• Caetano Albuquerque, Assistant Professor, California State University Monterey Bay, College of Science
• Reba Barnwell, Tax Director, Clifton, Larson & Allen (CLA)
• Laurie Bend, Marketing & Operations Director, Meals on Wheels of the Salinas Valley
• Audries Blake, Associate Director of Community Relations, University California, Santa Cruz
• Rebecca Chesbrough, Business Analyst, Central California Lettuce Producers Cooperative
• Colleen Courtney, Senior Customer Accounts Manager, Central Coast Community Energy (3CE)
• Jonathan Geisler, Owner, Geisler Marketing
• Alfredo Gonzalez, Northern District, Quality Manager, Driscoll’s
• Juan Gonzalez, Dean of Career Technical Education & Workforce Development, Hartnell College
• Sarah Hardgrave, Deputy General Manager, Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency
• Edlin Hernandez, Career Program Coordinator, Hartnell Colleg
• Shaowen Hua, Associate Professor & Faculty Lead of Accounting, California State University, Monterey Bay, College of Business
• Jackson Kesecker, Realtor, Keller Williams Salinas Valley Estates
• Jenny Kuan, Associate Professor & Executive Director of the Institute for Innovation & Economic Development, California State University, Monterey Bay, College of Business
• Tim Lewis, Chief Deputy Agricultural Commissioner, Monterey County Ag Commissioner’s Office
• Randy McMurray, Supervisor, Hazardous Materials Management Services, Monterey County Environmental Health Bureau
• Miriam Mendoza, Finance Manager, Monterey County Health Department
• Fidel Navarro, Retail Sales Coordinator, Driscoll’s
• Jeannine Pacioni, District Attorney, Monterey County
• Kristina Parson, Chief Deputy, Monterey County Tax Collector
• Karina Pelayo, Executive Assistant, Monterey County Supervisor Chris Lopez’s Office
• Ruth Rodriguez, Communications & Community Engagement Director, CHISPA
• Craig Spencer, Director of Housing & Community Development, Monterey County
• Phil Tavarez, Fleet & Bulk Fueling Supervisor, Sturdy Oil Company
• Lourdez Vigil-Ramirez, Accountant, Monterey County Ag Commissioner’s Office
• Warren Yu, United States Department of Defense Veteran
• Emily Zefferman, Ecologist/Program Manager, Resource Conservation District of Monterey County

2024 AgKnowledge Class XVI – Fellows

• Alena Anousinh, Water Quality Program Associate, California Marine Sanctuary Foundation
• Mindy Carpenter, Head of Field Operations & Farm Implementation, FarmWise
• Michael Castro, Director of Community Initiatives & Partnerships, Community Foundation for Monterey County
• Sam Eastman, Vice President, Brent Eastman Insurance Services
• Seth Gustafson, Assistant Professor, Applied Environmental Sciences, California State University Monterey Bay
• Piret Harmon, General Manager, Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency
• Thomas Horvath, Interim Dean, College of Science, California State University Monterey Bay
• Christianna Kearns, Associate Chief Operating Officer, Salinas Valley Health
• Taven Kinison Brown, Community Development Director, City of Gonzales
• Xiaotong Liu, Assistant Professor, College of Business, California State University Monterey Bay
• Kendall Mills, Senior Auditor, Clifton Larson Allen
• Manny Morales, Owner, Gerd Schneider Nursery
• Geoffrey Morgan, President/CEO, CHISPA
• Debbie Paolinelli, Assistant County Administrative Officer, Monterey County
• Camille Polson, Director of Finance & Property Management, Ag Land Trust
• Dora Ramirez, Union Representative, UFCW Local 5
• Luis Ricardo Rodriquez, Hydrologist, County of Monterey Housing & Community Development
• Kimberly Rivera-Zamora, Sales Representative, Driscoll’s
• Larry Samuels, Special Advisor to the Chancellor, University of California, Santa Cruz
• Jake Stroud, Assistant Treasurer-Tax Collector, Monterey County
• Ram Subramaniam, Vice President, Academic Affairs, Hartnell College
• Karla Tinajero, Finance Manager II, Monterey County Health Department
• Ezequiel Vega Rios, Assistant County Administrative Officer, Monterey County

