http://ozarkspub.vo.llnwd.net/o37/KSMU/audio/mp3/upcoming-courses-are-women-who-farm_53076.mp3
The Annie’s Project course will run for seven weeks starting February 12th. Wesley Tucker, agriculture business specialist with University of Missouri Extension, says it was created by an Extension Specialist in Illinois…
"Her mother had been named Annie, and had been an excellent record keeper, and when Annie kept these records, they were what helped their operation make better management decisions," he said.
Annie’s daughter, Ruth Hamilton, designed the course based on the experiences of her mother.
According to Tucker, the course is targeted at women because he says they’re generally the record keepers for the business, and records are what give you the power to make better decisions…
"To be honest, women often are better at management decisions because they take the emotions out of the decisions. For instance, when it comes to grain or livestock marketing, they will make a marketing plan, and they will stick to them whereas men often let their emotions cloud or sway their better judgement--'well, if I'd have just sold last week so I'm not gonna sell this week,' but, you know, women will make a plan, and they often stick to them rather than letting their emotions cloud their judgement," he said.
Tucker says any woman involved in agriculture and interested in running their farm as a business would benefit from Annie’s Project.
He says the women will learn from him, but he also hopes they learn from one another…
"So it's good that we have a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences in the ladies that take the course, so by doing group discussions and activities the ladies get a chance to learn from the experiences of each other. This network becomes a powerful tool, you know, for the ladies to help each other," he said.
Topics to be covered include farm leases, land economics, working with different personality types, estate planning and more.
The courses will run each Tuesday night from 6:30 to 9:30 from February 12ththrough March 26th at Citizens Memorial Hospital in Bolivar. The cost is $75 per person. To register, 326-4916 or e-mail Tucker at tuckerw@missouri.edu.