Tumaini University-Iringa, Tanzania
  
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U.S. Advisory Committee

MISSION:  U.S Advisory Committee

  • To provide U.S. support for the Institute of Agriculture

ADVISORY COMMITTEE GOALS:

  • Develop stable long term governance and operating structure
    • Separate sub-committee needed to draft plan
  • Develop measurable business and financial plan
    • Prioritize individual farm plan objectives. (Ex: Potential relationship with International Rice Institute.)
    • Develop annual and long term goals
    • Develop appropriate financial controls
  • Clarify relationship between Institute of Agriculture and:
    • Tumaini University: Farm ownership and governance control
    • Sokoine University: Information and support relationship
    • University of Minnesota: Information and support relationship
    • St. Paul Area Synod: Iringa Task Force oversight of Institute of Agriculture Advisory Committee
  • Develop financial  support options
    • Demonstration Plots—Companion Congregations
    • St. Paul Area Synod contributions
    • ELCA Foundation grants and contributions
    • Corporate and Foundation grants
    • Institute self-generated income from farms
  • Develop contributions management system with
    • University of Minnesota Foundation
  • Develop communication plan
    • Brochure
    • Web-based—link to Synod Website
    • Personal contact
  • Develop human resources support
    • Develop short and long term organizational chart
    • MAST—J1 visa program with U. of Minnesota training relationship
    • Student exchange relationships
  • Assist with Institute Extension and Research goals
  • Develop systematic extension effort through Iringa parishes

U.S. ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Fred Bergsrud
New Brighton, Minn.
Bergsrud retired from the Agricultural Engineering Dept. [Now the Dept. of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering] at the Univ. of MN in 1997.  He started his career as an Extension Specialist in the field and after moving to campus served in several administrative positions.  Water resources is his specialty.  His African experience consists of two trips to Tanzania and one to Madagascar.  Other international experience includes a year on a US-AID project in Syria and consulting in Jamaica and Russia.

Roger Blomquist
New Brighton, Minn.
Recently retired, Blomquist has 37 years of technical and management experience in the environmental industry.   He has taken four trips to Tanzania where he met and developed relationships with pastors and staff from the Iringa Diocese and Tumaini University.  He assisted Arne and Mary Blomquist in founding Tumaini University.  Blomquist holds a B.S in Agricultural Science from Michigan State University [1966] and a PhD in Agronomy from the University of Wisconsin [1971].  Currently serves as Secretary-Treasurer of the Advisory Committee.

Greg Cuomo
St. Paul, Minn.
Cuomo currently serves as Associate Dean for Extension in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resource Science at the University of Minnesota. He also served as Director of UMore Park and Head of the West Central Research and Outreach Center at the U of MN.   He is a Professor in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics at the U of MN.  His research area of expertise is forage agronomy.

Will Carlson
North Branch, Minn.
Carlson is a retired large animal veterinarian and grain and alfalfa farm operator.  He was involved with early discussions to provide aid to the people of the Iringa region to improve their food production.  Carlson was involved with negotiations to purchase the Mgongo Demonstration Farm associated with Tumaini University which is being used as a site to demonstrate improved farming practices for Tanzanian farmers.
 
Les Everett
St. Paul, Minn.
Everett is currently a Coordinator for development and management of Extension programs related to agriculture and water quality at the University of Minnesota Water Resources Center. He holds a BS degree in Farm Operations from Iowa State University; a M.S. in Agronomy from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in Plant Breeding from the University of Minnesota.  From 1982 to 1992, he was a staff scientist and maize breeder with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Nigeria and Cameroon. Everett was a Peace Corps volunteer in agriculture in Zaire, 1973-1975.

Don Fehr
New Market, Minn.
Fehr is the Facilities Manager for Scott County, MN. He has 32 years experience in local government in the design, construction, and management of local public works projects, including roads, bridges, and buildings.

