The assignments listed below will be discussed over the course of the Ambassador Program. Please take time to review the individual assignments. Each one will build upon previous work, setting the stage for a successful advocacy experience during our Fall Trip. Each assignment will have an assigned Expert Panel who will help the Government Affairs team lead the discussion during the monthly conference calls. Starting with the second assignment, all Ambassadors will be assigned to serve on one Expert Panel.  More information will be shared during the May Kick-Off. 

Conference call dates, assignment deadlines and expert panel assignments will be announced and added to this page following the May Kick-Off. All assignments will be due one week prior to our scheduled conference calls.  Please be sure to get your assignment completed in a timely fashion so the CoBank team has time to review and give you meaningful feedback.  Questions can be directed to Aldyn Abell Denton (aabell@cobank.com).

May – Assignment 1: What is Farm Credit?

This is a two-part assignment. Assignments will be discussed on Tuesday, May 21.

1. Please write a brief statement that you believe captures the essential elements describing Farm Credit.  Additionally, include information that is specific to your individual institution.  The two together should be concise and to the point.  This is your Farm Credit “elevator speech.”  You usually have 15 to 30 seconds to persuade an individual who knows nothing of an issue.  This is your opportunity to educate and engage a Farm Credit stakeholder in a very brief time frame.
2. Please list three positive things you have heard about the Farm Credit System and three negative comments you have heard regarding the Farm Credit System.  From whom did these comments originate?  How can you leverage the positive comments and your experience to refute the negative comments you have heard?  This information will be helpful in refining your perspective on Farm Credit politically and enhance your understanding of the political environment that exists today. 

Please submit your statement and comments in one document here by Tuesday, May 14.

June – Assignment 2: Video

Conference call will be held on Thursday, June 20, 2024. 

Please shoot a 30-second video of a brief elevator speech that explains how Farm Credit impacts your communities. Your elevator speech should include information you would be proud to share when explaining who we are, what we do and why it’s important. Please feel free to include an anecdote that encapsulates the personal connection you feel to Farm Credit or a real-life anecdote that demonstrates your institution’s efforts to fulfill our mission. Don’t overlook contributions to your community as a meaningful story to share.  Assignment 1 is also a good resource to help you with this assignment.

We will provide you with an iPhone tool kit that walks you through shooting this video. The purpose of this assignment is to equip you with the tools and language necessary to communicate a message about Farm Credit, a message that you will soon be delivering to your Members of Congress and other government officials.  Practice makes perfect!  

Expert Panel: Brandy Barnes, Chris Carter, Dylan Orr, Janet Downs and Kaitlyn Rohnert

Please submit your assignment here by close of business on Thursday, June 13, 2024.

July – Assignment 3: Letter to Congress & Local Congressional Outreach

This is a two-part assignment. Conference call will be held on Thursday, July 18, 2024. 

1. Please draft a letter to a member of your congressional delegation (but do not send).  Write about the importance of the Farm Bill and the need for their support of this legislation.  Consider including some key arguments like our mission to support agriculture producers and rural America.  Feel free to discuss the real-life impact that farm policy has on your customers and community.

   Again, you will not be sending your letter to the congressional office, but this will give you an opportunity to organize your thoughts around how to best advocate regarding legislation that directly impacts the Farm Credit System. Please keep your letter to one page.

2. Begin researching your two Senators and Representative.  Go to their websites and become familiar with the committees on which they serve; legislative issues of particular importance and other items of note (websites and press releases are a good starting place). Signing up to receive newsletters from their offices may be helpful to your advocacy efforts.   

   Every member of the House or Senate has staff to stay in touch with constituents and represent the member at local functions.  Serving as the local political eyes and ears for the Member of Congress, they will frequently seek out groups and individuals with which to meet and discuss local issues of concern.  You want to work towards being their first contact when seeking info regarding agriculture, credit and rural America. 

   During the August Recess, Members of Congress return to their districts to meet with constituents. Members spend a lot of their time in Washington, D.C., but they are profoundly interested in the thoughts and opinions of their constituents back home. Your assignment is to contact the local office of one of your elected federal officials (contact information will be on the Members’ websites) and request a meeting (virtual or in-person) with a local staff member, scheduled between now and August. Please coordinate with other Ambassadors who live in your district or state to avoid duplicate requests as that detracts from our efforts. Please let us know if you need assistance in identifying colleagues in your same congressional district.

   If you are unable to schedule a meeting, you can attend a town hall event instead.  Town halls offer an opportunity for constituents to make their voices heard and for the Member to take the pulse of their constituency. To see if there is a town hall scheduled in your district, visit the websites, check the social media accounts or call the local offices of your Senators and Representative.

