The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced the appointment of 18 members, 18 alternate members, and one advisor to serve on the Cotton Board. All appointees will serve three-year terms now through Dec. 31, 2025.
Newly appointed members:
Nick McMichen, Centre, Alabama
Avinash Bhaskar, Bentonville, Arkansas
Patricia Lesser, Kentfield, California
Barbara Brereton Buhr, Hartford, Connecticut
Albert Riley James, New Madrid, Missouri
John R. Rosman, Frisco, Texas
Newly appointed alternate members:
Lamont Bridgeforth, Athens, Alabama
Jim Atkinson, Venice, California
Bryan Landreth, Roswell, Georgia
David C. Light, Rolla, Kansas
Kim Shewalter, Winchester, Massachusetts
Pat Perry Werneiwski, Wayzata, Minnesota
Chad Fullerton, Dexter, Missouri
Julieanna Ogle, Elora, Tennessee
Reappointed members:
David. J. DeFelix, Campbellton, Florida
Jimmy Webb, Leary, Georgia
Suzanne R. Drouhard, Danville, Kansas
Joe Don Long, Richmond, Kentucky
Laurie Rando, Scotch Plain, New Jersey
Alisa Ogden, Carlsbad, New Mexico
Mark Nichols, Altus, Oklahoma
Rusty Darby, Chester, South Carolina
Alex Armour, Somerville, Tennessee
Matt Farmer, Lamesa, Texas
Shelly S. Butler Barlow, Suffolk, Virginia
Emily Gigot, Seattle, Washington
Reappointed alternate members:
Kirk Smithwick, Bremen, Alabama
Jennifer Pisula, Wilmington, Delaware
Alan J. Edwards, Jay, Florida
Benjamin Grimsley, Weston, Georgia
Nathan Jurva, Carlsbad, New Mexico
Kathy Fowler, Altus, Oklahoma
Frank Rogers, Blenheim, South Carolina
Jay Self, Tory, South Carolina
R. N. Hopper, Petersburg, Texas
J. W. Jones, Jr., Windsor, Virginia
Newly appointed advisor:
Karla Magruder, Campbell Hall, New York
In addition, USDA issued the following appointments to fill board vacancies.
Chase Schuchard, Roscoe, Texas, Texas alternate member position #3 with a term ending Dec. 31, 2024; Svitlana Linska, Plainfield, Illinois, importer alternate member position #10, with a term ending Dec. 31, 2023; Dhruv Agarwal, Greensboro, North Carolina, importer alternate member #12 with a term ending December 31, 2023; and Steven J. Bohman, Allen, Texas, importer alternate member #14 with a term ending Dec. 31, 2024.
The Cotton Research and Promotion Act of 1966 authorized a national cotton research and promotion program that is both industry-operated and funded. More information is available on the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Cotton Board webpage or on the board’s website at www.cottonboard.org.
AMS policy is that diversity of the boards, councils and committees it oversees should reflect the diversity of their industries in terms of the experience of members, methods of production and distribution, marketing strategies, and other distinguishing factors, including but not limited to individuals from historically underserved communities, that will bring different perspectives and ideas to the table. Throughout the full nomination process, AMS conducts extensive outreach, paying particular attention to reaching underserved communities, and consider the diversity of the population served and the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the members to serve a diverse population.
Since 1966, Congress has authorized the development of industry-funded research and promotion boards to provide a framework for agricultural industries to pool their resources and combine efforts to develop new markets, strengthen existing markets and conduct important research and promotion activities. AMS provides oversight of 22 boards, paid for by industry assessments, which helps ensure fiscal accountability and program integrity.
Original source can be found here.
