Alphabetically by State
Jacqueline Hrabok | Alaska
Jacqueline Hrabok is a joint faculty professor with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Institute of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Extension & Northwest Campus High Latitude Range Management Program. Coming from the Sami Education Institute Kaamanen Finland, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences Uppsala, and Lakehead University Thunder Bay Canada, Dr. Hrabok holds a PhD, MSc, and HBSc with six years of post-doc and internship experiences in Arctic biological research. Jackie has lived in remote Indigenous communities in the circumpolar north for the past 23 years. As an ecologist and artisan, her teaching, research, and service interests include reindeer husbandry and applied arts with specialties in animal health and disease, meat preservation, tanning fish & reindeer hides into leather, drone & GoPro nature photography, and creating hands-on science & art experiences for youth. Jackie smiles most when traveling the world for business and pleasure exploring cultures, people, and languages. She thrives at being a hockey goalie and is most content fishing, pack rafting, playing softball, scuba diving, and exploring nature with her Siberian Husky Yeti.
Darren Snyder | Alaska
In 2008, Darren began his service through the UAF Cooperative Extension Service in the traditional homeland of the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian people of Southeast Alaska. His responsibilities are split between two favorite topics, food production and youth development, as the 4-H agent and Agriculture/Horticulture faculty. Connecting these programs in areas such as school and community gardens, outdoor skills programs and community emergency food preparedness has helped him keep a focus while addressing a very wide array of community development needs. Darren has a passion to provide opportunities for growth and learning for people of all ages and actively partners with people and organizations who have similar interests and goals. Personally, Darren loves to actively play (mountain bike, soccer, frisbee, etc.), cook, eat and relax with family and friends.
Joshua Farella | Arizona
Joshua Farella is a 4-H Assistant Agent in Coconino County Arizona. He supports a wide variety of county and state programs. As a 4-H Agent, Joshua has championed development of a statewide metalworking program serving counties and tribal nations across Arizona. His efforts also include supervising Arizona’s Military Teen Adventure Camps, and serving on the AZ 4-H State Shooting Sports Committee. Joshua also serves on the National 4-H Council’s Access, Equity, and Belonging Committee where he co-chairs the American Indian/Alaska Native Champions Group.
Aimee Novak | Arizona
Chef Aimee Novak is a culinary enthusiast known for her innovative approach to cooking and passion for using and promoting locally sourced ingredients. After obtaining an international culinary degree at the Art Institute of Phoenix, she opened her restaurant Soldi Creative Cuisine, quickly becoming a local favorite. Currently, Aimee works for the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension as the Food Safety Program Coordinator for Yavapai County, providing food safety training and certification for food establishment managers. Aimee also teaches community culinary programs emphasizing food safety in the kitchen and helping participants develop foundational cooking techniques. Aimee focuses her presentation on practical and simple solutions for staying organized in the kitchen. In addition, she focuses on capturing edible food waste while incorporating flavors and elements from cultures worldwide to create exciting, nutritious meals.
Evelyn Whitmer | Arizona
Evelyn Whitmer grew up in Southern Arizona, ventured off into the military and came back to Arizona where her and her husband raised their three daughters. She attended Northern Arizona University while working as a Military Police Woman and then went to work for the Juvenile Justice System in Flagstaff. When she returned to Southern Arizona, she became the regional director overseeing four counties with eight family programs and over 150 staff. These programs worked with families that were already in crisis. He passion was to work with families before they were living in a crisis situation and she found the position in Cooperative Extension that would allow her to create programs that provided skills for families. She has worked with state teams and in her county to create programs involving child development, parenting, oral health, nutrition, and financial literacy. Recognizing that you can teach people skills, but if they don’t have access to various means or services there will be little to no improvement. She created community health groups and was given two million dollars from a local foundation to focus on the social determinants of health in her county. The program changed many aspects that hindered the people of her county. In her free time, she likes to go swimming and hiking with her family and two rescue dogs and will never turn down time spent on the beach.
