Simply the Best

By CALF President and CEO Dwight Ferguson

The current issue of Harvard Business Review is titled “The Leadership Mindset.” It’s packed with articles focused on leadership-related topics, from the importance of empathy to the use of power, critical thinking, managing with impact, self-awareness and many more. One in particular – titled “Why real-time leadership is so hard” – is directly applicable to California agriculture, I believe. The magazine reminded me of so many lessons being taught and experiences being shared in today’s Ag Leadership Program, with the excellent guidance of our world-class CALF Education Team. It also reinforced what I’ve believed for years now, that the CALP curriculum is simply the best there is in mid-career leadership development. Thank you to all of you who help to enable this with your continued gifts and other means of support – they all matter and make a difference. 

Also, I know we’ve been sending a lot of eblasts recently. We don't mean to fill up your inboxes; we just want to keep you posted on all of our upcoming events and important news – and there’s a lot!  

As always, contact me at dferguson@agleaders.org or 831-585-1030 with any comments or questions.

Class 52 Commencement

Join us as we celebrate the fellows of Class 52 on their commencement and welcome them into the alumni community!

FEB. 2 – RECEPTION & DINNER

6 p.m. / Reception

7 p.m. / Dinner

Cost: $50

Please purchase tickets by Jan. 19.

• Online: Click here
• Mail check payable to: CALF / 80 Garden Court, Ste. 270 / Monterey, CA 93940

FEB. 3 – COMMENCEMENT

10 a.m. / Ceremony

12 p.m. / Reception

LOCATION FOR BOTH EVENTS

Fresno State / Satellite Student Union

2485 E. San Ramon Ave., Fresno

Applications Open for Class 54

Applications for those interested in being part of Class 54 of the California Agricultural Leadership Program are available on the CALF website (click button below). Applicants should be mid-career growers, farmers, ranchers, horticulturalists, foresters and/or individuals working in other areas of California’s diverse agriculture industry who are emerging leaders with a passion for California agriculture. They should also demonstrate a high propensity to lead and exemplify CALF's values of integrity, excellence and respect. Alumni may find informational resources (PDF format) to assist in acting as ambassadors to potential candidates (click button below). Alumni interested in assisting in informational events or prospective applicants should contact their regional directors or Abby Taylor-Silva (45) at 831-585-1030.

APPLICATION DEADLINES

Phase one: April 17. Phase two: May 15.

SPREAD THE WORD!

Please share our posts on LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Class 52 Chooses "El Credo de FFA"

Class 52 fellows have selected a class project that reflects their values: to empower the people who work in agriculture to excellence regardless of race, status, language or other cultural barriers. The FFA Creed has been performed by countless FFA members since its adoption in 1930, but it was only in 2022 the California Agricultural Teachers' Association adopted “El Credo de FFA,” a three-year pilot program for students to perform the creed in Spanish. Class 52 has pledged to donate $7,500 annually for three years and to work with California FFA to promote awareness of the program.

2024 CAX: Applications Available

The application period for the 2024 California Educational Exchange Program (California Exchange) is now open. This experiential learning and leadership development opportunity brings together representatives from California regulatory organizations, nonprofits that work with agriculture, and California agriculturalists. 

California Exchange fellows gain a better understanding of how public policy affects complex and diverse agricultural systems and tools for collaboration that may lead to more opportunities for multi-benefit policy development and execution. California agriculture producers are provided an equally important opportunity to better understand the perspectives of regulatory agency managers and the unique constraints, pressures and concerns influencing their decision-making processes.

APPLICATIONS ARE DUE FEB. 2

2024 DCX: Call for Nominations

Nominations are needed for the 2024 Washington D.C. Educational Exchange Program (D.C. Exchange), which will tour Regions 9, 10 and 11 in early fall 2024. 

Please forward names, along with emails, of qualified candidates to Judy Sparacino (HF). We will be conducting in-person interviews in D.C. and surrounding areas on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, March 4-6. For applicants who can only meet virtually, we will have some availability the week before to hold a limited number of interviews.  