2019 AgKnowledge Class XIII – Fellows

• Leslie Boni, Associate Professor of Finance, CSUMB
• Alejandro Del-Pozo, Integrated Pest Management Advisor Entomology, University of California Cooperative Extension
• Priscilla Du, Agricultural Biologist/Inspector III, Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office
• Dash Dunkell, Stewardship Director, Elkhorn Slough Foundation
• Brenda Eskenazi, Professor of Epidemiology, University of California Berkeley
• Luis Flores, Business Agent, Teamsters Union Local 890
• David Frisbey, Planning & Air Monitoring Manager, Monterey Air Resources District
• Mostafa Ghous, Dean of Academic Affairs, South County Education Services, Hartnell College
• Daniel Gonzalez, Executive Director, Center for Community Advocacy
• Ariana Green, Associate Transportation Planner, Transportation Agency of Monterey County (TAMC)
• Randy Ishii, Chief of Public Works, Monterey County Resource Management Agency (RMA)
• Joann Iwamoto, Cannabis Program Manager, Monterey County CAO-IGLA Cannabis Program
• Amanda Krasa, Water Quality Specialist, Monterey County Health Department Laboratory
• Genevieve LeBlanc, Food Environment Lead, Blue Zones Project
• Sonja Lolland, Vice President Academic Affairs, Hartnell College
• Karen Morrison, Science & Policy Advisor/Environmental Program Manager, California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR)
• Eric Mueller, CPA, Chang, Nguyen, Van Ruler LLP
• Elyse Rivas, Associate Equal Opportunity Analyst, Monterey County Civil Rights Office
• Enid Ryce, Director, CSUMB Salinas Center for Arts & Culture, CSUMB
• Brandon Swanson, Interim Chief of Planning, Monterey County Resource Management Agency (RMA)
• Roger Van Horn, Supervisor Environmental Health Specialist, Monterey County Environmental Health Bureau

The AgKnowledge Program focuses on issues and public policies affecting and influencing the local Monterey County agricultural industry. The issues include but are not limited to food safety, food security, labor, immigration, technology, agri-marketing, conservation and the environment, urban-agriculture interface, air, and water.

The Fellows will spend nine (9) Fridays between March and November attending scientific and policy forums, visiting farms and processing facilities along with meeting key leaders and innovators within the fresh produce industry. One of the program’s most popular facets is the “Boots on the Ground Day,” spending time with a local grower becoming immersed in agriculture from a hands-on perspective.

The AgKnowledge Program is co-sponsored by the Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner’s office
and the Grower-Shipper Association.

The Grower-Shipper Association Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote and educate about the health, social and cultural benefits of agriculture to the community and society as a whole.

2017 AgKnowledge Class XI- Fellows

• Sean Capistrano – Manager, Hayashi Wayland
• Amy Clymo – Engineering and Compliance Manager, Monterey Bay Air Resources District
• Jay Donato – Internal Organizer, SEIU Local 521
• Shawne Ellerbee – Deputy Director of Administrative Services, RMA, County of Monterey
• Paul Farmer – CEO, Salinas Valley Chamber of Commerce
• Dr. Scott Fausti – Associate Professor of Ag Business, CSUMB-College of Business
• Ben Figueroa – Vice President of Administrative Services, Hartnell Community College
• Krista Hanni – Planning, Evaluation, and Program Manager, Monterey County Health Department
• Hannah Wallis – Agricultural Programs Biologist, Monterey County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office
• Pamela Krone-Davis – Agricultural Water Quality Coordinator, CA Marine Sanctuary Foundation, NOAA
• Khaled Mabrouk – Owner/Operational Engineering Leader, Sustainable Productivity Solutions
• Clementina Macias – Director of Farmworker Education & Advancement Program, Hartnell Community College
• Jacob Martinez – Founder, Executive Director, Digital Nest
• Amanda McEldowney – Relationship Manager, Wells Fargo Bank
• Andy Myrick – Economic Development Manager, City of Salinas
• Kate Roberts – President, Monterey Bay Economic Partnership
• Roger Royse – Owner, Royse Law Firm – AgTech
• Enrique Saavedra – Acting Chief of Roads & Bridges, RMA, County of Monterey
• Rosemary Soto – Office of Community Engagement and Strategic Advocacy/Manager of Gang Violence Prevention Initiative, Monterey County Administrative Office
• Sandra Tauriac – Hazardous Materials Management Service Supervisor, Monterey County Department of Environmental Health
• April Theis, Administrative Assistant, Monterey County Farm Bureau
• Jill Townzen – California Department of Pesticide Regulation, Chief Legislative Analyst