   The purpose of this assignment is to introduce yourself and your institution.  Provide an update on how your organization is fulfilling its mission by providing credit and other services to the district/state. If you attend a town hall event, make sure you introduce yourself to a staff member and contribute to the dialogue.  Be sure to get their contact information and follow up with a “thank you” email. Once you have completed your meeting, please upload a brief summary of the items discussed during your meeting/event. Ensure your summary includes the date and time of your visit and the name of the staff contact with whom you met. 

Expert Panel: Robert Galena, David Penney, Autumn Counts, Joana Ryan Bekerman and Travis Hanks

Please submit your assignment here by close of business on Thursday, July 11, 2024.

August – Assignment 4: Action Alert

Conference call will be held on Thursday, August 15, 2024. 

Please draft an Action Alert email calling your local institution to action in support of reauthorizing the Farm Bill. It does not have to be long (2-3 paragraphs are plenty) but it needs to include background information on the issue, a Call to Action and direction on how people can engage on the issue. 

This email will not be sent to your local institution but is an exercise in learning how to activate your colleagues in support or opposition of an issue. 

Expert Panel: Travis Holdeman, Chris Holmes, Emily Inman, Brooke Looney and Travis Vogler

Please submit your assignment here by close of business on Thursday, August 8, 2024.

September – Review for Fall Trip & Assignment 5: Preliminary Questions & One-Pager

This is a two-part assignment. Conference call will be held on Thursday, September 19, 2024.

1. You will be provided a tentative itinerary for the NY and DC Ambassador Trip, including companies and organizations we will potentially be meeting with. Please research each group and come up with one preliminary question you have for each visit. This will help you better prepare and allow you to more actively engage in dialogue with our stakeholders and speakers. 
2. Please upload your institution’s one-pager that best depicts how your Farm Credit institution is serving its mission.  The one-pager should include charts, graphs and pictures that tell the Farm Credit story. This is the one-pager you will give to Congressional staffers during Hill visits to share an overview of the work that your institution does and how it impacts your (their) community and constituents. We will use the one-pager provided to prepare your meeting documents for the Fall Trip. 

We will also discuss logistics for the trip and address any questions or concerns you may have prior to our meeting in New York, NY.   

Expert Panel: Sarah Lueck, Anna Durham, Stephanie Loughner and Nathan Garcin

Please submit your preliminary questions and one-pager here by close of business on Friday, September 13, 2024.

October – Debrief & Assignment 6: Farm Credit PAC Solicitation

Conference call will be held on Thursday, October 24, 2024. 

Effective political action takes many forms. It can mean visiting a Member of Congress on a trip to Washington or writing your elected official to support or oppose pending legislation. Political Action Committees (PACs) also play a critical role in advocacy. The Farm Credit System established the Farm Credit PAC to help effectively advocate in our Nation’s capital. This valuable, grassroots-driven tool combines the strength of voluntary contributions from Farm Credit leaders across the country to support the election of federal candidates who understand the importance of our mission to serve agriculture and rural communities and to educate those who do not.

CoBank and affiliated associations run their own Farm Credit PAC solicitation campaigns throughout the year. The campaigns take many different forms: emails to employees, a verbal presentation to your board of directors or senior leaders, silent auctions, or other fundraisers.  For this assignment, we want you to draft an email solicitation to peers in your local institution conveying the importance of the Farm Credit PAC and asking for their financial support. This assignment will not be sent to your colleagues, but is an exercise in learning more about the PAC and how to effectively garner support for this grassroots tool. 

Expert Panel: Tanner Swanson, Lane Gardiner, Natalya Rivkin, Eric Stoltz and Dalila Martinez

Please submit your assignment here by close of business on Thursday, October 17, 2024. 

November – Assignment 7: Activating Your Association

Conference call will be held on Thursday, November 21, 2024. 

We would like you to take what you have learned in the program to the next level.  We hope that you have used this opportunity to expand your knowledge of public policy and the funding foundations of the Farm Credit System.  Back home you will be better prepared to defend and educate others on how we work every day to fulfill our mission to improve the quality of life in rural America.

Now, you will develop a local political action plan.  Your plan should include efforts to stimulate your grassroots and a strategy to engage local, current and future Farm Credit borrowers and colleagues.  How do you plan to accomplish this?  How do you plan to use your local association, as well as the knowledge you have gained during the course of this program to accomplish these objectives?  By now, you have seen first-hand how relationships can make or break your efforts.  Having a solid outreach plan is key to the continued success of your association and the Farm Credit System as a whole. 

Expert Panel: Sara Siegall, Keith Stechschulte, Claire Trudo, Dustin Oswald and Leah Weyers

Please submit your assignment here by close of business on Thursday, November 14, 2024.