of Florida. She currently homesteads in Garden City, Idaho with her partner and two young children.

Massachussets

Julia Shanks works with food and agricultural entrepreneurs to help them achieve financial and operational sustainability, providing technical assistance and business coaching that enables them to launch, stabilize and grow their ventures. Julia draws on a variety of tools and methodologies to support her clients’ growth and success: from writing businesses plans and creating financial feasibility models to recipe development. She leads workshops and webinars on farm financials.  Julia is the author of two books. “The Farmer’s Office: Tools, Tips and Template for Successfully Managing a Growing Farm Business”  coaches farmers to think like entrepreneurs to be financially sustainable. “The Farmers Market Cookbook: The Ultimate Guide to Enjoying Fresh, Local, Seasonal Produce,” co-authored with Brett Grohsgal and cited as a reference in Michelle Obama’s American Grown, highlights the joys of local produce.

Minnesota

Chelsea Breza-Berndt provides credit underwriting and credit counseling to a variety of farming operations as well as home mortgage clients in her position with AgStar Financial Services. “I’ve been with AgStar for just over five years and prior to that, was a student in Agricultural Education at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities,” Chelsea says. “I grew up on a small farm in southeastern Minnesota where we had hogs, beef cattle, and poultry.  Through my work at AgStar and background in agricultural education, I have become involved in Annie’s Project as a trained facilitator and provide programming throughout our service area to farm women to help them become better partners on the farm.  In my free time, I enjoy Golden Gopher football, traveling, and attending country music concerts.

Amy Durand manages an educational program at AgStar Financial Services (Farm Credit) and serves as the state coordinator for Annie’s Project in Minnesota.  “My work involves designing and implementing educational experiences for farmers and ranchers in the form webinars, workshops, events, blogs & articles designed to provide farmers content, training and perspectives to help them grow and succeed. With my programing I work with about 1000 women a year. I’m hoping to further my understanding of how to appropriately match content with the needs of my female and other young, beginning and minority farmers.   I’ll bring to the group a lenders perspective on risk management, and women in agriculture. Also, my experience as a high school ag teacher working with minority students (Philadelphia), experience working with clients over long distances (New Mexico), and my work in Minnesota with corn & soybean farmers.”

Nett Hart is the the owner operator of a small organic farm, doing an open- polinated selection CSA for 19 years. “I have hosted workshops and events on my farm for 36 years. I founded and have administered Lesbian Natural Resources 25 years ago to advocate for, raise funds to support, and provide access to programs for women on land and women only communities that are least served by available programs. We have had a primary focus on diversifying the community of such women through apprenticeships, hands on coaching, networking, and resources.  I would hope to brainstorm with and learn from other participants who are born to advocate for those who have less access to programs and services.”

Missouri

As the Farm Safety, Mechanization, and Ergonomics team leader, Karen Funkenbusch is director of the “Missouri AgrAbility Project” and has held this position since 2010. She provides leadership on key outreach and research elements for several federally funded health and safety projects since 1994. Her grant funded project areas include: Hispanic / Latino farmworkers; underserved, socially disadvantaged minority farmers/ranchers; veteran farmers/ranchers; women farmers; and people farming with arthritis. Karen also leads project efforts related to student agricultural safety, health, disability, and ergonomic education programs, and she is the liaison with the MU Medical School and School of Health Related Professions, and statewide Veteran’s Group activities. Funkenbusch also teaches agricultural safety and health courses within the Division of Food Systems and Bioengineering, and serves at the State Health and Safety Specialist for Human Environmental Sciences Extension at the University of Missouri. The Funkenbusch family operates 350 acre farm in Northeast Missouri.

Nadia Navarette-Tindall is State Extension Specialist for Native Plants and coordinator of the Native Plants Program (NPP) at Lincoln University. Through the FINCA project (Families Integrating Nature, Conservation and Agriculture), she provides training to farmers, producers, students and the public at large to identify, grow and market native edible plants and those important for pollinators and in conservation practices. “Through this project we are evaluating native edible plants as specialty crops and peoples’ preferences for human consumption, in addition to the LU goal of targeting  minorities and limited resource individuals and communities. I can share my expertise on native plants with extension educators, farmers and producers from rural and urban areas and as a Latina I can share my own culture to help others to reach other Latinos. By attending this workshop I hope to learn outreach tools to better serve women including those with disabilities in Missouri.”

