{"id":9851,"date":"2022-12-16T10:42:39","date_gmt":"2022-12-16T16:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theclarion.org\/?p=9851"},"modified":"2022-12-16T10:42:39","modified_gmt":"2022-12-16T16:42:39","slug":"elite-leadership-program-culminates-for-up-and-coming-agriculturalists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/?p=9851","title":{"rendered":"Elite leadership program culminates for up-and-coming agriculturalists"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0by Maggie Edwards<\/em>
\nFrom visiting decision-makers in Washington D.C. to deep-diving into Alabama Farmers Federation dynamics, Agricultural Leaders For Alabama (A.L.F.A. Leaders) has transformed the lives of 16 program participants.
\nA.L.F.A. Leaders Class V culminated its journey during the Federation\u2019s 101st annual meeting in Montgomery Dec. 5. The class was announced in December 2019.
\n\u201cBesides networking with my fellow classmates and Federation staff, one of the most important parts was the seminars,\u201d said graduate Dillon Turk, who manages his family\u2019s Martin\u2019s Nursery in Mobile County. \u201cEach of our six seminars focused on a different aspect \u2013 from politics to personal development. We came out of each seminar having learned something about ourselves or ways to identify and solve problems.\u201d<\/p>\n

Turk\u2019s fellow classmates included farmers, Extension agents, agriscience educators, business owners and more \u2013 each bringing unique qualities and backgrounds to the table.
\nParticipants, who are 25-45, were trained in agricultural policy, industry leadership and communications. Class V benefited from six intensive, multi-day seminars revolving around Federation operations, state and national government, Alabama agriculture and successful leadership.<\/p>\n

Federation President Jimmy Parnell hailed the program, which has cultivated local, state and national farm and government leaders.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are proud to invest in these young leaders,\u201d Parnell said. \u201cWe see the impact A.L.F.A. Leaders and similar programs have had on our organization. This time and financial investment will pay dividends for decades to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Interacting with policymakers and American Farm Bureau Federation staff in the nation\u2019s capital opened class graduate Lucy Edwards\u2019 eyes to the Federation\u2019s influence nationwide.\u00a0
\n\u201cThere is a powerful relationship between the Federation and elected officials in D.C.,\u201d said Edwards, an Extension coordinator sponsored by Houston County Farmers Federation. \u201cThese leaders really took time to engage with us and learn more about issues Alabama farmers are facing.\u201d<\/p>\n

A.L.F.A. Leaders Class V also participated in a capstone project centered around FarmPAC, the Federation\u2019s political action committee focused on state endorsements. They presented a proposal to Federation leaders during the organization\u2019s annual meeting.<\/p>\n

Rachel Chastain, an agriscience educator at Helen Keller School in Talladega County, said the capstone project finetuned her public speaking skills. It also improved her teaching skills and the way she speaks to audiences as an Alabama Ag in the Classroom Summer Institute presenter.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we have elected officials come through my school, I have a platform that allows me to be an education advocate and an agricultural advocate,\u201d said Chastain. \u201cThis class helped give me the confidence and skills to better my ability to educate others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Turk, Edwards and Chastain agree A.L.F.A Leaders changed their lives.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis program helped open my eyes to the bigger picture of agriculture and advocating for the industry,\u201d Chastain said. \u201cI also learned how inclusive the Federation is. Whether you are an agriscience teacher or a row cropper, there is a place for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\nTurk said the time commitment \u2013 six weeklong sessions \u2013 was well worth the sacrifice.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is time away from work and family, but it is beneficial to you, whether you\u2019re an agribusinessman or farmer,\u201d Turk said. \u201cMost importantly, I\u2019ll work with, for and around these 15 folks throughout the rest of my life.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The class will experience one last learning opportunity together in January, as they travel to the United Kingdom for an agricultural leadership experience.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0by Maggie Edwards From visiting decision-makers in Washington D.C. to deep-diving into Alabama Farmers Federation dynamics, Agricultural Leaders For Alabama (A.L.F.A. Leaders) has transformed the lives of 16 program participants.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9851"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9851\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9852,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9851\/revisions\/9852"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.theclarion.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}