The Animal Agriculture Alliance’s annual College Aggies Online (CAO) scholarship competition kicks off in less than two weeks on September 13. Undergraduates, graduate students and collegiate clubs are competing for more than $20,000 in scholarships throughout the nine-week program.

Help us spread the word about College Aggies Online! If you refer a friend to sign up for the 2021 CAO scholarship competition and they list your name as the person who recommended them when they sign up for the competition, you’ll both be entered in a drawing to win a $100 gift card! Each referral will count as one entry and there is no limit on the number of entries for referrers. We will give away two $100 gift cards during the CAO kickoff event - one drawing for referrers and one drawing for those who were referred. All signups with a referral listed made through September 12 will be entered. Clubs and classes have the special opportunity to win one of ten $100 Domino’s gift cards by being one of the first to sign up. For more information or to sign up, visit https://collegeaggies.animalagalliance.org.

CAO connects college students who are interested in promoting agriculture and gives them the skills they need to effectively engage with key audiences online and on campus. Individual participants receive training from experts and engage with their peers on social media by posting information about current and emerging issues facing farmers and ranchers and telling personal stories. Club participants are challenged to host events virtually or on their campus to talk about modern agriculture with their peers. Events include “Scary Food Myths” where students hand out candy with myths and facts about food and agriculture; “Undeniably Dairy” where students host a booth on their concourse about dairy farming; and “Newbies on the Farm” where students invite their peers to tour a local farm. Last year, students reached 4.6 million people on social media and at club events.

“The College Aggies Online program is the ultimate resume-building ‘ag-vocacy’ program for collegiate students and clubs looking to grow their consumer engagement skills,” said Emily Solis, Alliance communications specialist. “As a former participant, I was able to grow my communication skills through the program and find new ways to advocate for agriculture while networking and engaging with students and mentors that I’m still connected with to this day.”

Mentors for the 2021 competition include:

• Don Schindler, Senior Vice President, Digital Innovations, Dairy Management Inc.
• Rebecca Hilby, Wisconsin Dairy Farmer
• Jenell Eck, Maryland Chicken, Grain and Beef Farmer, Thompson Ag Consulting
• Casey Kinler, Director, Membership and Marketing, Animal Agriculture Alliance
• Lexi Marek, Iowa Pig Farmer, Pig Improvement Company
• Liz Wilder, Idaho Sheep Farmer, Idaho Wool Growers Association
• Chandler Mulvaney, Director of Grassroots Advocacy and Spokesperson Development, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association
• Natalie Kovarik, Nebraska Cattle Rancher
• Beth Breeding, Vice President of Communications and Marketing, National Turkey Federation
• Emily Shaw, Founder and Personal Trainer, Dairy Girl Fitness
• Alexander Strauch, DVM, Poultry Veterinarian
• Kylie Epperson, Missouri Pig and Grain Farmer
• Joe Proudman, Associate Director for Communications, CLEAR Center at University of California, Davis
• Brandi Buzzard Frobose, Kansas Cattle Rancher, Red Angus Association of America

CAO would not be possible without the generous support of our sponsors. 2021 sponsors include: Dairy Management Inc., CHS Foundation, Iowa Pork Producers Association, National Corn Growers Association, Institute for Feed Education and Research, Domino’s Pizza Inc., Ohio Poultry Association, and Culver’s Franchising System. To become a sponsor of this year’s program, contact Casey Kinler, Director, Membership and Marketing, at ckinler@animalagalliance.org.

Source: Animal Agriculture Alliance