A crowd of almost 300 gathered together Feb. 21 and 22 in Kearney, Nebraska for the 34th Annual Nebraska Women in Agriculture Conference, with the theme “Take Charge of Change.”
The conference is one of the longest-running women\u27s conferences of its kind in the country. The goal of the Nebraska Women in Agriculture Conference is for women to build relationships with each other while gaining valuable knowledge about managing risk on their farms and ranches. The event featured 4 general session speakers and over 30 workshop sessions.
The keynote speaker this year was Marji Guyler- Alaniz, President and Founder of FarmHer. FarmHer’s goal is to update the image of agriculture by showing women in farming and ranching, through a photography project that has exploded into an award-winning television show, podcast and radio show. Marji shared stories of the women that she has photographed across the country and highlighted the struggles that “farmhers” are facing with regards to mental health and the current financial hardships of farming and ranching. The FarmHer team sheds light on all areas of production agriculture and empowers those to embrace the spirit and grit of being a woman in agriculture

Groskopf, Jessica J

English

AgEcon Search: Research in Agricultural and Applied Economics

Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge of Change”

AgEcon Search - Research in Agricultural & Applied Economics

DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska

University of Nebraska - LincolnDigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - LincolnCornhusker Economics Agricultural Economics Department3-27-2019Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge ofChange”Jessica J. GroskopfUniversity of Nebraska-LincolnFollow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/agecon_cornhuskerPart of the Agricultural Economics Commons, and the Economics CommonsThis Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Agricultural Economics Department at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska -Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Cornhusker Economics by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska -Lincoln.Groskopf, Jessica J., "Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge of Change”" (2019). Cornhusker Economics. 995.https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/agecon_cornhusker/995agecon.unl.edu/cornhuskereconomics   Cornhusker Economics  It is the policy of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln not to discriminate based upon age, race, ethnici-ty, color, national origin, gender-identity, sex, pregnancy, disability, sexual orientation, genetic infor-mation, veteran’s status, marital status, religion or political affiliation.  March 27, 2019 Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge of Change”  A crowd of almost 300 gathered together Feb. 21 and 22 in Kearney, Nebraska for the 34th Annual Nebraska Women in Agriculture Conference, with the theme “Take Charge of Change.”  The conference is one of the longest-running women's conferences of its kind in the country. The goal of the Nebraska Women in Agriculture Conference is for women to build relationships with each other while gaining valuable knowledge about managing risk on their farms and ranches. The event featured 4 general ses-sion speakers and over 30 workshop sessions.  The keynote speaker this year was Marji Guyler-Alaniz, President and Founder of FarmHer. FarmHer’s goal is to update the image of agri-culture by showing women in farming and ranching, through a photography project that has exploded into an award-winning television show, podcast and radio show. Marji shared sto-ries of the women that she has photographed across the country and highlighted the struggles that “farmhers” are facing with regards to men-tal health and the current financial hardships of farming and ranching. The FarmHer team sheds light on all areas of production agriculture and empowers those to embrace the spirit and grit of being a woman in agriculture.  The capstone speaker was Joan Ruskamp of Dodge, Nebraska who currently serves as the Chair of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board. Joan shared her story as a Nebraska Woman in Agriculture including her family’s struggles through the farm crisis of the 1980s to her  Market Report  Year Ago  4 Wks Ago  3‐22‐19 Livestock and Products, Weekly Average          Nebraska Slaughter Steers, 35‐65% Choice, Live Weight. . . . . . .  126.00  126.50  * Nebraska Feeder Steers, Med. & Large Frame, 550‐600 lb. . . . .  185.82  178.24  180.00 Nebraska Feeder Steers, Med. & Large Frame 750‐800 lb. . .. .  145.41  145.83  195.00 Choice Boxed Beef, 600‐750 lb. Carcass. . . . . . . . . . . . . .  224.18  217.72  228.95 Western Corn Belt Base Hog Price Carcass, NegoƟated . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..  51.24  45.67  68.24 Pork Carcass Cutout, 185 lb. Carcass 51‐52% Lean. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  70.70  58.78  74.88 Slaughter Lambs, wooled and shorn, 135‐165 lb. NaƟonal. . . . . . .  146.46  133.16  14.45 NaƟonal Carcass Lamb Cutout FOB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  379.20  377.13  377.78 Crops, Daily Spot Prices          Wheat, No. 1, H.W. Imperial, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.97  3.97  4.19 Corn, No. 2, Yellow Columbus, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.44  3.49  3.62 Soybeans, No. 1, Yellow Columbus, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .  