Center for Rural Affairs

The Center for Rural Affairs (CFRA) is "one of the nation’s leading rural organizations, known for our pioneering work to rebuild rural America and reform federal policy." Headquartered in Lyons, NE, it is a national non-profit organization with 30,000 supporters across the United States. CRFA has a $3 million annual budget and employs 31 people as staff.

CFRA's goals are:


 * "Advocating for policies that support rural communities reduce poverty, reward stewardship, and strengthen small farms and businesses.
 * Creating opportunities to earn a living in rural communities though work with small businesses and family farms and ranches.
 * Advancing communities by working to develop leaders, create innovative new approaches and provide resources for individuals working in small towns."

History
CFRA was established in 1973 in Northeast Nebraska. In 1976, its Small Farm Energy Project "pioneered on-farm sustainable agriculture research, now the preferred research method for sustainable agriculture."


 * "In 1976 our Small Farm Energy Project pioneered on-farm sustainable agriculture research, now the preferred research method for sustainable agriculture. In 1979 we published a research report on the growth of large-scale hog factories, the public policies that favor them, and the threat they pose to family farms. That report, titled “Who Will Sit Up With the Corporate Sow?,” laid the foundation for the Center's continuing effort to keep hog production on sustainable family farms. In 1982, the Center played a pivotal role in a coalition of farm and religious groups to secure the passage of "Initiative 300" by a vote of Nebraskans to restrict corporate farming and to protect family farms in the state.


 * "In 1986, the Center for Rural Affairs initiated its work on federal conservation policy with an analysis of implementation of the Conservation Reserve Program. Two years later, the Center played a leading role in the formation of the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, now the leading voice for sustainable agriculture policy in Washington, D.C. In the early 1990s, we were the lead founder of the National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture. Our historic efforts in creating these organizations were pivotal in establishing a voice for grassroots conservation and sustainable agriculture advocates in federal policy debates.


 * "Over the last two decades, the Center has demonstrated its effectiveness by winning significant reforms in state and federal agricultural and rural development policy. The Center is also viewed by the media as a knowledgeable source and credible voice of rural people. In recent years, the Center has been quoted in many nationwide Associated Press stories in the New York Times, the Economist, CNN, Christian Science Monitor, San Francisco Chronicle, Reuters, National Public Radio, PBS, the Los Angeles Times, the Clear Channel Network, and many prominent regional news media."

Board
Accessed in 2011:


 * President: Jim Knopik
 * Vice President: Laverne Barrett
 * Secretary: Mark Gustafson
 * Treasurer: Chuck Karpf
 * Past President: David Hansen
 * Past President: Maryanne Rouse
 * Past President: Paul Swanson
 * Past President: Karen Tikalsky
 * Joe Blankenau
 * Adriana Dungan
 * Lowell Fey
 * Melissa Florell
 * Becky Gould
 * Rhea Landholm
 * Keith Mahaney
 * Clark Nichols
 * Paul Olson
 * Cy Pinkelman
 * Kayla Schneulle
 * Carol Schooley
 * Ed Toribio
 * Director Emeritus: Bob Warrick
 * Director Emeritus: Don Reeves

Advisory Board
Accessed in 2011:

Rural Enterprise Assistance Program
 * Maria Alvarado
 * Bruce Bostelman
 * Connie Harvey

Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program
 * Kevin Fulton
 * Charlotte Narjes
 * Caleb Pollard
 * Pamela Thomsen

Rural Research and Analysis Program
 * Kevin Anderson and Kara Geenwood
 * Jill Hayes
 * Dianne Travers-Gustafson

Rural Policy Program, Rural Organizing and Outreach Program
 * Dennis Demmel
 * Mark Epp
 * Aubrey Krug
 * Mel Luetchens
 * Steve McConnell
 * Aaron Price
 * Kevin Raun
 * Charles Shapiro

Staff
Accessed 2011:


 * Executive Director, Rural Policy Program Director: Chuck Hassebrook
 * Policy Analyst and Rural Policy Program Assistant Director: Traci Bruckner
 * Energy Policy Advocate, Rural Policy Program: Johnathan Hladik

Rural Research and Analysis Program
 * Rural Research and Analysis Program Director: Jon Bailey
 * Rural Research Assistant, Research and Analysis Program: Kim Preston

Rural Organizing and Outreach Program
 * Assistant Executive Director & Rural Organizing and Outreach Program Director: Brian Depew
 * Assistant Director of Organizing, Rural Organizing and Outreach Program: Steph Larsen
 * Policy & Organizing Intern, Rural Organizing and Outreach Program: Alyssa Charney
 * Rural Organizer, Rural Organizing and Outreach Program: Virginia Wolking
 * Montana Rural Health Advocate, Rural Organizing and Outreach Program: Cynthia Wolken

National Rural Action Network
 * National Rural Action Network Organizer: Jamie Horter

Rural Enterprise Assistance Program (REAP)
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Director: Jeff Reynolds
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Women's Business Center Director: Monica Braun
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Hispanic Business Center Director and Business Specialist: Juan Sandoval
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Business Specialist: Dena Beck
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Hispanic Business Specialist: Nancy Flock
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Administrative Assistant: Peggy Mahaney
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Business Specialist: Janelle Moran
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Senior Business Specialist: Gene Rahn
 * Rural Enterprise Assistance Program Business Specialist: Jerry Terwilliger

Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program
 * Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program Director: Kathie Starkweather
 * Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program Assistant Director: Wyatt Fraas
 * Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program Rural Community Development Specialist: Stephanie Fritz
 * Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program MarketPlace Planner: Joy Marshall

Administration and Organizational Development
 * Accounting Assistant: Amber Bridges
 * Major Gift Development Director: Matt Connealy
 * Media Director: John Crabtree
 * Office Manager/Chief Technology Officer: Tris Darnell
 * Communications & Design Associate: Casey Francis
 * Chief Accountant: Hayley Hallstrom
 * Office Clerk, Constituent Data Management: Kim Kaup
 * Communications Associate: Marie Powell
 * Media and Outreach Associate: Elisha Smith
 * Part-time Accounting Clerk: Shawn Vetick

Contact Information

 * Center for Rural Affairs
 * 145 Main St, PO Box 136
 * Lyons, NE 68038
 * Ph: (402) 687-2100
 * Fax: (402) 687-2200
 * Email: info at cfra dot org
 * Web: http://www.cfra.org/