Tours, workshops engage youth at leadership derby

Story and photos by Karen Lee

Forty-five young dairy enthusiasts came together at the Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin (PDPW) Youth Leadership Derby held in Milton, Wisconsin, in early November. The weekend was filled with tours and interactive workshops.

The first tour stop was NASCO International Inc. to learn how it supplies almost everything from farm goods to classroom tools. Next, they visited Larson Acres, a 1,400-cow, 3,000-acre family farm near Evansville. Owner Mike Larson shared how they not only manage the herd but also the environment. The last stop of the day was at Doug and Melanie Nifong’s 35-head dairy. Youth learned how show cattle are grown and groomed at Me-Do Meadows.

Back at the school it was time for some learning labs. Youth rotated between agronomy, nutrition, food science, communications, reproduction and secondary education workshops.

For more about the derby and additional pictures, go to www.proudtodairy.com to view the blog post. PD

Above: Shaker box skills are developed during a hands-on dairy nutrition workshop.

Above: UW–Madison Graduate Student Elizabeth French, right, helps students analyze forage samples.

Above: An ambitious group of 45 youth, ages 15 to 18, along with college student mentors and workshop leaders, learn about all aspects of the dairy industry at PDPW’s Youth Leadership Derby.