Tiffany Atwell, Senior Vice President, Global Government Relations, Ecolab and Trent McKnight, Founder, AgriCorps and Operating Partner, VestedWorld, Elected to National 4-H Council's Board of Trustees
CHEVY CHASE, MD (October 20, 2022) - National 4-H Council is pleased to announce the election of Tiffany Atwell, Senior Vice President, Global Government Relations, Ecolab and Trent McKnight, Founder, AgriCorps and Operating Partner, VestedWorld to its Board of Trustees. Ms. Atwell and Mr. McKnight were unanimously elected to the Board of Trustees during National 4-H Council's most recent meeting on September 15.
Atwell and McKnight will support National 4-H Council's ambitious three-year strategic plan, advancing 4-H's diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, and deepening the board's collaborative work with Cooperative Extension and USDA to grow opportunities and programs for America's youth.
"We are honored to welcome Ms. Atwell and Mr. McKnight to our Board of Trustees," said Jennifer Sirangelo, president and CEO, National 4 H Council. "Their leadership will be invaluable as we further our mission to increase investment and participation in Cooperative Extension's 4-H programs that create opportunity for all youth."
"Growing up in Texas, 4-H helped me build the skills that made me the leader I am today," said McKnight. "I am honored to join National 4-H Council's Board of Trustees and provide the opportunities I was given to the next generation of leaders."
"It is truly exciting to work to advance the diversity agenda for 4-H. Growing up in North Carolina, my grandmother helped me appreciate the role agriculture played in building the strong foundation of our country. I love 4-H because it embodies the values that she taught me on valuing every human being and the duty we have to help the youth meet their full leadership potential. For this reason, among many others, I am honored to join National 4-H Council's Board of Trustees to do this work alongside their amazing leaders."
Tiffany Atwell - Senior Vice President, Global Government Relations, Ecolab
Ms. Tiffany Atwell leads the global government relations organization at Ecolab, the world's leading water, hygiene and infection prevention company. She previously served as Vice President of Global Government and Industry Affairs for Corteva Agriscience, a spinoff of DowDuPont, where she managed a global team focused on shaping government policies and regulations. In her role at Corteva, Tiffany directed DuPont's market access policy efforts by promoting the company abroad. Her endeavors included establishing partnerships with farmers in emerging markets, launching Corteva's partnership to increase dairy production in Kenya, and helping develop a partnership with the Indian government to assist more than 100,000 farmers.
Tiffany has spent over a decade in the U.S. Government in a variety of international policy roles, including working closely with Senator Chuck Grassley as an international trade policy adviser on the Senate Finance Committee, where she wrote speeches and briefings.
Her honors include receiving the Abbott President Award in 2010, 2011, and 2012. She is a graduate of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University and lives with her family in Washington, D.C. Tiffany has often encouraged other women and members of underrepresented groups to join the agricultural sector, and enjoys volunteering and mentoring young professionals in her spare time.
Trent McKnight - Founder, AgriCorps and Operating Partner, VestedWorld
Mr. Trent McKnight is the founder of AgriCorps, an operating partner in VestedWorld, and a lifelong rancher and businessman in Throckmorton, Texas. His past accomplishments include national president of the Future Farmers of America, member of the Texas 4-H Council, and a former appointee of Governor Rick Perry to the Brazos River Authority.
Trent has served as an agriculture advisor to the U.S. military in Iraq, agricultural economist to the United Nations in West Africa, agriculture researcher for the Borlaug Institute of International Agriculture, and chairman of the USDA's Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Committee. In 2013, he founded AgriCorps, a non-profit organization that builds capacity and creates an enabling environment for school-based agricultural education and 4-H programs in sub-Saharan Africa. Through AgriCorps, Trent wrote the International Agricultural Education Fellowship Program under the Trade Title of the 2018 U.S. Farm Bill and launched The Movement for School-Based Agricultural Education in 2020.
Trent is an operating partner in VestedWorld, a venture capital firm focused on early-stage companies in emerging markets. He has a bachelor's degree in agricultural economics from Oklahoma State University and a master's degree in comparative politics from the London School of Economics.
ABOUT 4-H
4-H, the nation's largest youth development organization, grows confident young people who are empowered for life today and prepared for careers tomorrow. 4-H programs empower nearly six million young people across the U.S. through experiences that develop critical life skills. 4-H is the youth development program of our nation's Cooperative Extension System and USDA, and serves every county and parish in the U.S. through a network of 110 public universities and more than 3,000 local Extension offices. Globally, 4-H collaborates with independent programs to empower one million youth in 50 countries. The research-backed 4-H experience grows young people who are four times more likely to contribute to their communities; two times more likely to make healthier choices; two times more likely to be civically active; and two times more likely to participate in STEM programs.
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