Jhalendra Rijal | California
Jhalendra Rijal is an Area Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Advisor with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR) and is an Associate Director for agricultural IPM with the statewide IPM Program (UCIPM). Jhalendra’s responsibilities include conducting need-based research and educating growers, consultants, and other stakeholders on sustainable pest management of California’s tree fruit and nut crops. The broad research areas include addressing invasive and endemic pest issues, drought/climate change impacts on pests, and ultimately facilitating the growers in adopting economically and environmentally sound pest management solutions. Jhalendra holds a Master’s in Entomology from Tribhuvan University, Nepal, and a Ph.D. in Entomology from Virginia Tech. He has authored over 30 peer-reviewed and over 100 extension articles and contributed to dozens of UC and industry-led newsletters, podcasts, and other media. He has organized and spoken in over 130 symposia, seminars, roundtables, and other professional and extension events. The most satisfying aspect of the Research-Extension interface is that you get to do what you are interested in, and by doing so, you are helping the public! In a collaborative research/extension project with UC colleagues and industry collaborators, we were able to promote the adoption of a “green” pest control method (i.e., mating disruption), against the most destructive nut crop pest – navel orangeworm, to ~25% statewide acreage. The team received five professional awards for this work at the state, regional and national levels. Jhalendra’s hobbies are staying active, playing soccer, and watching comedy.
Phoebe Gordon| California
Phoebe Gordon is an orchard systems advisor in Central California. She has been with University of California Cooperative Extension since January 2017. Before that she worked as an agronomist for A&L Western Agricultural Laboratories. Phoebe grew up in the Mojave desert of Kern County and got her undergraduate degree in Plant Biology at University of California, Davis. She then moved to Ohio to pursue a Ph.D. in Horticulture and Crop Science. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, eating, and being outdoors
Melina Bricker | Colorado
Originally from western Washington State, Melina Bricker relocated to northwest Colorado in early 2022 and began working as the Family and Consumer Sciences Specialist for Colorado State University. Her background in social services, education, and psychology graft uniquely onto her role as the FCS Specialist–it means while she’s teaching about nutrition, cooking, and home economics, she is also including the ways stress, behavioral health, and family systems impact individual health and wellbeing. Melina is passionate about reaching people where they are with what they need, and believes Extension is a truly exceptional approach to doing that very thing. Bringing accessible, meaningful, practical education to individuals and families in Routt County is more than a job to her: it’s an opportunity to connect, develop, inform, and contribute to incredible people in an amazing part of Colorado. She finds her work mirrors her passions outside the workplace–writing, baking, physical activity, exploration of nature, and spending time with her family give her incredible joy. She is entering the dissertation phase of her PhD this year, and will continue to incorporate her research findings into her Extension work moving forward. One accomplishment she is most proud of is the publication of a book, Student Success through Micro-Adversity, co-authored by Melina and her husband, Ty. It focuses on motivation, resilience, and practical educational strategies to address the effects of traumatic and stressful experiences in childhood when related behaviors appear in educational settings. She plans to continue their research and writing, and hopes to publish further work on nutrition, physical health, and the role both play in addressing issues of emotional dysregulation and behavioral health. This is a large part of why she decided to become and Extension Agent/Specialist: she is devoted to understanding and educating others on how to reach optimal health, create positive relationships, engage in community-oriented behaviors, and how each person can live their life to the fullest through practical personal adjustments. When she’s not working or writing, her favorite hobbies include skiing, rock climbing, playing the piano, and creating art.
