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NCAT Staff on the ATTRA Project
Management and Supervisors
Teresa Maurer
Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development Program Manager - Arkansas
Teresa Maurer joined NCAT in 1991, and has 20 years of experience in sustainable agriculture education and research, biology, and project management, including 5 years with The Land Institute in Kansas and the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Oklahoma. Ms. Maurer's work has included grassland ecology, livestock and forage systems, weed management, and diverse collaborations with agricultural organizations at the local, regional and national levels. Her education includes BA from Northwestern University in Biology, and MA/PhD from University of Oregon. She manages NCAT's nationally recognized sustainable agriculture service, ATTRA, and recently developed and guided outreach projects for Hispanic farmers and small landholders in Texas and tribal communities in the Four Corners.
Jeff Birkby
Sustainable Agriculture Outreach Program Manager - Montana
Jeff Birkby has worked for the past 24 years on sustainable agriculture, sustainable development, energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for state, regional and national organizations. Before joining NCAT in 1988, Mr. Birkby supervised energy outreach programs for the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC). While working for the state of Montana, Birkby supervised the Energy Extension Service and the State Energy Conservation Program. Birkby also served as board member and board chairman for the nonprofit Alternative Energy Resources Organization (AERO). His past experience with NCAT includes managing the National Appropriate Technology Assistance Service (NATAS) for the U.S. Department of Energy. Birkby currently manages outreach efforts for NCAT’s National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service (also called ATTRA), overseeing Web site development, publications production, and media relations. In addition to his sustainable agriculture management duties, Birkby is program manager for NCAT’s Sustainable Communities Program.
Rex Dufour
Program Specialist - California
Rex Dufour's background is in entomology and integrated pest management. His work experience includes managing sustainable development projects in Thailand and Laos. Mr. Dufour has worked as both project manager and program specialist for NCAT and heads NCAT's California office. He spends most of his time on the ATTRA project and is a member of both the Food Systems and Soils Task Forces.
Specialists
Katherine Adam
Program Specialist - Arkansas
Specialties: Herbs and value-added
Katherine Adam (AM English, University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana) took Ozark Organic Growers Association short courses in organic agriculture. Her business experience includes bookkeeping, tax preparation for family landscaping business- plus extensive experience in land management and affordable housing and experience teaching grammar and composition. Ms. Adam has 12 years' experience with NCAT editorial review, wrote/researched for the Emerging Champions Report, and edited the Natchez Trace Report. Her principal projects as NCAT program specialist have been: Champion Communities and MIRA (rural development), Infogaps, SSAWG Marketing, Organic Matters, and ATTRA.
Marisa Alcorta
Program Specialist - California
Marisa Alcorta received her B.S. in Plant Science from Cornell University where she studied sustainable agriculture and international development. She is currently finishing her Master's degree at UC Davis in Horticulture & Agronomy, where she studies weed management in vineyards. Marisa has experience working with farmers in Ohio, New York and Texas, where she organized cooperative markets and helped launch a new farmers' market. Her duties at NCAT include outreach to Latino farmers, responding to Spanish inquiries, and reviewing Spanish publications and web pages. She also handles some ATTRA project casework in grapes, weed management, compost, cover cropping, and stone fruit crops.
Ann Baier
Program Specialist - California
Specialties: Organic certification
Ann Baier is a UC Davis graduate with an MS in International Agriculture Development and Agronomy, who has experience in providing training and education to minority and limited resource farmers. She is an inspector for the California Certified Organic Farmers and was the Executive Director of Roots and Wings, a non-profit that provides farm and garden based education and training programs to young people.
Alice Beetz
Program Specialist - Arkansas
Specialties: Agroforestry, grazing
Alice Beetz grew up and later worked seasonally on a grain and cattle farm in northern Illinois. She earned a BS in education and an MS in horticulture before joining NCAT in 1989. Most of her NCAT work has been with the ATTRA project, handling topics such as mushroom cultivation, forages and grazing management, worms, and agroforestry. She has also worked on several of the grazing projects and with the graziers group.
Linda Coffey
Program Specialist - Arkansas
Specialties: small ruminants
Linda Coffey comes from a family farm in central Missouri, where they raised cattle, hogs, sheep and horses. She majored in animal science at the University of Missouri and enjoyed an internship at the United States Sheep Experiment Station near Dubois, Idaho; later completing a masters in animal science. Linda joined NCAT in August 2000, working primarily for ATTRA on sheep, goat, and multispecies grazing questions.
