President-Elect Seeks Volunteers for AAEA Committees

Members interested in shaping the future of the AAEA can play an essential role by serving on an association committee. Committee service also offers an excellent opportunity for developing contacts and increasing professional networking.

“I invite all members to get actively involved in AAEA through serving on our committees,” says President-Elect Jill McCluskey. “By serving, you influence the direction and priorities of the AAEA, and help us to best meet the needs of agricultural and applied economists. Your work will shape our AAEA Trust, awards and special lectures, membership, leadership selection, publication, statistics infrastructure, outreach, meeting, and career development activities. For established professionals, we rely on your contributions to guide the AAEA’s work. For early career professionals, working on a committee is a great way to build your professional network and service record. Please email us (see below) with your interest in serving.”

McCluskey will make appointments to the following 2015–2016 committees by June 2015:

• AAEA Trust
• Awards
• Case Study Invited Paper
• Economics, Statistics & Information Resources
• Employment Services
• Fellows Selection
• Galbraith Forum and Award
• Membership
• Mentorship
• Nominating
• Selected Presentations

For information about these committees and a list of their current members, please visit http://www.aaea.org/about-aaea/aaea-committees.

Any AAEA member interested and willing to serve on a committee should contact Brian Mondragón Jones at bmjones@aaea.org or (414) 918-3190 by April 20, 2015.

Judges Needed for GSS/AEM Case Study Competition

The Graduate Student (GSS) and Agribusiness Economics Management (AEM) Sections of AAEA need your assistance. We need a total of eight to twelve judges for the preliminary rounds.  The time commitment is two to three hours on Sunday morning (July 27), depending on the number of teams.

This is a very rewarding experience for the graduate students. Judges in the past years also enjoyed the competition. Those interested in participating may contact Aslihan Spaulding (spaulding@ilstu.edu) or Brandon McFadden (brandon.mcfadden@okstate.edu). 

The GSS and AEM thank you in advance for your assistance!

Aslihan Spaulding             Brandon McFadden

AEM Chair                           GSS Chair

Deadline Extended for Mentor Applications

The AAEA Early Career Development Committee is pleased to announce that it is in the process of developing the 2014-2015 AAEA Mentoring Program. This is an excellent opportunity for members to enhance their careers through the development of a dynamic mentoring partnership. The Mentor Application deadline has been extended to April 8, 2014. We are no longer accepting applications for mentees.
As a volunteer mentor, you have the opportunity to share your knowledge, your experience, and your insights with the next generation of leaders working in applied economics and related fields. Mentors should have at least seven years of experience/tenure in their current profession and demonstrated excellence in their career.
The 12 month commitment begins with a comprehensive matching process.  Once partnerships are formed, a formal Dynamic Mentoring Connections training will take place at the Joint Annual Meeting in Minneapolis, MN on July 25-26, 2014 for all matched participants.  While the program encourages mentoring pairs to commit to a minimum of two meetings (email, phone, etc.) per month devoted to mentoring activities, mentor pairs will determine the length and frequency of the mentoring meetings. A mid-year energizer webinar and year-end celebration will also be provided as part of the program. Additionally, all program participants will be asked to complete program evaluations at mid, end, and 6 months after program completion. 

Submit your mentor application online at: http://www.aaea.org/membership/early-career-development/mentorship-workshop