# # #

The AgKnowledge Program focuses on issues and public policies affecting and influencing the local Monterey County agricultural industry. The issues include but are not limited to food safety, food security, labor, immigration, technology, agri-marketing, conservation and the environment, urban-agriculture interface, air, and water.

The Fellows will spend nine (9) Fridays between March and November attending scientific and policy forums, visiting farms and processing facilities along with meeting key leaders and innovators within the fresh produce industry. One of the program’s most popular facets is the “Boots on the Ground Day,” spending time with a local grower becoming immersed in agriculture from a hands-on perspective.

www.growershipperfoundation.org

The Grower-Shipper Association Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to Raise community awareness of the positive impact Agriculture makes in our lives.

Proud to partner with the Monterey County Ag Commissioner’s Office as a sponsor of the Program.

The purpose of AgKnowledge is to provide policy makers and community leaders the opportunity to “walk in the shoes of a farmer”, to see Monterey County through the eyes of those directly involved in the many facets of agriculture, to be a more informed consumer and to encourage AgKnowledge graduates to extend to others the knowledge and awareness they have gained through participation in the program. It is the hope and expectation that the Class Members will better understand the heart of those that work the land and/or otherwise contribute to the production and distribution of agricultural commodities.

Over the next nine months your seminars and your “Boots on the Ground Day” will take you throughout the diverse geography of Monterey County with farm and agribusiness tours as well as “hands on” experiences covering topics such as; diversity of crops commodities, field and food safety, marketing, technology, politics, regulations, labor, immigration, cultural diversity and a history of the industry and some of the families that make up Monterey County Agriculture.

The intent of the program is to provide you with a context for Monterey County Agriculture:

Historical beginnings and/or current overviewGeography and land stewardshipCrops, technology and economicsGenerational families, cultural issues, workforceComplex Issues – providing different points of viewImpact on the communities – developing common threads among each of the seminars

Program Topics:

• Food Safety
• Regulations affecting agriculture, including competing regulatory interests
• Water
• Supply, quality, regulations and politics
• Groundwater protection, salt water intrusion, overdraft
• Immigration, labor issues, cultural influence of the workforce (past, present, projected)
• Pest prevention, detection, eradication, integrated pest management, pesticide use (synthetic & natural), conventional and organic farming methods.
• Technology, research, opportunities
• Global markets, world competition and trade issues
• Marketing
• Trends in the marketplace
• Value-added
• Industry consolidation
• Sustainability
• Public Relations
• Consumer attitudes
• Health and nutrition programs
• Air Resource Regulations
• Urban/Ag Interfacing, Ag Buffers, Conservation Easements, Williamson Act

Land use issues affecting agriculture:

Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) or Genetically Engineered Organism (GEO)Ag TourismEducation (certificates, degrees, extension, life-long learning)

The goal of AgKnowledge is to assist policy-makers and community leaders in developing an informed appreciation of the broad spectrum of issues affecting agriculture. Fellows will better understand the people, the families, the history and the interdependencies of the agricultural industry. AgKnowledge will bring Class Members a face to the agricultural family; they will see common values with their own families and understanding the overall economic backbone – the “us” factor: All of Monterey County will enjoy a better quality of life with a healthy and sustainable agricultural industry.

The program will provide the Class Fellows with educational presentations, tours, hands-on experiences and panel discussions with speakers from diverse backgrounds and different views regarding the complex issues that affect and comprise the agricultural industry.

The long term goal is that AgKnowledge will develop and sustain community understanding and support for growers, ranchers and all those involved in agriculture in Monterey County.