The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is pleased to announce that five Research Ambassadors have been selected for the 2021-2022 academic year:
Claire Menard, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
Alden Perkins, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Matthew J. Runyon, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Dylan L. Schoemaker, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Corey Schultz, University of Georgia
In its inaugural year, the program’s focus is to build a network of future leaders in the agricultural sector; ambassadors must demonstrate academic excellence, leadership potential and be involved in research relevant to corn production.
“The Research Ambassador Program gives students the opportunity to interact directly with growers,” said NCGA Sustainable Ag Research Action Team Chair Randy DeSutter. “They will be able to participate in Capitol Hill visits and other meetings alongside our farmers to learn firsthand what we think and what is important to us. Ultimately, the goal of this program is to help better connect the research lab and the farm.”
Through the program, each NCGA Research Ambassador will receive the following:
- Financial award of $2,500 directly to the student.
- Up to $750 for registration and travel reimbursement for participation in scientific research conferences.
- Fully-funded travel to participate in NCGA events throughout the year, which could include grower research committee meetings, congressional visits at the state or federal level, Commodity Classic, Corn Congress, farm field days, etc.
“The awardees for this academic year, which will run August 2021 through July 2022, were selected by a panel of Sustainable Ag Research Action Team members. We have an ambitious group of graduate students, each with a diverse research emphasis from one another, and all with great enthusiasm to participate,” said NCGA Research and Productivity Director Robyn Allscheid.
“Through the program, these research ambassadors will be provided with invaluable experiences and networking that they can take back to the lab with them.”
To learn more about NCGA’s scholarship programs, visit ncga.com/researchambassador.