Reynoldsburg, Ohio —Ten young Jersey cattle breeders will be recognized November 9, 2013 for their accomplishments in the 2012 National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest.

The contest recognizes outstanding achievement by junior Jersey owners in four areas: work with Registered Jerseys™, related dairy activities, relative progress, and future goals. They were selected from 20 outstanding youth nominated by state Jersey associations, based on their cumulative record through December 31, 2012.

The American Jersey Cattle Association will present cash awards totaling $3,000, including $600 to the contest winner, at the Junior Banquet held in conjunction with The All American Junior Jersey Show in Louisville, Ky.

The Top Three Honorees

The winner of the 2012 achievement contest is Cassandra Krull of Lake Mills, Wis. A junior at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, Cassy has owned Jerseys since age 3, developing her dairy management skills through 4-H Cloverbuds and later 4-H, FFA and the Jersey, Holstein and Red & White organizations in Wisconsin. Setting her goals on breeding cows with top production and show-winning type, she has achieved success competing at The All American Jersey Shows and National Jersey Jug Futurity, World Dairy Expo and Wisconsin State Fair. An active member and leadership in many agriculture and community groups, Cassy is an articulate advocate for the dairy industry. She was the 2011 National Jersey Queen and a member of the second class of Jersey Youth Academy.

Second place was awarded to Natalie Sanders, Hilmar, Calif., a student at Modesto Junior College majoring in dairy science and ag business. As co-owner of Fire-Lake Jerseys, she owns 57 Registered Jerseys, 22 of which are in milk and involved in an embryo transfer program. Natalie was a member of the Modesto Junior College team which won the post-secondary judging contest at World Dairy Expo in 2011, then placed as second high individual at the 2012 Royal Highland Show Judging Contest in Scotland. She was selected for the Jersey Youth Academy program in both 2009 and 2011.

Dylan Ellenburg, Morristown, Tenn., placed third in the contest. He won the National Jersey Youth Production Contest and the Pot O’Gold Production Contest in 2008, and has received 11 AJCA Hall of Fame certificates for his cows over the past seven years. Sixty percent of his animals have been genotyped, and he has bred three bulls entering A.I. progeny test programs. This member of the second Jersey Youth Academy class has worked two years as a DHIA technician, and will be attending Virginia Tech this fall to pursue a degree in dairy science.

Rounding Out The Top 10

Ranking fourth through tenth in the contest were:

• Kelli Ann Carstensen of Petaluma, Calif., a May 2013 graduate of California Polytechnic State University who has excelled as a breeder, showman and judge at local, state and national events;
• Kara Maxwell, Donahue, Iowa, a student at Iowa State University who has earned many awards for her public speaking and the production of her Jerseys, with 28 cows averaging 22,300-1,050-802 m.e. in 2012;
• Abagael Tauchen, Bonduel, Wis., who built a herd of high-producing, show winning Jerseys starting from a purchase at the Pot O’Gold Sale and is majoring in dairy science at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls;
• Allison Mangun, Burbank, Ohio, a 2013 graduate of Norwayne High School who owns 36 Jerseys that averaged 18,662-951-674 m.e. and has earned awards from Ohio FFA in public speaking and dairy enterprise management;
• Janelle Remington of Juneau, Wis., exhibitor of winning animals at The All American Jersey Show and World Dairy Expo, in addition to winning a James Crowley State 4-H Dairy Leadership Award in 2012;
• Josh Hannah, Cleveland, Tenn., a fourth-generation dairy farmer who used the AJCA Genetic Recovery program to develop his own herd of 38 Registered Jerseys and is studying to become an agriculture teacher; and
• Colin Russell, Hilmar, Calif., recipient of numerous state and national show and production awards, who as a summer project for his degree program at Cornell University helped design a new calf facility for his family’s Texas dairy operation in Texas.

The National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest has been sponsored annually since 1957 by the American Jersey Cattle Association. The list of previous winners is published in the USJersey web site.

About the National Jersey Youth Programs

Organized in 1868, the Jersey association has sponsored educational programs and activities for young people interested in the Jersey breed since 1917. Junior members have the same registration privileges as Lifetime Members, and also the incentives of a comprehensive program leading to national recognition for their achievements with Jersey cattle.

These programs include:

• Free membership in the association until the youth’s 21^st birthday (upon application to the association);
• The All American Junior Jersey Show in Louisville, Ky., providing the thrill of competition in the largest show of Registered Jerseys™ in the world and introductions to lifelong friends from across the United States;
• the National Jersey Youth Production Contest and Pot O’Gold sales, which create incentives for keeping production and management records;
• national scholarships that help pay for hands-on work experiences and college educations;
• the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest, the ultimate recognition for Jersey youth between the ages of 16 and 20; and
• Jersey Youth Academy, an intensive educational program conducted every two years in Columbus, Ohio.

The annual National Heifer Sale is the primary source of funding for the AJCA’s youth program. The 2013 sale, held June 29 in Amarillo, Texas, set new records with 47 lots averaging $6,362.77 and raising almost $30,000 for Jersey youth programs. Additional funds are available from the Maurice E. Core Jersey Youth Fund, the Charlene Nardone National Jersey Queen Fund and scholarship funds managed by the American Jersey Cattle Association.

For More Information

For more information about the American Jersey Cattle Association’s youth programs, contact the Development Department at 614/861-3636, or visit the USJersey web site at www.USJersey.com.