Partial list of topics for the 2024 D.C. Exchange include: Water, labor/immigration, food safety, pest exclusion and management, animal husbandry, crop protection, trade, urban agricultural interface, conservation resources and environmental issues. 

Impact Report 2022-2023

Watch your mailboxes in the coming days for the CALF Impact Report 2022-2023. It highlights updates on the five critical priorities of CALF's strategic planning and the positive impact of our program, alumni and donors. You can access the digital version on our website.

I Grew with Ag Leadership

Our outreach campaign is taking a break this month, but will be back in February. Click the button to read the testimonials from our 11 featured alumni in 2023. With Class 54 applications now open, please share with prospective applicants how you grew with Ag Leadership!

Sacramento Social During Unified Wine & Grape Symposium

Ag Leadership alumni, prospective applicants and guests who are in the area for the symposium are invited to join us!

DATE – TIME – LOCATION

Jan. 24 / 5 - 7 p.m.

Café À Côté / 1201 K St., Sacramento

RSVP

Tom Merwin (44) / 916-201-1513

Breakfast Fundraisers in February

Two of our biggest fundraisers are just weeks away – join us for great speakers and delicious breakfasts!

COLUSA FARM SHOW BREAKFAST

Feb. 7 / St. Bernadette's Hall, Colusa

Sponsorships also available

AG LEADERSHIP ALUMNI WORLD AG EXPO BREAKFAST

Feb. 15 / International Agri-Center, Tulare

Click the button to find both events, see keynote speaker details and purchase tables/tickets.

Ag & Government Leaders Reception

We are excited to host this important event and hope you will join us!

DATE & TIME

Feb. 26 / 5:30 - 7:30 p.m.

LOCATION

The Senator Office Building / 1121 L St., Sacramento

RSVP BY FEB. 16

CALF Programs Manager Judy Sparacino (HF) / 831-585-1030

NEEDED: AG PRODUCT DONATIONS FOR DISPLAY

We are continuing the tradition of featuring a beautiful, large cornucopia display of California agricultural products at the reception, so the reception committee is seeking donations of products. Please click the event page button for the donation form. Thank you for your help!

Alumni: Please Consider Volunteering

We are excited to gather Ag Leadership alumni and others for lifelong leadership learning, socializing and networking in June!

Committee planning is underway, but an event of this size needs as many volunteers as possible. Please reach out to Abby Taylor-Silva (45) at 831-585-1030 if you are interested in volunteering – any role you sign up for will be helpful!

Leaders are Readers Book Club

The spring book club selection is "Hidden Potential: The Science of Achieving Greater Things" by Adam Grant. The book

offers a new framework for raising aspirations and exceeding expectations. Grant weaves together evidence, insights and storytelling to show that growth is not about the genius you possess, but about the character you develop. Grant explores how to build the character skills and motivational structures to realize our own potential, and how to design systems that create opportunities. For more information about the book club, contact Abby Taylor-Silva (45) at 831-585-1030.

Update Your Alumni Directory Listing

FIRST TIME on the alumni directory: Use your primary email and click on forgot password. You will receive an email to create your new password and receive your username. If you don't see the email in your inbox, check your spam folder.

RETURNING: To log in, use your username, NOT your email address. For assistance, contact Mia Mirassou / 831-585-1030.

Challenge Update

We are thrilled to share that because of you, we were able to take full advantage of the Otis Booth Foundation matching opportunity and matched a total of $250,000 in gifts! THANK YOU to everyone who participated!

Another great opportunity is forthcoming, so please be on the lookout for that in the upcoming months. 

Further, the class challenge is still underway and we will share the class standings with all alumni very soon. As a reminder, we are counting all gifts – financial, in-kind and time volunteered – so please encourage your classmates to get engaged!

We’re excited to make this year the best one yet!