Susan Carter | Colorado
Susan L. Carter was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania and always loved the outdoors, plants and animals. She moved to Colorado, following her then boyfriend, now husband of 28 years. Susan started working with plants in 8th grade during career day and continued to follow that path. She has worked for nurseries, landscapers, had her own design company, and continued to educate herself on plants and related topics. Susan started with CSU Extension in 2014 in Grand Junction and recently moved to Chaffee County as the Director of Extension there. Susan is most proud of the development of the Guidebook, After the Disaster: A Toolkit for Rural Landowners after being involved with the Pine Gulch Fire in 2020 and then assisting landowners with reclamation and much more. Susan decided to become an Extension Agent after she had been involved with a local Landscape Show for 5 years that the local Horticulture Agent organized. One of his Master Gardeners said she should apply for his job when he retired, so she did. Kind of the culmination of all my background and I am such a mom personality. Susan loves to camp, fish, hunt, teach native plants and spend time with her husband, two kids and a menagerie of animals.
Brooke Matthew | Colorado
Brooke Matthew is the Southeast Area Director and Agriculture Specialist with Colorado State University. Brooke returned to CSU Extension in January 2023. She was previously a 4-H Youth Development Extension Agent in Otero and Crowley counties for eight years. The last nine and half years she has been a faculty instructor at Otero Junior College, where she taught agriculture business and animal science courses along with being an academic advisor for students majoring in agriculture fields of studies. Brooke is looking forward to being back in Extension in a leadership role for the Southeast Area. In her spare time, Brooke enjoys spending time with her two kids and attending there multiple activities along with helping husband, Dustin, with their cattle and farming operations.
Katie Seelhoff | Colorado
Katie is a Family and Consumer Sciences and 4-H Youth Development agent with Colorado State University in Morgan County. Growing up as a 4-H member in Weld County Colorado, Katie was passionate about Extension from a young age. That passion lead her to pursue a career in extension. Katie holds a Bachelors of Human Development and Family Studies, and a Masters of Extension Education from Colorado State University. In her spare time, Katie enjoys traveling and cross stitching. She hopes to leave a lasting impact on her community through her work in Extension.
Merielle Stamm | Colorado
I’m Merielle Stamm. I’m the 4-H Youth Development Specialist for Chaffee and Lake County in Colorado. Prior to starting this role last year, I was the 4-H specialist in Denver County for 3 years. I have a mix of experience doing both rural and urban 4-H. My true passion is the outdoors and I spend my free time backpacking, trail running, hiking, biking, and rafting. It’s been wonderful living in the mountains and being able to integrate more outdoor education into our 4-H program.
Peggy Stoltenberg | Colorado
Peggy Stoltenberg is the Partnership and Project Development Manager for the Colorado State University (CSU) Northeast Regional Engagement Center (NREC) in Sterling, Colorado. She holds a bachelor’s degree from CSU in Business Administration, and is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Adult Education. Her days are often spent building relationships, connecting, and listening. This might mean attending CSU or community meetings, facilitating a program for underserved community members, or just having a conversation in the grocery store. “My brain is always in connect mode,” she shares. “In every meeting and every conversation, I am actively thinking … how can I help this person connect to something or someone that will make their life better and help enrich the community at the same time?”
Peggy’s passion is co-creating culturally relevant programming with community members traditionally underserved by Extension. She has elevated NREC into a statewide Extension model for convening community conversations to identify the needs of all community members, co-creating community projects and programs, and identifying and developing community leaders.
Peggy’s listening and relationship building skills are put to good use at home too. She manages a four generational household with members’ ages ranging from 2 to 80. “My home life is a bit complicated and often messy, but always 100% worth every moment,” she shares. “Nothing beats seeing the glowing face of a proud great grandmother as her great granddaughter takes her first steps, finishes her first puzzle, or crawls up with a hug and says I love you grandma!”
Kristina Sayama | Guam
Karen Richel | Idaho
After a life-altering illness, Karen Richel returned to school full-time when she was 33 years old. To avoid student loan debt, she saved $10,000 in one year; her job paid $17,000! Four years later, she graduated with honors from Virginia Tech where she earned a B.S. in Apparel, Housing and Resource Management with a concentration in Family Financial Management and a M.S. in Career and Technical Education with a concentration in Family and Consumer Sciences. When she graduated, she still had $3,000 of that original $10,000.