Anne Fanatico
Program Specialist - Arkansas
Specialties: poultry, rabbits
Anne Fanatico came to NCAT in 1993 from the Oregon State University Rabbit Research Center. Ms. Fanatico holds a BA in Zoology and Spanish from the University of North Carolina, and an MS in Animal Science from Oregon State University. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Poultry Science at the University of Arkansas. She worked overseas for 2 years in Costa Rica as a Peace Corps Volunteer specializing in agroforestry. Her areas of specialty at NCAT include small livestock; particularly pasture-based poultry production, including organic production, new marketing options, and alternative feeding.
Margo Hale
Intake Specialist - Arkansas
Specialties: Case intake; small ruminants
Margo Hale grew up in Northwest Arkansas and comes from a dairy cattle background. She was very involved in 4-H and raised Holstein cattle. She received a BS in Animal Science and is currently finishing her Master’s in Agricultural and Extension Education, both at the University of Arkansas. Margo joined NCAT in December 2003 as an Animal Science Intern, working mainly with small ruminants.
Tammy Hinman
Program Specialist - Montana
Specialties: Horticulture; market gardening
Tammy is a native Coloradoan who came to Butte, MT via a long stint of farming and sustainable agriculture work in New York State and Arizona. Her Bachelors degree from Colorado State University in Horticulture Food Crops and Entomology set her on her path in agriculture. After finishing her Master's degree in Food System studies from Antioch University, she worked at Cornell University Cooperative Extension as a communications specialist in the area of sustainable agriculture and small farms. She has also worked with the Northeast Organic Farming Association and the Finger Lakes Culinary Bounty on organic certification under the National Organic Program and regional food identity campaigns. At NCAT, Tammy will be drawing from her expertise to provide information and develop resources for farmers and people working with farmers through the ATTRA 1-800 line, publications, and other horticultural-related projects.
Al Kurki
Program Specialist - Montana
Specialties: Agricultural energy and outreach
Al Kurki has an academic and professional background in community organizing and development. He has over twenty years of experience working in non-profit organizations in capacities ranging from executive director to block organizer. His current NCAT assignments include working for the ATTRA program on western ag issues and working for the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education grants program in the areas of professional development, evaluation, communications and special projects.
Nancy Matheson
Program Specialist - Montana
Specialties: Organic production
Nancy Matheson grew up on her family's dryland wheat farm east of Conrad, Montana, later moving to Berkeley, California where she earned a BA in human and natural resource geography at UCB. Little did she know when she left the farm that she would return to Montana for a life and career in agriculture. From agricultural research to ag policy work at the state level, to grassroots sustainable agricultural development, full circle back to farming, is how Ms. Matheson has spent her career so far. Currently, she combines her work with NCAT's ATTRA program with operating a small, irrigated organic farm outside of Helena.
Mike Morris
Program Specialist - California
Specialties: farm energy and water conservation
Before coming to NCAT in 1998, Mike Morris earned a PhD in Philosophy and taught at colleges and universities in Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Montana. At NCAT, he works with ranchers and farmers to develop more efficient and sustainable ways of using water and energy. He is especially interested in irrigation, solar, and wind energy, and is Project Leader for the E+ Irrigation Program, the Montana Rivers Project, and the AgSolar Project.
Andy Pressman
Program Specialist - Pennslyvania
Specialties: Agronomy and Permaculture
Andy has a MS degree is Sustainable Systems from Slippery Rock University. He is a certified Permaculture designer who specializes in forest gardening. Prior to joining NCAT in 2007, Andy worked and managed diversified organic farms in Ohio, Vermont, Colorado, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. He continues to be an avid beekeeper and has a strong interest in biofuels.
Lee Rinehart
Program Specialist - Pennsylvania
Specialties: Grazing and livestock production
Livestock Specialist Lee Rinehart has a Master of Education in Agricultural Education and a Bachelor of Science in Animal Science from Texas A&M. He has previous experience as an extension agent in Texas and Montana, as well as farm-based experience as the manager of a beef cattle operation.