Bob Hesse
Annandale, Minn.
Hesse retired after 43 years with Cargill Inc. where he held various management positions in grain, animal feed and fertilizer businesses which included Worldwide Product Line Manager, and Asst. VP for Specialized Agronomic Products in the Fertilizer Division.  He also served on the Minnesota Agri-Growth Council and as chairman of the Liquid Feed Committee of the American Feed Manufacturers Assn.

Kathryn Hesse
Hesse is currently employed by Target Corporation, as a senior manager in IT services.  Over the past 25 years, Hesse has served in many management roles of technical services.  She holds a BS degree in Dairy Science from Iowa State University; and was active in the family farming operation.

John Hodler
St. Paul, Minn.
Hodler is currently Director, Strategic Operations, Land O’ Lakes Purina Feed, LLC. He has 35 years of  experience in the US Feed Industry.  Prior to his current role with LOL, he served in various management positions, including VP Operations at PMI, President/GM at Spartan Grain and Feed.  He currently serves on the board of directors for Eastern Block, Inc. Hodler has made one trip to Tanzania; working on the installation of a fresh water system.

Mark Jensen
Annandale, Minn.
Jensen is the Founding Director of The Institute of Agriculture. Since receiving his Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Minnesota he has been a High School Agriculture Vocational Instructor, with wife Terry they dairy farmed for seven years. Worked for GENEX CRI (artificial insemination of dairy and beef cattle) for 19 years the last five as Regional Sales Manager. Was Home Mortgage Officer for 3 years before he took the volunteer position of Founding Director.

Dave Johnson
Inver Grove Heights, Minn.
Johnson  is retired as CEO of Cenex-Land O’Lakes Agronomy Company.   Prior to his service as CEO, he served in various management positions at Cenex.  As a soil scientist, he has spent his entire career in the crop production business, starting out in rural Minnesota establishing crop demonstration plots. Johnson has had numerous leadership roles with many Boards of Directors associated with agribusiness, academic institutions, and non-profit organizations.

 Gary Langness  [Ex-Officio]
Lilydale, Minn.
Langness is a retired Lutheran pastor who is the chairperson of the St. Paul
Area Synod Task Force which relates to the Iringa Diocese.  He has been
traveling to Tanzania since 1987 and now spends four months each year in
Iringa working on the Bega Kwa Bega relationship between the St. Paul Area
Synod and the Iringa Diocese.

Phil Larsen
Arden Hills, Minn.
Larsen is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Plant Pathology, University of Minnesota. He has held several administrative positions with the University of MN including Director of Operations, UMore Park; Senior Associate Dean for Research in the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences; Associate Director, MN Agricultural Experiment Station; and Head, Department of Plant Pathology.  Larsen also was appointed Endowed Professor for the Plant Protection Program at the The Ohio State University before coming to Minnesota.  He currently serves as Chair of the Institute of Agriculture Advisory Committee.

Maury Miller
Danbury, Wis.
Miller is a retired Sr. Vice President of Cenex Harvest States(CHS) and Land O’Lakes Cooperatives.  During a 30-year career he served in senior strategic planning, finance, marketing, and communications positions primarily working with the systems’ 3000 local cooperatives.  He also served as a Naval Officer in Vietnam.  Miller currently serves on the Burnett County, Wisconsin Board of Supervisors where he has served as Chairman of Agricultural Extension Services and Land Use Planning.

Pete Raquet
Mound, Minn.

Lee D. Sandager
Marine-on-St. Croix, Minn.
After retirement, Sandager served as an agricultural advisor/consultant for US-AID for nine years in conjunction with projects in Hungary, Russia, Ethiopia and Uganda.  He was agricultural consultant and International Project Administrator for Experience Inc., for 10 years with project management experience in Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia and Nigeria. Sandager was engaged in teacher training for Columbia University in Kenya for two years.  He taught vocational agriculture in Minnesota for 30 years and was a crop and livestock farmer in MN for 20 years.

John Vreyens,
St. Paul, Minn.
Vreyens provides leadership for international programs in the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences at the University of Minnesota.  He is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer having served in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Senegal.  His research and teaching interest is innovation decision making while introducing change into communities and cross-cultural communication during the change process.