Source: AgriLife Today
Members of the 16th Gov. Dolph Briscoe Jr. Texas Agricultural Lifetime Leadership program visited East Texas recently to add to their statewide perspective on agriculture in the Lone Star State.
TALL, administered by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, provides knowledge and understanding of agriculture and related industries in today’s complex economic, political and social systems, Jim Mazurkiewicz, Ph.D., leadership program director, College Station, said.
TALL Class XVI
TALL Class XVI Cohort includes 25 members from around the state. They visited East Texas and toured ag-related operations ranging from Certified Roses in Tyler and other nurseries to John Soules Food, Brookshire’s facilities, the Stephen F. Austin Poultry Center and Research facilities, area poultry producers, a working sawmill and timber operations.
Charles Long, Ph.D., director of the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Overton, said TALL trains leaders in a wide array of agricultural industries so they can “be effective in their chosen profession and develop as leaders for the modern world within their industry.
“The program makes them effective advocates for ag issues on the local, state, federal and international stage,” he said.
More about TALL
Gov. Dolph Briscoe Jr. championed the creation of the program because he saw the need for TALL in Texas, he said. The Texas Agricultural Lifetime Leadership Extension Program Endowment, made in Briscoe’s name, was provided as an investment in the future leaders of agriculture. It honors his commitment to agriculture, rural communities and Texas.
Participants are chosen based on resumes and their collective experience in agriculture. Around 400 nominations are made each year, Mazurkiewicz said. From that pool, 60 applicants are reviewed and interviewed by the TALL advisory board. Between 22 and 26 applicants are admitted to the program.
There are now TALL programs in 45 states and five international programs. The program started in Texas in 1988. The TALL XVI Cohort will make 436 graduates of the course.
The program includes 480 hours of intensive training equivalent to a 38-hour course load. It’s more than is required for a master’s degree at accredited universities, Mazurkiewicz said.
For more information, visit the TALL website: https://tall.tamu.edu/
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