Dave Ryan
Energy Engineer - Montana
Specialties: Alternative energy and energy efficiency
Dave Ryan joined NCAT in 2004. He is a registered professional engineer. He has 12 years experience in energy conservation and renewable energy, and was awarded the Bob Olsen Memorial Conservation Eagle award by the North West Energy Coalition in 2000. He is currently President of the Montana Renewable Energy Association.
Jeff Schahczenski
Program Specialist - Montana
Specialties: Organic and sustainable agriculture public policy, marketing and economics, transgenics in agriculture, organic horticulture, renewable ag energy, cooperative development, sustainable building, intercultural communications and beekeeping
Jeff Schahczenski is Executive Director of both the Big Hole River Foundation and Western Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (WSAWG). Jeff has worked with the Alternative Energy Resources Organization (AERO) on regional sustainable agriculture projects, is an adjunct instructor for Western Montana College and Montana Tech, and serves on several non-profit boards and is building his own straw bale house and greenhouse. Before moving to Montana, Jeff worked for Rutgers University, started one of the first CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farms in New Jersey, received graduate degrees in agricultural economics and political science, served in the Peace Corps in Belize, Central America, and worked on his grandfather’s dairy farm in Wisconsin.
Susan Tallman
Agronomy and Cropping Specialist - Montana
Susan has extensive experience working with farmers both as a wheat buyer for Great Western Bread Company and as a representative of a company that promotes production of organic grains. She grew up on a farm in Eastern Montana. Susan graduated from Cornell with a BS in Agronomy.
Web Site Team
John English
Webmaster - Montana
John J. English joined NCAT in 2003. He graduated from the University of Montana - School of Business, and has 8 years experience in the field of Internet and Computer administration. His expertise includes Web site design and development, systems administration, as well as user support. He enjoys spending time with his family, hiking, fly-fishing, geocaching and of course, surfing the Internet. In fact, it's a good bet that when he is not at a computer, he will be doing something outdoors with his loved ones.
Jason Kolpin
Web Specialist - Montana
Jason Kolpin came to NCAT in August of 2008 after graduating from Montana Tech with a BS Information Technology and Design. Jason has nearly ten years experience as a Linux Web Server Administrator and nearly as many years experience doing website design and management using PHP and MySQL. In his free time, Jason enjoys off-road motorcycle riding, generally spending time in the Montana outdoors, playing and composing music, and spending time with his family and friends.
Tracy Mumma
Program Specialist - Montana
Tracy Mumma joined NCAT in 1999, when the Center for Resourceful Building Technology became an NCAT project. She has written, lectured and taught about reducing the environmental impact of construction, and holds an MS degree in Environmental Studies. She lives on a small farm powered by draft horses. Ms. Mumma administers Web site content and performs editorial review for the ATTRA publications team.
Publications Production Team
Holly Michels
Editor - Montana
Holly Michels graduated from the University of Montana School of Journalism in 2006. She is a native Oregonian who came to NCAT in 2008 after working as a copy editor and reporter at the Ravalli Republic and Montana Standard newspapers. Holly is responsible for editing ATTRA publications and is involved in media outreach.
Karen Van Epen
Technical Specialist - California
Karen Van Epen edits ATTRAnews and other publications for ATTRA, and formats Spanish-language publications. For more than 25 years, Karen has been providing information to help farmers improve their practices. She was a partner in agAccess, a bookstore and publishing company that specialized in sustainable agriculture. For the Community Alliance with Family Farmers, she edited Farmer to Farmer, the Agrarian Advocate, and numerous other publications. In the 1970s Karen was a partner in Odyssey Orchards, one of California’s first organic farms, a catalyst in the formation of California Certified Organic Farmers. She was one of the founders of the Farallones Institute — now the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center — pioneering environmental education that combines organic farming, appropriate technology, green building, and sustainable communities.
Debra Rask
Publications Coordinator - Montana
Debbie Rask has been with NCAT since 1999. She has an Associates Degree in Computer Science. She is Montana coordinator for production and distribution of ATTRA publications.
Amy Smith
Publication Designer - Montana
Amy Smith joined NCAT in December 2005. She holds a degree in Graphic Design from Montana State University. She has several years of graphic design experience in the publishing and newspaper fields. Her responsibilities at NCAT include publication formatting and illustration.
Last Updated December 22, 2008
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