Carey Portell is a partially disabled woman farmer who is a client and advocate of AgrAbility. “I travel giving presentations on how I became disabled and how I am now able to continue farming with this organization’s help.  I am not an employee of AgrAbility, but I do work with them on projects and incorporate my experience with them as I speak to audiences.

 

Danielle Skouby is graduate student at the University of Missouri working on a Master’s in Food Science with an emphasis in Precision Agriculture. Danielle received a Bachelor’s in Ag. Systems Management at the University of Missouri in 2007. “After graduating I worked full and part-time on our family farm. The farm consists of 1500 acres row-crop production of corn, soybeans, and wheat, along with 60 head cow-calf operation. After being home part-time with my son and daughter I decided to take the leap and go back to school to earn my Master’s. My hope and dream is to find a position where I can help the farmer’s integrate precision agriculture technologies into their growing operations.”

Montana

Dave Renn is Beginning Farmer and Rancher Program Manager for the Community Food and Agriculture Coalition. “My work focuses on development of resources, workshops and trainings for new entrants into Montana agriculture. I manage the Farm Link Montana website, a centralized resource to connect beginning farmers and ranchers to land, jobs, mentors and information. I have spent the last decade working in education both on and off farm as well as working on vegetable livestock and research farms in Oregon, Washington and Montana. While I have been fortunate enough to experience a wide variety of situations and systems for agriculture, I recognize my own lack of knowledge around the needs and perspectives of new women farmers. I hope to gain skills and make connections that will help make our programming more supportive of all participants.”

New York

Laura Biasillo has worked at Cornell Cooperative Extension as an Agricultural Economic Development Specialist for over ten years. “My focus has been on market development, new business development, business expansion, farmland preservation and agri-tourism! I work with new and beginning farmers who sell their products from the farmgate to the grocery store, from the hoof to the freezer. I have learned to deliver programs in a variety of ways, including online (through the Cornell Small Farms Program/Northeast Beginning Farmer Network), in small group settings (such as Annie’s Project), on-farm and in larger groups. I hope to learn better how women learn differently than men and what motivates them in their businesses. I would like to come away with a better understanding of how to structure not only workshops but also assessments to ensure women attending my workshops are getting the most out of it that they can.”

Bonnie Collins is a Farm Business Management Resource Educator for Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) of Oneida and Madison Counties. “My interest in women in agriculture goes back 12 years when I was hired by CCE.  I first connected with the women in agriculture in my community by starting a women in farming discussion group.  The group was active for many years in providing outreach to our community, developing a Barn Quilt Train, and addressing farm family mental and health issues. In 2011, I was honored to become NY State co-coordinator for the National Annie’s Project (AP) program. To date the CCE educators have providing AP programs for over 260 women in 22 counties out of 52 in our state. What I hope to gain from this workshop is guidance in developing a ‘Women’s Aspiring Farmer Academy’ and I am willing to share all my past experiences connecting to women.”

Erica Frenay has worked for the Cornell Small Farms Program for 11 years, where she helped launch the Northeast Beginning Farmer Project in 2007. Together with a team of Extension and other educators, they have built a website, suite of online courses, publications, videos, and targeted projects to help people start farm businesses and achieve long-term viability. Erica is also a beginning farmer herself, in her 7th season managing Shelterbelt Farm, a diversified operation producing lamb, beef, duck eggs, honey, high tunnel crops, and fruit near Ithaca, NY. Erica is a certified educator of Holistic Management, teaching whole farm planning and holistic decision-making to beginning women farmers. She is looking forward to learning more about women’s learning preferences and needs, and how these might influence program design.

As VP of Programs for Glynwood in the Hudson Valley, Sara Grady sets Glynwood’s program goals and oversees programs that serve food and farming professionals. “One of our major areas of programming is Farmer Training, including our Apprenticeship program and our Farm Business Incubator, helping to launch new livestock-focused farm enterprises in the region,” she says. “We are already serving a number of women entrepreneurs in this program, and we are keen on continuing to recruit and train women entrepreneurs in all our training programs. I would like to leave this workshop with some actionable strategies for supporting our work in training women farmers, as well as ideas for supporting the women who participate in our other areas of programming that involve collaborative networks of food professionals. I would be willing to share some of the program design strategies we have developed in Glynwood’s programs.”

