Who We Are

The FuSE Organizing Committee is made up of FuSE members who take an active role in the planning and activities of FuSE.

	FuSE Chair Sarah Neuharth sarah.neuharth@pioneer.com Joined the seed industry: 2012 Sarah joined DuPont Pioneer in 2012 as an Emerging Leader, and has since transitioned to a position on the Production Education team in Johnson, Iowa. She received her degree from California State University, Chico, in Crop Science. Aside from FuSE, Sarah is also an active member of the Pioneer Young Professionals and Pioneer Women’s Network group and volunteers her time with homeless outreach and education in the community.			Vice Chair Casey Zeller casey.zeller@agreliantgenetics.com Joined the seed industry: 2010 Casey is Commercial Marketing Manager at AgReliant Genetics in Westfield, IN. He graduated from Purdue University in 2010 with a B.S. in Agricultural Economics. Casey is a National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA) member and is also involved with the American Angus Association, Purdue Ag Alumni Mentoring Program and White River Christian Church.
	Communications Committee Chair Chelsie Kilmer  chelsie@agprinters.com Joined the seed industry: 2011 Chelsie is a Sales Representative for Ag Printers in Lafayette, IN. She graduated from Purdue University in 2004 with a B.S. in Animal Science and joined the Ag Printers team in 2011. At Ag Printers, Chelsie has the opportunity to work with seed companies across the United States, providing them with marketing and labeling solutions. Along with joining FuSE in 2014, she is also is a National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA) member, is involved with the family farm (Kilmer Swine Farm), and serves on several committees at the Monticello United Methodist Church. Outside of the office Chelsie, her husband, and their two sons enjoy attending livestock events and cheering on the Boilers!			Communications Committee Chair Samantha Bock samantha.bock@agreliantgenetics.com Joined the seed industry: 2010 Samantha Bock is the Corporate Communications Manager at AgReliant Genetics in Westfield, Indiana. She holds a Bachelor of Science from Purdue University in Agricultural Communication. After graduation, she began her career with the AgriGold brand before transitioning to AgReliant’s corporate office in 2011. Samantha is currently involved in the American Seed Trade Association’s communications committee, Indiana Crop Improvement’s Corn Belt Conference planning committee and NAMA. She also serves on the National FFA Ag Comm CDE planning committee and is a Purdue Agriculture Alumni Mentor. Originally from Danville, Indiana, Samantha now lives in Indianapolis with her husband, Dave. She is currently pursuing an MBA from Ball State University and was the recipient of the 2015 Future Giant of the Seed Industry award.
	Education Committee Chair Jeff Skemp Jeff.skemp@groalliance.com Joined the seed industry: 2009 Jeff started with Gro Alliance in 2012 as a warehouse and packaging area lead. In 2013, Jeff was promoted to Account Manager, becoming the day-to-day contact for clients regarding their seed production, conditioning and warehousing.Jeff currently serves as the Chair of the Education Committee for ASTA’s Future Seed Executive Initiative(FuSE), and has been a member of FuSE since March of 2014. He also serves on the Education Committee for the Independent Professional Seed Association.Prior to joining Gro Alliance, Jeff was in sales for Lands’ End. He holds a Business Administration Management degree from University of Wisconsin-Platteville, and recently finished his Masters in Project Management. Jeff lives in Platteville, Wisconsin with his wife Meghan. They have two sons, Byron, who is two, and Harrison who was born October 2015. Aside from family and work, Jeff also is the Assistant Varsity Boys’ Basketball Coach at Cuba City High School.			Connections Committee Bethany Drendel bethany.drendel@pioneer.com Joined the seed industry: 2014 Bethany Drendel joined DuPont Pioneer in June of 2014 as an Agronomist in Hedrick, Iowa in the organization’s Emerging Leader Program. Drendel graduated from Iowa State University in May of 2014 with a Bachelor of Science in agricultural business and international agriculture with a minor in agronomy. Prior to starting full-time with Pioneer, she served as a corn marketing intern for the company’s North America business and was recognized as a DuPont Pioneer Internship Grant Award winner. The summer before her senior year of college, Bethany was selected to attend ASTA’s annual convention as a participant in FuSE Campus Connections; as a young professional in the industry, she is excited to give back to Campus Connections through FuSE. Bethany grew up on a diversified grain and livestock farm near Jewell, Iowa. She enjoys running, traveling, following Iowa State athletics and spending time with family and friends.
				Connections Committee Co-Chair Liz Knutson liz.knutson@pioneer.com Joined the seed industry: 2014 Liz is an Integrated Operations Education Consultant at DuPont Pioneer. She earned her degree in Agricultural Education at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, and joined the seed industry as a part of Pioneer’s Emerging Leader Program immediately following graduation. Liz grew up on a crop farm in southwestern Minnesota, where she spent a great deal of time working with the family agribusiness. Liz is an avid volunteer with the National FFA Organization and enjoys cheering on the Golden Gophers with her husband, Randy, at any opportunity.

JOIN OUR TEAM!

We have more ideas than time to implement them and we are actively seeking motivated individuals to assist us in supporting FuSE! To receive more information on FuSE, please email the committee at fuse@amseed.org.