Grower-Shipper Association Foundation Announces AgKnowledge Program Class IX Graduation

Salinas, CA – The Grower-Shipper Association Foundation and their co-sponsoring partners, the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California and the County of Monterey Agricultural Commissioner, announces the 2015 AgKnowledge Program Class IX  Graduating Fellows. These 23 community members will graduate from the AgKnowledge program after participating in a nine-month executive leadership program. The program focused on educating the participants about Monterey County agriculture and the interdependencies of agriculture, local government and the community. The graduation will take place on Friday, November 13 at Tanimura & Antle, 1 Harris Road, Speckles, CA.

The AgKnowledge program focuses on issues affecting and influencing the local agricultural industry. The issues include food safety and security, labor, immigration, technology, marketing, conservation, urban/agriculture interfacing, pesticides, water and much more.  The Fellows spent nine (9) Fridays between March and November attending seminars and visiting farms and processing facilities while meeting leaders and innovators in the produce industry. One of the program’s most popular facets is “Day with a Farmer”, a day the class fellow spends with a local grower becoming immersed in agriculture from a “boots on the ground” perspective.

2015 AgKnowledge Class IX- Graduating Fellows

• Bob Abrams, Ph.D., P.G., C.Hg. Consulting Hydrogeologist
• Roberto Avila, Director of Innovation, Mann Packing Co. Inc.
• Mari Beraz, Deputy Treasurer-Tax Collector, Monterey County
• Joanne Bravo, Vice President, Pinnacle Bank
• Tim Burns, Code Compliance Manager, Monterey County Resource Management Agency
• Freda Escobar, Permit Coordinator Manager, Monterey County Resource Management Agency
• Angel Garibaldo, Business & Marketing/Communications Strategist, Avenue 831 Consulting Group
• Lina Gomez, CFO, Genesis Freight Lines
• Teo Gonzalez, Chief Deputy, Monterey County Ag Commissioner
• Jerry Hernandez, Analyst, Monterey County Economic Development Department
• Kiely Holcomb, CPA, Manager, Hayashi & Wayland
• Elsa Mendoza Jimenez, MPH, Assistant Director of Health, Monterey County Health Department
• Greg Long, Regional Sales Manager, Central Coast Commercial Banking, Wells Fargo Commercial Banking
• Justin Magaleno, Senior Sales Representative, C.H. Robinson Company
• Bard Mansager, Professor, Naval Postgraduate School 
• Mary Grace Perry, Deputy County Counsel, County of Monterey, Office of the County Counsel
• Jessica Potts, Executive Director, Monterey County Agricultural & Rural Life Museum
• Susan Rimando, Environmental Health Specialist, Monterey County Health Department  
• Marissa Ritter, Director of Marketing & Communications, Grower-Shipper Association
• Sumadhur Shakya, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, California State University Monterey Bay College of Business
• Josh Stratton, Chief of Staff, Monterey County Supervisor John Phillips
• Thomas Truszkowski, Deputy City Manager & Community, Development Director, City of Gonzales
• Sarah Wood, Editor and Publisher, Edible Magazine of Monterey Bay

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Grower-Shipper Association Foundation:                                         
www.growershipperfoundation.org

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.

Source: The Grower-Shipper Association Foundation