MacKenzie Waro is the Livestock Processing and Marketing Specialist for Cornell Cooperative Extension Harvest New York. For the past 7 years, she worked in Agricultural Land Preservation throughout New York State; now she works with livestock producers to collaborate with processing plants and markets. MacKenzie has been developing processing classes for producers throughout the state. She is beginning to work with women farmers to help develop meat markets, market plans, and create value added products. MacKenzie hopes that this workshop will give her insights and ideas to improve the statewide livestock marketing programs she is developing, as they are in the infant stages. MacKenzie was a committee member for the New York State Agriculture and Markets Beginning Farmer workgroup and can bring the ideas from that workgroup to the workshop.

Oklahoma

Sara Siems has served for 3 years as co-PI on a USDA Risk Management grant targeting women, minority, and new & beginning farmers in Oklahoma. Programs include planning a statewide conference for women in agriculture, assisting with regional conferences, organizing one-day workshops, and coordinating two departmental newsletters: on farm finance and beef cattle. She serves on a committee collaborating with Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry for a new “Significant Women in Oklahoma Agriculture” initiative. Additionally, she is one of two state coordinators for Annie’s Project and manages the Oklahoma Women in Agriculture social media.

Oregon

Megan Fehrman grew up in the heartland and received her undergraduate degree in Agricultural Economics at the University of Wisconsin before heading West.  “After exploring several aspects of community organizing, sustainability, and education, I earned a Masters Degree at Portland State University, focusing on Community Food Systems and Agroecology. In 2008, I moved to the rural Little Applegate Valley to live on a farm and work as a statewide advocate and educator for socially responsible agriculture. In 2011, I joined Rogue Farm Corps in an effort to help train and assist the next generation of farmers,” she says. Rogue Farm Corps offers a beginning level on-farm internship program and an advanced apprenticeship program. “I have seen 6 cohorts of beginning farmers through our program, and am currently helping my family establish their farm and creamery. Half of our students are women and I am curious about how to adapt our programming to meet their needs.”

Roslyn Gray has worked for NRCS for 8 years as a civil/environmental engineer on the planning, design, and implementation of various conservation projects. “I started my career with NRCS serving the dairy farms in Northwest Vermont. Three years later, I moved to Oregon and provided technical assistance to agriculture producers of Tillamook, Clatsop and Columbia counties. For the past year, I’ve worked as the State Wetland Restoration Engineer for NRCS Oregon within our Wetland Reserve Easement program, charged with restoring historic hydrology and vegetation to permanent conservation easements. Working with farmers and ranchers to conserve our natural resources continues to be highly rewarding, and I look forward to the road ahead.”

Dusty Jager works for USDA-NRCS as a Soil Conservationist In Clackamas County. He has lived in SD, WY, CO, WV, and OR. Dusty’s specialty area is grazing livestock. “I grew up in South Dakota on a small livestock farm. I’m interested in working with small family farms and non traditional farmers. We serve a growing number of beginning and established women and veteran farmers through USDA programs and conservation technical assistance.”

Wallace Jennings was raised on the island of Tutuila, the principal island of American Samoa which is an unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States. “The Samoan culture is called Fa’a Samoa, meaning “the way of life” and it is rooted in Respect for oneself but most importantly for others. Women hold a position of great respect & dignity. It is not uncommon to see women lead our island communities,” he says. “I have worked for the USDA – NRCS to deliver farm bill programs that help Women Farmers help the land. I continue to work with women farmers to ensure they have equal access to Farm Bill Programs to give them the resources they need to be successful. As the Executive Vice President for APIO which is a strong supporter of Women in the NRCS I want to ensure that APIO is a leader to empower & support women in Ag.”

For over a decade, Teresa Matteson has worked for Benton SWCD. “With great partners, such as OSU faculty, OSU Extension, and NRCS, I’ve delivered workshops on a variety of topics for producers, agricultural professionals, and students. I have a M.S. in Soil Science from Oregon State University and am an OSU affiliate faculty member, past president of the Oregon Society of Soil Scientists, and currently serve as the Oregon Chapter of Soil and Water Conservation Society secretary/treasurer. Since 2009, I have engaged over 70 producers in the Soil Quality Project, a program to encourage informed management decisions to improve soil function. I have designed, funded and implemented two additional soil health education projects with partners in Oregon, Washington, and California. I enjoy networking and look forward to this exciting event!”