9.38  8.08  8.01 Grain Sorghum, No.2, Yellow Dorchester, cwt. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.61  5.55  5.80 Oats, No. 2, Heavy Minneapolis, Mn, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.59  3.19  3.18 Feed          Alfalfa, Large Square Bales, Good to Premium, RFV 160‐185 Northeast Nebraska, ton. . . . . . . . . . .  *  177.00  ‐‐ Alfalfa, Large Rounds, Good PlaƩe Valley, ton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  97.50  105.00  112.50 Grass Hay, Large Rounds, Good  Nebraska, ton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .  92.50  85.00  ‐‐ Dried DisƟllers Grains, 10% Moisture Nebraska Average. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  151.00  140.00  161.50 Wet DisƟllers Grains, 65‐70% Moisture Nebraska Average. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  50.25  51.00  50.00  ⃰ No Market           current role in her family’s operation. Joan inspired attendees to take advantage of opportunities when giv-en. Joan discussed the role of accepting challenges and taking charge of change with faith and grace.  Conference attendees also heard from Tim Ham-merich of Ag Grad, Jim Robb of the Livestock Market-ing Information Center and 34 other workshop speak-ers. People attending the conference represented a wide variety of agricultural backgrounds and de-mographics. One hundred percent of the respondents Figure 1: Age, Roles, and Race of 2019 Nebraska  Women in Agriculture Conference attendees. identified as female. Ninety-eight percent resided in Ne-braska. On average, participants had attended the confer-ence 6.25 times and owned or leased 1,170.25 acres of farmland1. Figure 1 shows the roles, age, and race of those who attended.   Participants noted that they enjoy the opportunity to net-work and spend time with friends and colleagues, all the while discussing issues important to their farms and ranches. To help participants during these challenging economic times, the conference continues to focus on risk-management topics and tools to help attendees make profitable business decisions. Sessions covered risks in production, market, financial, human and legal areas. Training opportunities ranged from crop and livestock insurance to record keeping and using financial docu-ments to succeed. ____________ 1 One hundred and thirteen overall conference evaluations were sub-mitted, giving these results a 7 percent margin of error at a 95 percent confidence interval.  The main goal of the conference is to heighten participants’ skills and knowledge. Over 470 workshop session evaluations were submitted during the 2019 conference. Survey respondents were asked how the workshop had affected them by selecting a series of statements to complete the sentence “This workshop __________.” The re-sponse options and percentage of survey respond-ents for each option are listed in Table 1.  …increased my knowledge about the topic. 80% … encouraged me to find out more about this topic. 70% … improved my skills/ability. 48% … increased my confidence in my abil-ity to influence key decision makers. 40% … increased my confidence in my abil-ity to make a decision myself. 40% … empowered me to develop a plan to address this topic. 41% … validated my/our current practices. 41% … encouraged me to change my/our current practices. 35% Table 1. Impact of workshop session statement results2.  The women also reported that they will take the information gained from workshop sessions and share it with approximately 1,222 other people including their spouse, siblings, parents, children, business partners, and agricultural professionals.  Participants at the 2019 Conference also have the opportunity to improve their resiliency by creating a Women in Agriculture Learning Cir-cle at the conference. Each Learning Circle was made up of 5 to 10 conference participants, who will meet in person or virtually at least five times following the conference. Learning circles provide an educational setting for women to learn in a comfortable environment, as well as develop relationships with other participants.  __________ 2  Based on workshop session results available at the time of publication. (n= 473) Using a provided discussion guide, the women will be encouraged to share their innate knowledge and life experiences in the five areas of agriculture risk man-agement.   The future success of the conference depends on con-tinued funding from grant agencies and sponsors. This year’s conference was funded in part by a grant from the USDA Risk Management Agency. Sponsors in-cluded: Nebraska Dry Bean Commission, Nebraska Corn, CommonGround, Farm Credit Services of America, Nationwide Land as Your Legacy, Beanitos, Kelley Bean Company, Nebraska Farm Bureau and Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation. There were vari-ous other agricultural businesses sponsoring at the bronze level and government organizations that partic-ipated in our exhibit space.  For more information on this conference and the Women in Agriculture program see our website, http://wia.unl.edu or follow us on Twitter, @newomeninag and like us on Facebook, www.facebook.com/NebraskaWIA.  The 2020 Nebraska Women in Agriculture Conference is scheduled for Feb. 20-21, 2020 at the Kearney Holi-day Inn Convention Center. Jessica Groskopf Extension Educator Department of Agricultural Economics Panhandle Research and Extension Center University of Nebraska-Lincoln 308-632-1247 jjohnson@unl.edu 

