Plenary: Midwest Agriculture, Energy, and
Climate: The Path Forward
| Congresswoman
Stephanie Herseth Sandlin |
||
 |
The Honorable Stephanie Herseth Sandlin is South Dakota’s at-large Member of Congress. She is a leader of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of moderate Democrats committed to fiscal discipline and strong national security, and is co-chair of the Rural Working Group, which is dedicated to raising the profile of issues important to rural America. She also serves on three committees vital to South Dakota’s interests: Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs and Natural Resources. She is the Chairwoman of the Veterans' Affairs subcommittee on Economic Opportunity. At the beginning of the 110th Congress, Representative Herseth Sandlin was chosen to serve on the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming in recognition of her advocacy for and leadership on the issue of renewable biofuels. Representative Herseth Sandlin grew up on her family's farm and ranch near Houghton (HOW-ton) in the northeast part of South Dakota. She graduated from Groton High School and attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. where she graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in Government. Representative Herseth Sandlin received her law degree from the Georgetown University Law Center, where she was a senior editor of the law review, and later served on faculty. Representative Herseth Sandlin is a member of the South Dakota Bar and has taught classes on government and politics at Augustana College in Sioux Falls and South Dakota State University in Brookings. In 2003, she served as the executive director of the South Dakota Farmers Union Foundation, working to further economic prosperity and cultural vitality in rural South Dakota. Representative Herseth Sandlin currently lives in Brookings and is married to former U.S. Representative Max Sandlin who served the First District of Texas from 1997-2005. Former Governor Ralph Herseth was Representative Herseth Sandlin’s grandfather and Lorna B. Herseth, South Dakota's Secretary of State, was her grandmother. Her father, Lars, served in the state legislature for 20 years and was the Democratic nominee for Governor in 1986. In 2006, Rep. Herseth Sandlin was re-elected to her second full term in the U.S. House of Representatives. She received more than 230,000 votes – the second highest vote total in the nation among House members. |
|
|
Bill Northey Iowa Secretary of Agriculture |
||
 |
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey is a
fourth-generation Iowa farmer that grows corn and soybeans on his
farm near Spirit Lake. He started farming with his grandfather, Sid
Northey, after graduating from Iowa State University in 1981. The people of Iowa elected Northey to be Secretary of
Agriculture in November of 2006 and he was sworn in on January 2,
2007. Northey ran on a platform of expanding opportunities in
renewable energy, promoting conservation and stewardship, and
telling the story of Iowa agriculture. As Secretary, Northey has committed to traveling to each of
Iowa’s 99 counties to hear from farmers and rural residents with a stake in the future of
agriculture. These meetings allow him to listen to their needs and
better lead the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship
as it seeks to serve the people of the state. |
|