Two Northern New York Cornell Cooperative Extension Educators (CCE) will receive awards at the National Association of County Agricultural Agents national meeting in Charleston, South Carolina, July 16-19.

 
CCE St. Lawrence Livestock Educator Betsy Hodge and CCE Lewis County Field Crops Educator Joseph Lawrence have been selected as the overall state winners from New York State.

 
Hodge will be honored with the Distinguished Service Award.
Lawrence will receive the New York State Association of County Agricultural Agents Achievement Award.  “Betsy’s and Joe’s work represents the very best of Extension programming in New York State,” says Northern New York Regional Agricultural Initiative Coordinator Anita Deming.  Hodge developed Northern New York’s six-county regional livestock education program for sheep, goat and beef producers in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties.  “Our Northern New York livestock producers report high satisfaction with Betsy’s hands on educational opportunities, learning tours to model operations, and videoconferencing; her newsletters with the latest information and production tips, and the increased contact with Cornell livestock specialists and researchers,” says Deming, who is also CCE Essex County Executive Director. “Betsy cares about her clientele and offers timely, research-tested information to encourage farm success, humane livestock production to meet consumer interest, and agricultural environmental stewardship.”Lawrence’s Achievement Award recognizes excellent service by educators with less than 10 years with Cornell Cooperative Extension. While earning his Masters degree in soil science at Cornell University in 2008, Lawrence published three peer-reviewed journal articles on nitrogen management and manure application methods. He joined CCE Lewis County in 2008.  “Joe is a consummate professional who keeps Lewis County’s, and Northern New York’s, producers up-to-date on the challenges, and the opportunities, related to the production of forage, field, and energy crops. He is excellent at listening to the farmers’ needs and providing them with timely resources presented in an easy-to-implement format,” says Deming. “In just four year’s time, Joe has earned the respect of our regional farmers and his colleagues.”Lawrence was also named among Northern New York’s 20 Under 40 Emerging Leaders by NNY Business magazine in late 2011.