Molly Notarianni has spent the past ten years working to support community food systems across the country. She currently works as an advocate for Oregon’s beginning farmers through her position as the Next Generation Organizer at Friends of Family Farmers (FoFF). The educational programming Molly coordinates at FoFF is varied, ranging from hands-on workshops at local farms to weekend-long conferences. She’s currently coordinating a series of workshop across the state that help beginning farmers understand how to find farmland, while connecting them with retiring farmers with available land. Prior to joining FoFF, Molly has been a farmer, an educator, a volunteer coordinator, and a manager of farmers’ markets.

Sarah Red-Laird is the founder and Executive Director of the Bee Girl organization, a nonprofit with a mission to inspire and empower communities to conserve bees and their habitat. She is a graduate of the University of Montana’s College of Forestry and Conservation with a degree in Resource Conservation, focused on community collaboration and environmental policy. Aside from running the Bee Girl organization’s six programs, Sarah is the US Ambassador of the International Bee Research Association’s (IBRA) BEEWORLD project, the Kids and Bees Director for the American Beekeeping Federation, a New York Bee Sanctuary Advisory Board member, is an active member of the Northwest Farmers Union, the Western Apicultural Society’s Oregon Director, and the Regional Representative for the Southern Oregon Beekeepers Association.  Among our programs is the “Next Generation Beekeepers Initiative,” recruiting and inspiring Millennials, Gen Y, and Gen X’ers to join the beekeeping industry.

Angela Reseland has been working with NRCS/USDA for six years and currently works in the St Helens, OR field office. “I am a conservation planner who works with private agricultural landowners to conserve natural resources and implement environmental improvements on their land. I look forward to meeting other workshop participants and hearing about their unique set of skills and abilities. I am a bit of a jack-of-all-trades, and am happy to share any knowledge I have about agriculture, soils, fish and wildlife, natural and cultural resources and the NRCS and our programs.”

Lakeitha Ruffin is an agricultural economist with the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service in Portland. I hope to gain skills in engaging with farmers and ranchers in OR and beyond.

Pennsylvania

Hannah Smith-Brubaker operates an organic produce and pastured livestock farm with her partner Debra, their children and extended family. The farm provides community supported agriculture shares to 250 families on a weekly basis and also touches another 1,500 plates a week through participation in a grower’s cooperative that markets to urban restaurants. In 2015, Hannah was appointed Deputy Secretary of Agriculture for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania with a focus on agricultural markets and economic development, farmland preservation, and the charitable food distribution system.

Patty Neiner has worked for the Pennsylvania Women’s Agricultural Network (PA-WAgN) for 5 years and has been involved in PA-WAgN as a farmer representative since its inception. “My role at PA-WAgN to develop and institute all programming for women farmers. In addition I interface with Extension to work on entrepreneurial topics for women farmers. I have also worked on the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture for 4 years and before that worked for Pennsylvania Certified Organic as their Transition Specialist, educating farmers on the transition process.”

Carolyn Sachs is Professor of Rural Sociology and Women’s Studies at Penn State University. Her areas of specialization include gender agriculture & environment, sociology of agriculture, sustainable agriculture, international development, and climate change. She has published numerous articles book chapters and books especially on gender and agriculture. Her most recent book, released this May is Women Farmers on the Rise and Sustainable Agriculture, which she co-authored with Mary Barbercheck, Kathy Brasier, Nancy Ellen Kiernan, and Anna Rachel Terman.  Her book, Gendered Fields: Women, Agriculture, and Environment examines global issues on women and agriculture.  She has also consulted for the United Nations on gender and water issues, and FAO on gender and agriculture, gender and food security, and gender and climate change.  She provides leadership for the Pennsylvania Women’s Agricultural Network that provides educational programming for women farmers.  “I hope to share and learn new approaches to women and leadership,” she says.

South Dakota

Adele Harty has worked for SDSU Extension for 11 years. “In that time frame I have been heavily involved in providing Annie’s Project to women across the state.  We started Annie’s Project in SD in 2007 and I serve as the state co-coordinator for the program and help lead a team of eight coworkers in delivering Annie’s Project.  Since 2007 we have held Annie’s Project, Level 1 and 2 in 47 locations, educating approximately 650 women.  Along with Annie’s Project, I work with a team of Extension Professionals to provide a program for beginning beef producers called beefSD.  We recently started class 3 of this program, which is funded by BFRDP.  To date we have had 34 operations complete the course and have an additional 32 enrolled in class 3.  I also focus on ruminant nutrition and recently developed a cattle mineral nutrition program for veterinarians and producers.”

