KEYNOTE SPEAKERS |
 | Macroeconomic Implications for Kansas Landowners Brian C. Briggeman - Professor Director, Arthur Capper Cooperative Center Brian Briggeman is a Professor and Director of the Arthur Capper Cooperative Center in the Department of Agricultural Economics at Kansas State University. Dr. Briggeman’s research and extension program focuses on agricultural finance, cooperative management, and macroeconomics. As Capper Center Director, he leads and delivers educational programs for farmer cooperative CEOs, CFOs, employees, and directors. Dr. Briggeman also teaches agricultural finance and cooperative management and advises a number of graduate students. |
 | Farm Economy Outlook Dr. Brady Brewer - Associate Professor Agricultural Economics Department at Kansas State University Brady’s research agenda includes the broader topics of agribusiness and profitability, agricultural finance, and production/supply chain issues. His extension program includes education on credit and lending to both farmers and bankers as well as working with agribusinesses on a variety of financial management topics. Brady grew up on a family farm in Oklahoma that raised wheat, soybeans, alfalfa, and cattle. He received a B.S. in agricultural economics and accounting from Oklahoma State University and later earned both his M.S. and Ph.D. from Kansas State University in Agricultural Economics. |
| What Type of Lease is Best for Your Farm? Robin Reid - Extension Farm Economist Agricultural Economics Department at Kansas State University Robin Reid is an Extension Farm Economist with the Agricultural Economics Department at Kansas State University. Robin works on a variety of economic topics including farm policy, farm financial management, land values, Women in Ag. programming, and much more. Robin grew up on a farm in Wisconsin and earned a B.S. in Agricultural Business from UW-River Falls. She also holds an M.S. in Agricultural Economics from K-State. |
 | Federal Tax Policy Update Components of a Good Written Lease (breakout session) Roger McEowen - Agricultural Law & Tax Topics Roger McEowen is the Kansas Farm Bureau Professor of Agricultural Law and Taxation, Washburn University School of Law, Topeka, KS. Roger focuses on legal and tax issues that agricultural producers, agricultural businesses, and rural landowners face. He teaches an undergraduate course in agricultural law at Kansas State University in addition to agricultural law and tax courses at the law school. His website, www.washburnlaw.edu/waltr(link is external) contains much information on ag law and tax topics and provides access to his “Agricultural Law and Taxation” blog. |
BREAKOUT SESSION SPEAKERS |
| Wind and Solar Leases Wendee Grady – Wendee Grady Law Office, LLC With 19 years of experience in private law practice, at a state agency, and with an agricultural trade organization, Wendee has returned to private practice and is positioned to help her clients with their estate planning and general agricultural law needs. Wendee works with individuals and families on their estate planning, business, and farm transition needs. She is also pleased to provide services to farmers and ranchers on water law issues, review and negotiation of renewable energy leases and transmission easements, as well as represents and advocates for clients before regulatory bodies. |
| Farm Transition Planning Ashlee Westerhold - Director of AgKansitions Agricultural Economics Department at Kansas State University Ashlee earned her Bachelors and Masters in Agricultural Economics from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Westerhold served as an Area Extension Educator at the University of Idaho where she created, delivered and collaborated on major risk management programs. Westerhold has always been passionate about Succession Planning because of her advisor, Dr. Ron Hanson. Her main objective is to keep families in farming and ranching. |
| Grain Marketing as a Crop-Share Landowner LaVell Winsor – Farm Analyst Agricultural Economics Department at Kansas State University LaVell Winsor is a Farm Analyst with the Agricultural Economics Department of Kansas State University. LaVell primarily works directly with farm clients to assist them with their finances – whether that be evaluating a farm expansion, an annual financial check-up, or addressing a difficult creditor situation. She also helps farm families with succession planning. Over the past 27 years, LaVell’s professional work has been focused on risk management and farm financial management. |
| Conservation Programs Nicole Welborn - Agricultural Program Specialist Conservation and Price Support Division of the Kansas Farm Service Agency Nicole Welborn is an Agricultural Program Specialist in the Conservation and Price Support Division of the Kansas Farm Service Agency State Office in Manhattan, Kansas. Nicole came to the FSA State Office in 2018 after serving in the Shawnee County FSA Office in Topeka as an Agricultural Program Technician working with Shawnee County farmers and ranchers. Nicole has worked with conservation her entire career with FSA and has a strong passion for the mission. |
| Hunting Leases Drew Ricketts - Extension Wildlife Specialist, Associate Professor of Wildlife and Outdoor Enterprise Management at Kansas State University Drew leads extension and outreach efforts related to wildlife damage and habitat management for KSRE, and helps stakeholders in these areas. At K-State, Drew teaches courses on human-wildlife conflicts, wildlife habitat management, shotgun sports, and coaches the K-State Shotgun Sports Team. He is a lifelong Kansan, growing up in Labette County, and later moving to the Flint Hills after completing his B.S. in Wildlife Ecology and Management from K-State. Drew then owned and operated a wildlife habitat and rangeland management business serving the Flint Hills region. After several years in business, Drew returned to K-State to pursue a PhD in wildlife biology that focused on the effects of rangeland management practices on small mammals and coyotes. |
