Erath County man chosen to take part in prestigious ag leadership program.
By SARA VANDEN BERGE
Erath County resident Lance Gilliland is among 26 professionals selected for the Governor Dolph Briscoe Jr. Texas Agricultural Lifetime Leadership Program.
TALL is a two-year program led by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and provides an intensive study of agriculture to equip industry professionals to lead their fields.
“TALL is a competitive leadership development program that includes seminars with experts, on-site visits, meetings with business and government leaders, international study and personal skills improvement,” said program director Dr. Jim Mazurkiewicz.
More than 400 people applied for the program.
With the agriculture industry constantly facing new and unique challenges, Mazurkiewicz said TALL graduates provide a pool of proven leaders who can provide leadership, insight, knowledge, and direction to ensure agriculture is viable in the future.
“The program invests 470 hours of intensive training per person through seminars, speakers and domestic and international study trips over two years,” he said. “It’s equivalent to class time spent obtaining a master’s degree in agriculture.”
Participants include crop producers, ranchers, bankers and attorneys and others who work in lumber, food processing, agricultural corporations and horticultural from across Texas.