Texas

Robert Williams served as PD for Breaking Barriers for Beginning Hispanic Farmers and Ranchers 2010-2013 and Agricultural Courses for Dual Credit 2014-2016. “I work at a rural, regional non-land grant university about 65 miles from Dallas. My primary responsibilities focus on teacher education in Ag/FCS but, I also teach some General Ag, Food Studies, and Sustainable Ag courses.  I am very interested in Beginning Farmer and Rancher training and even though I do not currently have a grant-funded project, I am still working on BFR initiatives/proposals.  My research and outreach focus has been on experiential learning and working with youth and socially disadvantaged groups in a regional setting.  I am open to collaboration with others.”

Vermont

Deb Heleba works as an outreach professional at the University of Vermont Extension where she serves as the Vermont state SARE coordinator, providing professional development on sustainable agriculture topics to extension educators, USDA personnel and other ag service providers in the state. “I am a member of the University of Vermont Extension Northwest Crops and Soils program, which conducts on-farm research and education on agronomic crops like small grains, hops, industrial hemp, perennial and annual livestock forages, and cover crops. I also provide staff support to eOrganic’s dairy team. eOrganic is a national effort to provide online organic farming systems information and resources to farmers, educators, and the public through eXtension.org.  I hope to better learn the unique needs of our beginning farmer and rancher women, particularly how we can adapt our current programming to best suit learning styles and preferences of women.”

Beth Holtzman is outreach education coordinator for the University of Vermont Women’s Agricultural Network (WAgN) and New Farmer Project. Beth has been working with women and beginning farmers on business planning and marketing since 2004, and has been involved in sustainable agriculture outreach, education and advocacy since 1992. She produces print and electronic publications covering broad range of agricultural production, and business development and business management topics. Both programs  to increase the number of profitable farms owned and operated by women and beginning farmers.

With a degree in Animal Science from The University of Vermont, Jake Jacobs started her agricultural career as an Extension agent with Cornell University.  After some years in the Extension system, she moved into the private sector, working as a nutritionist for a feed company, then on to independent nutrition and management consulting. Due to family demands, Jake turned her efforts to her family’s dairy farm. She also earned her Vermont teacher license and spent many years as an early education teacher. Returning to the agricultural sector, Jake now works for UVM as the Vermont Crop Insurance Education Coordinator.  She works collaboratively with UVM Extension, agribusiness professionals and other agencies that provide services, products and advice to farmers.  Jake’s focus is educating agricultural producers about USDA programs and products available to help farmers and growers manage risk and insure crops and farm revenue to keep their operations productive and viable.

Mary Peabody is a Community & Economic Development Specialist with UVM Extension as well as a founding Director of the Women’s Agricultural Network which was started within UVM Extension in 1994. Since 1988 she has worked in the areas of rural economic development and local leadership. Her research interests include the sustainability of rural communities, women’s entrepreneurship, and the application of information technology to community and economic development.

Washington

Throughout her life, Sheila Gray has lived and worked among agriculture producers of one kind or another. “I started working in berry fields as a youth and pursued a degree in Horticulture at Washington State University (WSU) with visions of working in an ag-related field. For several years I worked in the ornamental nursery and forestry seedling nursery arena prior to my coming to WSU Extension in 1995 as an Ag & Natural Resources Extension Educator. My current role as a the WSU Lewis County Extension director provides me opportunities to work with several types of farmers; market growers from beginners to seasoned folks as well as those with farmstands, CSA and direct market farm goals. My work with WSU Extension continues to be rewarding as I see those I have coached throughout the years become successful in their endeavors.”

Amy Horstman has 20 years’ work experience in private lands habitat restoration which includes landowner coordination, site assessment and surveys, restoration technical planning, grant writing, funding, contracting, permitting and follow up monitoring. Her projects are generally on rural land holdings on the parts of the properties with limited or low intensive agricultural activities.