| Crop Insurance & Government Program Payments Jennifer Ifft -Agricultural Policy, Crop Insurance, Agricultural Finance, Farmland Markets, Associate Professor and Extension Specialist Jennifer Ifft has an integrated research and extension program that covers policy and regulatory issues that affect the viability of U.S. and Kansas agriculture. Before coming to Kansas State University, she was an assistant professor at the Cornell University Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management and worked in the Farm Economy Branch of the USDA Economic Research Service. She has a PhD from the University of California - Berkeley, an MPhil from the University of Cambridge and a BS from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She grew up on her family’s farm in central Illinois. |
| Property Tax Allen Featherstone – University Distinguished Professor, Head of the Department of Agricultural Economics and Director of Masters of Agribusiness at Kansas State University He holds M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in agricultural economics from Purdue University. He also holds a B.S. in agricultural economics and economics from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. Professor Featherstone is recognized as a leading scholar in agricultural finance. His work has resulted in teaching and research awards and quotation in the Wall Street Journal, the Economist, and other publications. He served as Associate Editor for the American Journal of Agricultural Economics and on the editorial board of Choices. He has more than 150 articles published in a variety of journals. He has experience lecturing and researching in Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America. |
| Easement Panel Jim Pitman - Regional Biologist, Ducks Unlimited Jim Pitman earned a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Science from Purdue University and a Master of Science from Kansas State University in Ecology and Systematics. In his career, he has worked for the Indiana Division of Fish & Wildlife, Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks, the Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies, the National Wild Turkey Federation, and Ducks Unlimited (DU). He has extensive experience with wildlife research and surveys, numerous habitat restoration practices, government conservation programs, mitigation programs, and conservation easements. He’s currently a Regional Biologist for DU where he provides technical assistance to private landowners interested in wetland restoration. He also assists DU and other conservation organizations in Kansas with real estate transactions involving conservation easements and fee title land acquisitions. |
| Easement Panel Ginevera K. Moore - Kansas State Director The Conservation Fund Leawood, KS Ginny joined The Conservation Fund in 2016, bringing to the Fund and its partners more than 20 years of expertise in environmental and natural resource law. She leads the Fund’s conservation efforts in Kansas, providing local, state and national partners with the Fund’s full array of conservation programs and initiatives. She also chairs the Fund’s Conservation Loans Committee. Ginny holds a B.A. from the University of Iowa and a J.D. with distinction from the University of Iowa College of Law. She is a member in good standing of The Missouri Bar. |
| Easement Panel Lindsey Reinarz- Conservation Real Estate Manager- The Nature Conservancy-Kansas Lindsey manages and assists on conservation projects in Kansas as well as other project areas around the country, working with a diversity of landowners and partners to achieve conservation goals. Lindsey has been with the Conservancy for over 13 years and has been with the Kansas Chapter since 2022. |
| Pasture Leases Brian Rees - Ag. Agent, K-State Research and Extension Lyon County Bio coming soon. |
| | Pasture Leases Jared Pertersilie - Ag. Agent, K-State Research and Extension Walnut Creek District Bio coming soon. |
| K-State Resources for Landowners Dr. Rich Llewelyn - Extension Specialist, K-State Ag. Economics Rich Llewelyn organizes extension conferences including the annual Risk and Profit Conference, Ag Lenders Conferences, Kansas Insurance Workshop, and Kansas Income Tax Institutes. He also maintains the AgManager.info website and provides extension outreach in farm management, leasing and Excel. In the spring, Dr. Llewelyn teaches the undergraduate course, Commodity Price Analysis. |
| Land Values & Lease Rates Gregg Ibendahl – Associate Professor, K-State Ag. Economics Dr Ibendahl is a farm management Extension faculty member. He grew up on a small grain/beef farm in southern Illinois. Dr. Ibendahl has experience in private industry and academia having worked several years at Dekalb Genetics in their production area. His current work includes estimating net farm income, predicting crop yields, and estimating farm expenses. He annually publishes estimates of county cash rental rates for the state. |
 | Land Values & Lease Rates Megan Hughes – Assistant Professor, K-State Ag. Economics Megan Hughes is an Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist in land and crop markets. Her research interests include agricultural finance, farm management, and production. Megan’s research has included work on agricultural credit markets, producer sentiment, and the adoption of conservation practices. Megan was raised on a seventh-generation independent seed farm in Northern Illinois and is passionate about running an integrated research and extension program to deliver insights back to the farm. |
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