Since 2008, Karen has served as the Family Finance educator in the ten North Idaho counties for University of Idaho Extension. She is an Associate Professor and Extension Educator in Family and Consumer Sciences for Latah County, Idaho. She provides basic financial education for every age and socioeconomic group including families living with low-income, current/former inmates, and youth. Her youngest participant was two and her oldest was 106. She offers classes, workshops and simulations on topics ranging from goal setting and tracking expenses to retirement and end-of-life planning. In addition, she is an Accredited Financial Counselor® and a Certified Money Coach®. These designations allow her to provide free, one-on-one counseling sessions to help community members build strong financial foundations and balanced lives.
When Karen isn’t fulfilling her dream of helping others towards their financial freedom, she loves her time with her husband and 10 year old son in glamping (camping with electricity) adventures and traveling to fun new destinations.
Campbell Barrett | Montana
Campbell has been a 4-H Youth Development agent for more than 20 years, first in Virginia and now in Missoula County, Montana. He was a 4-H member in Roanoke, Virginia, where he developed a passion for 4-H Camping and the many Teen Leadership opportunities available through 4-H. Career highlights so far include seeing former 4-H members become Extension agents and having 4-H alumni become new 4-H parents. Campbell is most proud of the leadership skill development and Leadership Project successes of the Missoula 4-H Ambassador teams over the years. When he is not busy serving the people and places of Montana, Campbell enjoys reading, road trips, fly fishing, and studying the life and artwork of Charles M. Russell.
Melanie Gutierrez | New Mexico
Hi! I am Melanie Gutierrez from Lincoln County, New Mexico. I am the 4-H and Ag Agent for the county. My biggest passion in Extension is by far the 4-H program. I truly enjoy working with the kids and seeing the positive impact that 4-H makes in their lives. The livestock portion of 4-H is also a large passion of mine. Passions outside of Extension??? Is there such a thing??? Really at this point my kids are 4-H age so 4-H is my passion. We do enjoy cattle work in the spring and fall. The accomplishment in my personal life I am the most proud of are my 2 kids. I didn’t choose Extension it chose me. Honestly though I enjoy working with the youth and helping make a positive impact in their lives.
Talisha Valdez | New Mexico
Hi, my name is Talisha Valdez I’m from Clayton, NM. I work as the Program Director in Union County in a single agent county, I cover 4-H, Ag, FCS, and Community Economic Development. My main passion is the 4-H youth Development Program. I love to rodeo, along with my two girls and husband and train horses for my girls. My girls also show lambs, pigs and participate in sports so, I love going and supporting them in everything they do. I received the Excellence in Student Achievement Award in improving Student Achievement for the school enrichment programs we do in our local school systems. I come from a long line of Extension Agents as my grandmother was an Extension Home Economist for 39 years along with my mother being an Extension Home Economist for 33 years all in Union County. You can say it is in my blood, but Agriculture /4-H is a better fit for me than Family Consumer Sciences (Extension Home Economics) although I do still have responsibilities in that area. I am excited to continue to grow the program from an already great foundation that was started before me. My favorite hobby is running barrels.
Holly Lyons | Oregon
Holly Lyons is a 5th generation native Oregonian, Oregon State alum, wife of 23 years, mother to three teenagers and fur-mom to The World’s Most Adorable Doggo. A lifelong learner with unquenchable curiosity, Holly has earned degrees in arts and science, and recently completed a Business Fundamentals graduate program with a focus on Organizational Leadership. She’s held roles in everything from wildland firefighter to accountant, homeschool mom to office manager. She appreciates all the unpredictable and intense seasons Central Oregon has to offer and enjoys skiing the slopes of Mt. Bachelor, paddleboarding on the Deschutes River, and hiking through Oregon’s beautiful forests. The Administrative Office Manager role with OSU Deschutes County Extension offers Holly the learning environment she craves while providing many opportunities to apply her years of diverse education and work experience into supporting Extension faculty and programs. Her passions are streamlining processes, assembling teams, and building strategies to maximize resources and Extension’s impact in her county and beyond.