Lindsay Malone, Director of Member Services for NNRG oversees the largest Forest Stewardship Council group certificate in the Northwest and works with family forests, small businesses, public agencies, and conservation groups to promote ecologically-managed forests. She has more than 14 years of experience working on natural resource and conservation issues for local, state and federal agencies and non-profit organizations. Prior to NNRG, Lindsay worked at Forterra as a Conservation Transaction Project Manager where she contributed to the conservation of more than 10,000 acres of working forests, natural areas and recreation lands in the Puget Sound region. When she’s not in the woods for work, she’s out bushwhacking up mountains, climbing, skiing, running, and hiking long-distance trails.  One thing she hopes to get from the work shop is to learn from others about training approaches/mediums/ styles that are inclusive for a variety of learners.

Leigh Newman-Bell currently works at Pike Place Market providing technical assistance, outreach, education, policy advocacy for market farmers. As the Farm Development Coordinator at Pike Place, she works on the ground with local growers, community organizations, and government offices to amplify the resources available to market farmers. Specifically she is working with many Hmong refugee farmers to improve their marketing skills and supporting them to effectively plan the future of their farm businesses. Prior to Pike Place Market, Leigh worked for two years at Viva Farms incubator managing wholesale accounts between small scale immigrant farmers and King County customers as well as doing outreach for Viva Farms’ educational program.

Adena Sabins has a background in biology and animal science with a degree in Public Relations. “I assist each of our departments here in the extension office and am also our Master Gardener coordinator. My passion is linking community resources and improving communication between organizations in the county.”

Margaret Viebrock‘s Washington State University faculty assignment includes the administrative, supervision and budget responsibilities for county director in 2 counties. “My program responsibilities include a 5-state program for women in involved in agriculture and a 3-county assignment for food safety, food and nutrition, management of the SnapEd project, risk management education, diabetes education and farm family issues. I hope to gain new ideas for current trends for programing for women involved in agriculture, including topics, recruitment ideas and behavior evaluation. I’m willing to share what I use for programming techniques, social media and evaluation.”

Ele Watts is the Farm to Institution specialist on the Washington State Department of Agriculture’s Regional Markets team. In this role, Ele works with state agencies, public employee cafeterias, and childcare and senior care facilities to source, serve, and promote Washington-grown products in their meals. Ele previously worked for the American Farmland Trust, Cascade Harvest Coalition, and other organizations on farmland preservation, on-farm conservation practices and environmental credit markets, farm transition planning, and supporting robust regional food systems.   I am looking forward to connecting with other workshop attendees, particularly around issues of emerging local/regional markets and direct marketing strategies for specialty crop producers.

Washington, DC

Wesley Dean is a rural sociologist with research experience on the production and consumption ends of the food and nutrition system. He also has experience with the evaluation of workforce development programs. Currently, he is a National Program Leader at NIFA with the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, and the Agricultural Economics and Rural Communities Program.

West Virginia

Jennifer Ours Williams began her career with the WVU Extension Service as a county agent responsible for both agriculture and youth development programs.  From there she moved on to be the Agriculture and Natural Resources Program Unit director and currently serves as the associate dean for partnerships and initiatives.  In this role, she works with faculty and staff statewide in developing special programs that meet the diverse needs of the state.  In addition, she forms important partnerships that support and enhance extension programming across the state including a robust Women in Agriculture effort.  She has won many awards for her programming efforts including the Susan Dew Hoff Award from the West Virginia Women’s Commission and was the 2011 recipient of the West Virginia Women in Agriculture Award.  Most recently, she received the Distinguished Service Award from the West Virginia Association of 4-H Agents.

Wisconsin

Lisa Kivirist is a Senior Fellow, Endowed Chair in Agricultural Systems for the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture at the University of Minnesota and founded and leads the Rural Women’s Project of the Midwest Organic Sustainable Education Service, an award-winning initiative providing collaborative training, resources and networking opportunities for women farmers.  Her new book is Soil Sisters: A Toolkit for Women Farmers, compiles advice, and resources from over 100 women in sustainable agriculture.   She is also the author of Homemade for Sale, Farmstead Chef, Ecopreneuring and Rural Renaissance.  Lisa was named by In Business Magazine as a “Woman of Industry” for leadership growing the women in sustainable agriculture movement. She writes on food, farming and women for a range of publications including Hobby Farms, Mother Earth News, Natural Awakenings and Grit. Lisa and her family run Inn Serendipity Farm and B&B in Browntown, Wisconsin, completely powered by the wind and sun.