Program Overview

Heather Niederwerder is an Insurance Services Officer with Farm Credit Services of America.  Throughout the last 21+ year, Heather’s knowledge and experience working with producers in Western South Dakota has elevated her as a partner in her customer’s team of trusted advisors.   She is passionate about providing financial and risk management advice to many different producers to keep their operations viable in the volatile conditions they face.

Heather grew up learning about crops and cattle from her father, as well as, the hay grinding business from her grandfather.  She and her husband, Marty, live near Hereford and have a deep love of agriculture and a commitment to preserving this way of life.  They operated a small cow/calf operation and now provide trucking services to farmers and ranchers.

An alumni and class president of SDARL Class X, Heather spends time volunteering for many different ag and youth causes.  She is active in the Black Hills Stock Show Ranch Rodeo, the New Underwood Community Church, and FFA judging schools.

Krystil Smit is the Executive Director of South Dakota Farm Bureau. She has been involved in the agriculture industry her entire life, having grown up on a diversified crop and livestock operation. She was an active FFA and 4-H member and served as the State 4-H President. After graduating from South Dakota State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture Journalism and an Animal Science minor, she became the editor of the regional agriculture publication Tri-State Neighbor. Krystil has also held director roles in communications and public relations for the South Dakota Corn Growers Association/SD Corn Utilization Council and Paulsen Marketing. Krystil has held several organizational board positions including with the Stockyards Ag Experience Barn, Sioux Empire Staters, Sioux Empire Fair Board, First National Bank Sioux Falls Next Generation, Sioux Falls Chamber Ag Committee and Turner County Fair Next Generation, along with other community and church leadership roles. Krystil is a non-alumni representative on the SDARL board.

Terry Jaspers of Sisseton is an alumnus of SDARL Class III was elected to the SDARL Foundation Board of Directors in June 2022. This is his second time serving on the SDARL Foundation Board of Directors. He is retired as the Financial Officer after 43 years of service with Farm Credit Services of America. In addition, he operates a small-scale cash grain farming operation.

Along with his new role with SDARL, Terry also serves as Mayor of Sisseton SD. He is chairman of the Board of Directors for Coteau Des Prairies Health Care System in Sisseton SD.  He’s also active in St Peters Catholic Church Sisseton.

Terry Jaspers resides in Sisseton SD with his wife Sandi. They have three grown daughters.

Matt Dybedahl is a Seed District Sales Manager for WinField United, working with growers and retailers in central and western South Dakota to optimize their acres.  Originally from Colton, Matt graduated from South Dakota State University in 2011, where he was a member of FarmHouse Fraternity, Block and Bridle, Agriculture Future of America, the Meat and Animal Evaluation Team, and Ag Bio.  Growing up, he was actively involved in 4-H and FFA and now likes to give back to those organizations by serving as the Ag Sales Career Development Event Chair and helps with other local events.  He is also currently a member of the South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association and South Dakota Ag Business Association.  In his spare time, he enjoys fishing on the Missouri River, hunting, 4-wheeling, traveling, and attending SDSU football and basketball games. He is an alumni of SDARL Class IX and represents his class as President, and lives in Pierre with his wife Sarah.

John Melius joined Hurley & Associates in January of 2006 and is currently the Branch Manager of the Brookings office and member of the Hurley leadership team. The firm is dedicated to helping producers make logical business-minded marketing decisions for their operation, which leads to the economic stability of farm families and their communities. During his tenure with Hurley & Associates, the Brookings location has grown from 2 employees to 18 and serves clients throughout South Dakota and the surrounding states. John grew up near Chelsea SD on a grain and cattle operation where his parents still farm. He obtained BS degrees in Ag Economics and Ag Business from South Dakota State University. John has continued to further his education and insight into agriculture through TEPAP – The Executive Program for Ag Producers – and SDARL, the South Dakota Agricultural & Rural Leadership program, where he was a member of Class VI, and serves as a member of the Foundation Board of Directors and Graduate Committee. John has also held various positions of leadership in his church.

Tiffany Sanderson serves as Lake Area Technical College’s sixth President in Watertown, SD. Lake Area Tech, a winner of the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, exists to launch students into in-demand and well-paying skilled professions. More than 99 percent of Lake Area Tech College’s students are employed or continuing their education following graduation.

Prior to her current role, she led K-12 education in South Dakota as the Secretary of Education. Sanderson’s career has focused on education and workforce development in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Notably, she led South Dakota’s technical college system as Director of Career and Technical Education (CTE) and helped develop important efforts like the Build Dakota Scholarship, the state’s reduced tuition dual credit program, and funding for technical colleges and regional CTE facilities.

