Emerging Iowa Leader Award

Award Requirements

The Emerging Iowa Leader Award honors College of Agriculture and Life Sciences alumni who have taken on significant leadership roles early in their careers in bettering agriculture and life sciences in Iowa through communications, education, relationship-building, engagement, and are providing outstanding alumni service. Honorees must be age 40 or younger at the time of nomination, live or work in Iowa, and demonstrate high potential for future professional growth. Selection is made by the Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

This award was established in 2015 and is presented annually at the CALS Alumni BBQ in September. Contact Paige Zhorne (pezhorne@iastate.edu) with questions.

Past Recipients

  • 2025 - Jake Swanson - '14 global resource systems
  • 2024 - Sara Kvidera - '17 PhD nutritional sciences
  • 2023 - Martha Smith - '04 agricultural business, international agriculture
  • 2022 - Katie Stutsman - '09 agricultural business, economics
  • 2020 - Jacob Handsaker - '04 agricultural studies
  • 2019 - Elizabeth Burns-Thompson - '11 agricultural business, international agriculture
  • 2018 - Jacob Hunter - '11 agricultural and life sciences education
  • 2017 - Stephanie Carlson - '13 animal science
  • 2016 - Andrew Lauver - '12 agricultural studies
  • 2015 - Jacob Thomsen - '06 agronomy