The U.S. Apple Association (USApple) recently announced its latest leadership development class, NextGen Apple Fellowship. Seven young professionals in the apple industry will get hands-on experience with legislative and regulatory issues, professional development, one-on-one mentoring, community engagement and opportunities to network with industry leaders.
“Each member of this new class showed tremendous potential in their profession, enthusiasm and energy for the NextGen program, and a passion for the apple industry,” Elizabeth Pauls of Wittenbach Orchards in Michigan, a USApple board member and chair of the NextGen Advisory Committee, said in a news release. “We are thrilled to see how they develop as a class and as professionals. As the national apple association, we’re looking forward to harnessing their skills and voice for the betterment of the industry.”
The 2024 NextGen program will kick off in Washington, D.C., in March in conjunction with USApple’s Capitol Hill Day. The program will run through December 2024.
The 2024 NextGen Apple Fellows include:
- Amanda VanBergen, laboratory technician with Riveridge Produce Marketing (Michigan).
- Austin Benson, export sales with Chelan Fresh (Washington).
- Brannon Frankel, fixed asset manager with AgriMACS (Washington).
- Joseph Strippoli, orchard manager with Geig’s Orchard (Ohio).
- Madison Schaefer, SafePod account manager with Storage Control Systems (Michigan).
- Max Farrell, H-2A account executive with Seso Labor (Texas).
- Shelby Miller, marketing and sales specialist with Applewood Fresh (Michigan).
