Ashley Hagenow

My career objectives are to serve agriculture in a way that positively impacts the hard-working men and women in this industry. One of my goals immediately after graduating college continues to be serving the dairy industry as Wisconsin’s Alice in Dairyland, and I am working to develop my communication and advocacy skills to successfully achieve this goal. In my career, I would love to write articles about agriculture, create social media content for the company for which I work, develop websites, use technology for photography and videography and work with other industry professionals on collaborative projects. I would also relish the opportunity to speak with classrooms or organizations about agriculture, especially presenting workshops on topics like agricultural advocacy and policy. I envision myself working for a company that is heavily involved in agricultural industries, such as on the corporate side with Land O? Lakes, in a marketing agency serving food and agriculture clients or editorial work like with Hoard’s Dairyman or Progressive Dairy. My plans will positively impact agriculture because I am fully committed to the noblest industry in the world for the production of a safe and abundant food supply. My role in agriculture is and will continue to be advocating for the ?social license? that farmers have worked so hard to develop by educating the public on modern farm practices that involve environmental stewardship and the importance of agriculture and food products for health and well-being. Outside of my professional career, I will continue to stay involved in the agriculture industry by serving as a dairy judging coach, exhibiting livestock at shows throughout the Midwest and raising my future children to participate in organizations such as 4-H and FFA. For as long as I can remember, the agriculture industry has always been a central focus of my life. My personal mission statement is this: “To communicate with, connect and empower others in a career that provides for work/life balance, personal fulfillment and the ability to positively impact agriculture and its people.” I believe there is a central theme to this statement, which is people. That is where my motivation to continue working in this industry comes from: having the incredible opportunity to fill a need and enrich the lives of others through sharing the message of agriculture. Everyone, whether involved in Food Animal Production or a different industry, is in the business of helping people to succeed, and I firmly believe we are most successful when we help others around us to achieve their goals. I hope to impact young men and women in the industry, as well as our hard-working farmers, throughout my career, just as countless others have done so before me. A long-term goal of mine, in addition to the career goals I have established, is to invest in local communities as a volunteer by helping rural areas to stay viable and vibrant. I will accomplish this goal by intersecting my volunteer activities with my career as a member of the agricultural community.