UNL | Libraries

University of Nebraska - Lincoln
DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Cornhusker Economics Agricultural Economics Department
3-27-2019
Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge of
Change”
Jessica J. Groskopf
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/agecon_cornhusker
Part of the Agricultural Economics Commons, and the Economics Commons
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Agricultural Economics Department at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska -
Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in Cornhusker Economics by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska -
Lincoln.
Groskopf, Jessica J., "Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge of Change”" (2019). Cornhusker Economics. 995.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/agecon_cornhusker/995
agecon.unl.edu/cornhuskereconomics 
  Cornhusker Economics 
 
It is the policy of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln not to discriminate based upon age, race, ethnici-
ty, color, national origin, gender-identity, sex, pregnancy, disability, sexual orientation, genetic infor-
mation, veteran’s status, marital status, religion or political affiliation.  
March 27, 2019 
Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge of Change” 
 
A crowd of almost 300 gathered together Feb. 21 
and 22 in Kearney, Nebraska for the 34th Annual 
Nebraska Women in Agriculture Conference, 
with the theme “Take Charge of Change.”  
The conference is one of the longest-running 
women's conferences of its kind in the country. 
The goal of the Nebraska Women in Agriculture 
Conference is for women to build relationships 
with each other while gaining valuable 
knowledge about managing risk on their farms 
and ranches. The event featured 4 general ses-
sion speakers and over 30 workshop sessions.  
The keynote speaker this year was Marji Guyler-
Alaniz, President and Founder of FarmHer. 
FarmHer’s goal is to update the image of agri-
culture by showing women in farming and 
ranching, through a photography project that 
has exploded into an award-winning television 
show, podcast and radio show. Marji shared sto-
ries of the women that she has photographed 
across the country and highlighted the struggles 
that “farmhers” are facing with regards to men-
tal health and the current financial hardships of 
farming and ranching. The FarmHer team sheds 
light on all areas of production agriculture and 
empowers those to embrace the spirit and grit of 
being a woman in agriculture.  
The capstone speaker was Joan Ruskamp of 
Dodge, Nebraska who currently serves as the 
Chair of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Board. 
Joan shared her story as a Nebraska Woman in 
Agriculture including her family’s struggles 
through the farm crisis of the 1980s to her  
Market Report  Year Ago  4 Wks Ago  3‐22‐19 
Livestock and Products, 
Weekly Average          
Nebraska Slaughter Steers, 
35‐65% Choice, Live Weight. . . . . . .  126.00  126.50  * 
Nebraska Feeder Steers, 
Med. & Large Frame, 550‐600 lb. . . . .  185.82  178.24  180.00 
Nebraska Feeder Steers, 
Med. & Large Frame 750‐800 lb. . .. .  145.41  145.83  195.00 
Choice Boxed Beef, 
600‐750 lb. Carcass. . . . . . . . . . . . . .  224.18  217.72  228.95 
Western Corn Belt Base Hog Price 
Carcass, NegoƟated . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..  51.24  45.67  68.24 
Pork Carcass Cutout, 185 lb. Carcass 
51‐52% Lean. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  70.70  58.78  74.88 
Slaughter Lambs, wooled and shorn, 
135‐165 lb. NaƟonal. . . . . . .  146.46  133.16  14.45 
NaƟonal Carcass Lamb Cutout 
FOB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  379.20  377.13  377.78 
Crops, 
Daily Spot Prices          
Wheat, No. 1, H.W. 
Imperial, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.97  3.97  4.19 
Corn, No. 2, Yellow 
Columbus, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3.44  3.49  3.62 
Soybeans, No. 1, Yellow 
Columbus, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .  9.38  8.08  8.01 
Grain Sorghum, No.2, Yellow 
Dorchester, cwt. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5.61  5.55  5.80 
Oats, No. 2, Heavy 
Minneapolis, Mn, bu. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  2.59  3.19  3.18 
Feed          
Alfalfa, Large Square Bales, 
Good to Premium, RFV 160‐185 
Northeast Nebraska, ton. . . . . . . . . . .  *  177.00  ‐‐ 
Alfalfa, Large Rounds, Good 
PlaƩe Valley, ton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  97.50  105.00  112.50 
Grass Hay, Large Rounds, Good 
 Nebraska, ton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .  92.50  85.00  ‐‐ 
Dried DisƟllers Grains, 10% Moisture 
Nebraska Average. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  151.00  140.00  161.50 
Wet DisƟllers Grains, 65‐70% Moisture 
Nebraska Average. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  50.25  51.00  50.00 
 ⃰ No Market          
 current role in her family’s operation. Joan inspired 
attendees to take advantage of opportunities when giv-
en. Joan discussed the role of accepting challenges and 
taking charge of change with faith and grace.  
Conference attendees also heard from Tim Ham-
merich of Ag Grad, Jim Robb of the Livestock Market-
ing Information Center and 34 other workshop speak-
ers. People attending the conference represented a 
wide variety of agricultural backgrounds and de-
mographics. One hundred percent of the respondents 
Figure 1: Age, Roles, and Race of 2019 Nebraska  
Women in Agriculture Conference attendees. 
identified as female. Ninety-eight percent resided in Ne-
braska. On average, participants had attended the confer-
ence 6.25 times and owned or leased 1,170.25 acres of 
farmland1. Figure 1 shows the roles, age, and race of those 
who attended.  
 
