Seven students named as CALS’ first Warren Leaders

Seven undergraduate students in NC State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, have been chosen for the 2015 inaugural class of the Warren Leadership and Public Policy Fellows.

The Adolph Warren Family Leadership Program is a new and innovative one-year program for sophomore, junior and senior students in CALS who have an interest in and potential for leadership and public service in agriculture. The program is designed to help students develop skills in personal leadership, organizational leadership and public policy leadership.

As fellows, the students will participate in a full-time summer internship experience with one of the following:  N.C. Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, North Carolina Farm Bureau, North Carolina Pork Council, the N.C. Senate Standing Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and Natural Resources; or the N.C House of Representatives Standing Committee on Agriculture.

The internship experience will give the students greater understanding of the complex challenges facing food and agriculture as related to public policy. The group also will travel extensively throughout North Carolina this year to engage with key leaders in agriculture, food policy, life sciences, industry and public service.

Recently, the group took a weekend tour that included stops at the Piedmont Research Station, Salisbury; Childress Vineyards and Winery, Lexington; the N.C. Zoo, Asheboro; and Barry Leonard’s horse farm in Lexington.

“This program offers the latest, research-supported practices that will prepare fellows to be successful leaders in the 21st century,” said Jonathon Smith, director of the Adolph Warren Family Leadership Program. “The Fellows will have opportunities to build their professional network and develop a greater understanding of how public policy develops and is implemented in the state of North Carolina and the federal government.”

The Adolph Warren Family Leadership Program is made possible by the support of Joe and Gail Dunn through the North Carolina Agriculture Foundation Inc. in NC State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The program is named in memory of Adolph Warren, a long-standing member of the Sampson County community and a career agricultural education teacher.

More information on the program is available at  www.warrenleadership.com.

The first class of Warren Fellows is below, along with their parents’ names and home towns, along with their academic year and programs of study.

• Caroline Clement, daughter of Buddy and Allison Clement of Clinton, is a junior majoring in agricultural science, with minors in animal science and agricultural business.

• Clayton Dellinger, son of Gerald and Amy Dellinger of Iron Station, is a junior majoring in agricultural science, with minors in agricultural business and crop science.

• Deans Eatman, son of Al and Leigh Ann Eatman of Roanoke Rapids, is a junior majoring in agricultural science, with minors in agricultural business, agricultural leadership and animal science.

• Anne Link, daughter of Mary Meyer and Randy Link of Charlotte, is a senior majoring in animal science, with minors in nonprofit studies and agroecology.

• Lynde Ring, daughter of Steve and Leah Ring of Warrensville, is a junior majoring in food bioprocessing, with minors in biomanufacturing and animal science.

• Grayer Sherrill, son of Cecil Sherrill and Kim Dauberman of Newport, is a senior majoring in agricultural business management with a minor in renewable energy assessment.
• Hang “Becky” Zhong, daughter of Jack L. Whaley and Fang Xu of Chapel Hill, is a junior majoring in plant and soil sciences, with a minor in Chinese.