Young South Dakotan Selected for National Agricultural Leadership Program

Huron – Josh Geigle, a young rancher from Creighton, S.D., has been selected to be a part of the Partners in Agricultural Leadership (PAL) honors program by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). Geigle and nine other young ag leaders from across the U.S. were chosen for the PAL program through a competitive process after being nominated by their state Farm Bureau organization.

The focus of Farm Bureau’s PAL program is to enhance participants’ leadership skills and aid them in discovering how they can best use their abilities for the benefit of agriculture. Geigle and his wife, Shasta, are former South Dakota Farm Bureau Young Farmers & Ranchers (YF&R) Committee state chairs, and Josh currently serves as the President of the Pennington / Jackson County Farm Bureau.

“Farm Bureau welcomes the 10 participants of the seventh PAL class and looks forward to the role they will play moving forward to strengthen American agriculture,” said AFBF President Bob Stallman. “The PAL program allows participants to continue on a leadership path within the Farm Bureau using their experiences from YF&R and other agricultural leadership roles.”

Through PAL, young leaders will be given the opportunity to develop their skills in problem solving, persuasion, and consensus building while learning about critical agricultural and public policy issues. Upon graduation from the PAL program, they are prepared to represent agriculture in the media, on speaking circuits, or in legislative activities.

“Josh has already proven himself to be a dedicated leader for agriculture, and the Partners in Agricultural Leadership program will be an excellent opportunity for him to travel, study, and learn how to advocate for farmers and ranchers,” said Lowell Mesman, YF&R Coordinator for the South Dakota Farm Bureau.

State Farm Bureaus submit one applicant per state for consideration for the PAL program. Applicants must be “Sweet 16” finalists in the national YF&R Discussion Meet, top 10 finalists in the YF&R Achievement Award or Excellence in Agriculture Award competitions, former members of the AFBF YF&R committee, or former state YF&R committee chairs.

The program is sponsored by the Monsanto Company, the Farm Credit System, Agri-Pulse Communications and AFBF.