Q. What is the highlight of your career?
A. The highlight of my career is having the opportunity to work directly with beef producers around the state of Wyoming. I have the privilege of getting to help bring information to producers that will positively impact their beef operations. I also have the opportunity to conduct research that is directly related to questions or issues that producers have, in order to help meet their needs and increase their productivity.

Q. What are challenges you encounter in your career?
A. One of the main challenges in my career is time and finding balance among all of my responsibilities. Extension, research, and teaching all take a significant amount of time and finding a balance between the three can be a challenge. But having the opportunity to work hard and make a difference for producers makes it all worth it.

Q. How did you get to this career?
A. I grew up on a cow-calf operation in California and received my Bachelors of Science in Agricultural Education from California State University, Fresno (Fresno State). I earned my Masters of Science and Ph.D. from New Mexico State University in Animal Science with an emphasis in reproductive physiology. During my time at New Mexico State University, I developed a passion for research, but also wanted to have the opportunity to serve, educated, and work with producers. Becoming a beef extension specialist allowed me to combine my passion for the beef industry and research.

Q. Are there scholarship or internship opportunities available with your career? If so, where can more information about those be found?
A. There are lots of internships available in the beef industry, many of the different breed associations, allied industry companies (Zoetis, Cargill, Five Rivers, JBS), artificial insemination and sire companies (Select sires, ABS, etc.), and ranches throughout the country offer internship opportunities. National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) also offers both scholarship and internship opportunities related to the beef industry.