Participants noted that they enjoy the opportunity to net-
work and spend time with friends and colleagues, all the 
while discussing issues important to their farms and 
ranches. To help participants during these challenging 
economic times, the conference continues to focus on risk
-management topics and tools to help attendees make 
profitable business decisions. Sessions covered risks in 
production, market, financial, human and legal areas. 
Training opportunities ranged from crop and livestock 
insurance to record keeping and using financial docu-
ments to succeed. 
____________ 
1 One hundred and thirteen overall conference evaluations were sub-
mitted, giving these results a 7 percent margin of error at a 95 percent 
confidence interval.  
The main goal of the conference is to heighten 
participants’ skills and knowledge. Over 470 
workshop session evaluations were submitted 
during the 2019 conference. Survey respondents 
were asked how the workshop had affected them 
by selecting a series of statements to complete the 
sentence “This workshop __________.” The re-
sponse options and percentage of survey respond-
ents for each option are listed in Table 1.  
…increased my knowledge about the 
topic. 80% 
… encouraged me to find out more 
about this topic. 70% 
… improved my skills/ability. 48% 
… increased my confidence in my abil-
ity to influence key decision makers. 40% 
… increased my confidence in my abil-
ity to make a decision myself. 40% 
… empowered me to develop a plan to 
address this topic. 41% 
… validated my/our current practices. 41% 
… encouraged me to change my/our 
current practices. 35% 
Table 1. Impact of workshop session statement 
results2.  
The women also reported that they will take the 
information gained from workshop sessions 
and share it with approximately 1,222 other 
people including their spouse, siblings, parents, 
children, business partners, and agricultural 
professionals.  
Participants at the 2019 Conference also have 
the opportunity to improve their resiliency by 
creating a Women in Agriculture Learning Cir-
cle at the conference. Each Learning Circle was 
made up of 5 to 10 conference participants, who 
will meet in person or virtually at least five 
times following the conference. Learning circles 
provide an educational setting for women to 
learn in a comfortable environment, as well as 
develop relationships with other participants.  
__________ 
2  Based on workshop session results available at the time 
of publication. (n= 473) 
Using a provided discussion guide, the women will be 
encouraged to share their innate knowledge and life 
experiences in the five areas of agriculture risk man-
agement.  
 
The future success of the conference depends on con-
tinued funding from grant agencies and sponsors. This 
year’s conference was funded in part by a grant from 
the USDA Risk Management Agency. Sponsors in-
cluded: Nebraska Dry Bean Commission, Nebraska 
Corn, CommonGround, Farm Credit Services of 
America, Nationwide Land as Your Legacy, Beanitos, 
Kelley Bean Company, Nebraska Farm Bureau and 
Nebraska Farm Bureau Foundation. There were vari-
ous other agricultural businesses sponsoring at the 
bronze level and government organizations that partic-
ipated in our exhibit space.  
For more information on this conference and the 
Women in Agriculture program see our website, 
http://wia.unl.edu or follow us on Twitter, 
@newomeninag and like us on Facebook, 
www.facebook.com/NebraskaWIA.  
The 2020 Nebraska Women in Agriculture Conference 
is scheduled for Feb. 20-21, 2020 at the Kearney Holi-
day Inn Convention Center. 
Jessica Groskopf 
Extension Educator 
Department of Agricultural Economics 
Panhandle Research and Extension Center 
University of Nebraska-Lincoln 
308-632-1247 
jjohnson@unl.edu 


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Nebraska Women in Agriculture “Take Charge of Change”

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