Rachel Werling | Oregon
Rachel Werling is the OSU Land Steward Program Coordinator out of OSU’s Southern Oregon Research and Extension Center. She has a master’s in Plant Biology from Arizona State University and BS in biology from Humboldt State University. She served in the Peace Corps in Ecuador, and lived and worked in Oaxaca, Mexico for many years. Rachel has taught watershed education funded by OWEB for OSU in Jackson County. She has worked as a field biologist with birds, mammals, riparian systems, plants and is the president of the Siskiyou chapter of the Native Plant Society of Oregon.
Under Rachel’s leadership and with the help of many partners and volunteers, the Land Steward Program has expanded its reach from an informally organized county based program to a program with state and national potential. The proven effective training now has an award winning (ANREP Outstanding Educational Materials Gold award 2023) curriculum Fostering Stewardship: A How to Guide for Trainers. The online course has reached participants in 18 Oregon Counties, five states, Canadian Provinces and Costa Rica. The Program won the Oregon State University Extension Associations Search for Excellence in 2022. Continuing the growth of this impactful program though partnerships and collaborations is her programmatic goal.
Season Hoard | Washington
Season is an Associate Professor in the Community & Economic Development Unit of WSU Extension in Pullman, Washington. Her expertise is social science research methods and program and policy evaluation. She has led or co-led numerous evaluation efforts for federal, state, and local agencies in biased policing, housing and homelessness, commercial driver supply shortages, food system impacts, broadband Internet access, and more. She earned her Ph.D. in Political Science with a focus on comparative public policy and gender equality policy from Washington State University. Upon receiving her Ph.D., Season began working in Extension at the Division of Governmental Studies and Services. She also teaches two courses a semester for the School of Politics, Philosophy, and Public Affairs in the WSU College of Arts and Sciences. She regularly teach courses in comparative politics, European politics, gender and politics, and research methods. She enjoys teaching and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students in applied and evaluation research. In her “spare time”, she enjoys just sitting on the couch and watching movies with her daughter and nieces or reading. She thinks that using your “spare time” to just sit on your couch and do nothing is severely underrated.
Bryce McKenzie | Wyoming
Bryce McKenzie is from Buffalo, WY, where he and his wife, Sarah, operate BAM Sheep Co. Following high school, he attended Northwest College in Powell, WY on a livestock judging scholarship, and served as the 2012-2013 Wyoming FFA State President. Bryce continued to the University of Wyoming (UW) where he earned a Bachelor’s of Agriculture Communication. During his time at UW, he was part of the Collegiate Wool Growers, and coached the Collegiate Wool Judging team under Dr. Whit Stewart. Upon graduation, Bryce returned to Buffalo, WY and worked at Mountain Meadow Wool Mill, specializing in raw wool intake, custom processing, and the initial phases of the mill process. He now works as the 4-H/Youth Development Educator for the University of Wyoming Extension in Johnson County. He enjoys working with youth and providing traditional agricultural sciences to them, as well as introducing them to the other amazing facets of 4-H, such as STEM, outdoor recreation, leadership, public speaking, and much more. Bryce is very appreciative of the relationships that he has formed from his involvement Extension, in judging livestock shows around the country, and thoroughly enjoys advocating for the agricultural industry and youth alike.
Abby Perry | Wyoming
Abby Perry has been a University of Wyoming Extension educator in Carbon County for just over eight years. She studied horticulture and range ecology in her undergrad and ag economics in graduate school. She enjoys opportunities to teach youth about ag and natural resources and works regularly with early elementary students. In recent years she has been focusing on urban deer topics and the relationship between beautification and economic development. Abby loves Extension work because of the relationships she gets to build, problems she helps solve, and the variety in her daily work.
Abby is a wife and mother to three boys (8, 5, and 1.5). She enjoys reading, sewing, and working in her flower gardens. She also teaches dance on the side and enjoys the opportunity to be a part of her local community.