By Martha Mintz, ACN President
It’s a bustling season for ag communicators. Many of you are recovering from CattleCon; others are gearing up for Commodity Classic. Then, of course, there are those doing both or attending any number of other industry meetings of various sizes and held in interesting locations. As I write this, I’m headed to an agronomy meeting that includes ice fishing. This is why ag communicators opt to meet in the summer!
Ag Media Summit is always a highlight of my year. I reconnect with old friends, make new ones, celebrate the amazing work of my fellow communicators, find story leads among sponsors and sessions, and pick up tips and tools to help refine my skills. It may seem a distant event, but it’s at the forefront in the minds of those on AMS Committees.
Wedged between deadlines, travel, and life, volunteers from Ag Communicators Network, Livestock Publications Council, and Ag Media Council are hard at work hammering out the details for the event held August 3-6 in Kansas City. Soon, they’ll be announcing tours, speakers, sessions, and more.
I’ve long been involved on the ACN board and in various committees, but I don’t know that I appreciated the sheer amount of volunteer hours members dedicated to this group until I stepped into the role of president. The ACN president gets to dabble in a lot of committees. In each, I see people who are excited and passionate about the industry, their jobs, and ACN.
The Diversity Advancement Committee, officially created at the last board meeting, has been particularly gratifying to take part in. Together, we’re working to identify ways we can attract talented individuals from diverse backgrounds to our industry and organization to strengthen both. I was excited to see the next meeting invite included a few new names.
Sometimes, there aren’t enough hours in the day for all the volunteer opportunities we would like to take part in, and that means making tough choices. Longtime passionate ACN member Kenna Rathai recently resigned from the ACN board to free time to pursue a long-term service goal that became available. She’s now serving as the District 4 Director on the ACES Alumni Association Board for her alma mater, the University of Illinois. They’re fortunate to have her, as I’m sure she’ll bring the same level of commitment and professionalism to this new role. She assures me she will continue to be a fixture in the ACN community, and I hope you all will join me in congratulating her on this achievement.
If you’re not already on a committee, I encourage you to get on the website to look through the options. When you renew your membership, indicate areas in which you’d like to be involved or reach out to current committee members. There’s currently an opening for the Photo Awards Committee chair, a job that requires very little time or experience and is a great place to start. – Mintz is a freelance writer with Corral Creek Communications