- American Farmland Trust launched the first group of certified Land Access Trainers from the Farms for the Next Generation initiative, which is a nationwide project to address the critical issue of success for the next generation of farmers and ranchers — securing suitable land to start and expand their operations.
- The Center for Dairy Excellence has named Emily Barge as communications and marketing manager to support the work of both the Center and the Center for Dairy Excellence of Pennsylvania. Isaac Clements, a senior at Penn State University, also joined the Center as an education and communications intern.
- Women from all walks of life with a passion for agriculture will converge on America’s heartland to be inspired and empowered at this year’s ‘I am FarmHer’ event June 17-19 at the Embassy Suites in Des Moines, IA. Tickets will be available for purchase through June 7 or while supplies last. Registration is now open at IamFarmHer.com.
- Fifteen agriculture students have been selected as the third class of recipients of the GROWMARK Foundation scholarship. They include: McKenzie Carvalho of Maxwell, Calif.; Michelle Cooney of Deer Grove, Ill.; Tyler Ditchfield of Ottawa, Ill.; Shane Douglas of Waterloo, Ill.; Rebecca Dwyer of Eureka, Ill.; Abigayle Endress of Pearl City, Ill.; Ashley Hagenow of Poynette, Wisc.; Rachel Lokai of Urbana, Ohio; Kendall Lovejoy of Archbold, Ohio; Abbey Schiefelbein of Kimball, Minn.; Jenna Straub of Mahomet, Ill.; Lynne Thomas of Fallston, Maryland; Collin Weltzien of Arcadia, Wisc.; and Courtney Wiedenmann of Coal Valley, Ill.
- Acting Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Joel Baxley announced that USDA is providing $858 million in loans to upgrade rural electric systems in 17 states. The funding includes $64 million to finance smart grid technologies that improve system operations and monitor grid security.
