Seminar Information
The program consists of ten seminars, including trips to Frankfort, Washington D.C, Kentucky agribusinesses, and to visit agriculture in another state, along with an international trip which is selected with input by the participants. Kentucky based seminars will be conducted at various locations across the state. Educational (non-travel) seminars are 2-3 days in duration. Seminars generally occur once a month in January, February, March, July, October, November, and December. Seminar topics focus on:
- Leadership, Communication, and Management Skills including
- What it takes to be a leader?
- Making presentations
- Working with the media
- Etiquette and business protocol
- Teamwork
- Working with different personalities
- Decision-making
- Conflict resolution
- Understanding the Political Process at the National, State, and Local Levels
- Agricultural Issues and Policies including:
- Agricultural commodity policy
- Environment policy
- Food safety policy and regulations
- Macroeconomic policy
- International trade policy and globalization
- Current food and ag issues affecting farmers, agribusinesses, consumers and rural communities
In addition to in-class seminars, the program also consists of several travel seminars including the following:
- A five day domestic travel seminar to Washington D.C. to learn about the federal public policy process and to interact with national leaders and government agencies.
- A five day domestic travel seminar to another state to visit with farmers and ag leaders to better understand their agricultural economy, issues and challenges (budget permitting) Previous classes have visited the central valley in California and North Carolina.
- A 12-14 day international travel seminar to visit a major agricultural producing region of the world that is a competitor of Kentucky and U.S. agriculture. In addition to observing agriculture in another country, the international seminar exposes participants to differing cultures and customs and allows class members to grasp a better understanding of the effect that globalization is having on the U.S. agricultural and overall economies. Previous classes have traveled to Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and Mexico.