A South Dakota native, Sanderson grew up on a ranch and graduated from Lemmon High School. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Education from South Dakota State University and her master’s in Administration: Human Resource Management from the University of South Dakota.

Sanderson’s husband, Nathan, is the executive director of a statewide trade organization, and son, Carter, is the director of their free time. In addition to leading Lake Area Technical College, Sanderson serves on the Watertown Development Company Board and the board of the South Dakota Ag & Rural Leadership Development (SDARL) program. She enjoys time with her family and friends, adventure in the outdoors, cheering on her hockey player, traveling, and supporting community efforts.

If you want to know where agri-marketing is going, ask Sara. She’s already seen it, studied it, and figured out how excelling in digital spaces can help rural brands stand apart. Sara served as president of Paulsen from 2014 through 2021 before transitioning into her current role of Chief Technology Officer to further advance the agency’s impact in that arena.

Sara, a University of South Dakota alumna, was raised on a row-crop and livestock farm in southeastern South Dakota and joined Paulsen as a graphic designer in 1991. Her resume includes experience as a web developer and VP of Digital Services at Paulsen. She also served for seven years on the National Agri-Marketing (NAMA) Executive Committee, with two years as president of the professional organization. During her career, Sara was awarded the NAMA Marketer of the Year, the South Dakota Ad Federation Creative Legacy Award, and the Sioux Falls Business Journal Top Innovator of the Year.

Sara and her husband, John, have been married for 30 years, living on the land that has been in the Steever family since 1889. They have two children, John Thomas, a Mechanical Design Engineer for Sioux Steel in Lennox, SD, and Elizabeth, a Quality Assurance Team Lead for Schreiber Foods in Green Bay, WI. Because she doesn’t have enough on her plate, Sara and her husband also own and operate a rural bed-and-breakfast called The Steever House.

Craig Schaunaman is a fourth generation Farmer/Rancher in Brown County. He has been actively involved in agriculture for over 40 years. Beginning in 1977 he farmed with both his father and brother. For the last 24 years he and his brother have operated a farming partnership near the Aberdeen area. Craig attended Aberdeen Central High School and Northern State University. From 1988-1998 Craig was elected to five consecutive terms in the South Dakota Legislature. In 2009 Craig was appointed to serve as the South Dakota State Executive Director for the USDA Farm Service Agency until 2017. Craig has also served on numerous state and local boards including Heartland Grain Fuels, Dakota Fuels, Aberdeen Development Corporation, and the Brown County Drainage Board. He currently serves on the Ag Advisory Board for the First Dakota National Bank.

Ross Tschetter farms with his family near Bridgewater, South Dakota. Ross is a graduate of First Dakota National Bank’s Agrivisions Beginning Farmer Rancher Program, South Dakota Agricultural and Rural Leadership Class VII, DuPont Pioneer’s NextGen Producers Program, and Texas A&M University Extension’s The Executive Program for Ag Producers.

Ross is a past member of the Bush Foundation’s South Dakota Advisory Committee and the SDARL Leadership Committee.  He has served in numerous leadership roles at Salem MB Church, including Chair of Trustees and Finance Committee. Ross belongs to several agriculture and conservation organizations, including South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association, South Dakota Grassland Coalition, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and Backcountry Hunters and Anglers.

Hunter Roberts currently serves South Dakota as the Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources (DANR). DANR’s mission is to protect and preserve agriculture, environment, and natural resources through effective regulatory services, natural resource conservation, and financial and technical assistance.

Hunter holds a master’s degree in business administration and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of South Dakota.  A South Dakota native, Hunter resides in Pierre with his wife and two children. He is a 5th generation South Dakota farmer and rancher, who owns and operates a
diversified grain and cow-calf farm and ranch southeast of Ft. Pierre with his family.

Dr. Cassady is the South Dakota Corn Endowed Dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences at South Dakota State University. He was raised on a diversified family farm in southern Iowa, earned a BS in Animal Science from Iowa State University, and earned MS and Ph.D. degrees in Animal Science from the University of Nebraska. Upon completing his Ph.D., Dr. Cassady worked as a research associate with the USDA ARS US Meat Animal Research Center in Clay Center, NE. He spent 12 years on the faculty of the Department of Animal Science at North Carolina State University earning the rank of Professor. He is a past-president of the National Swine Improvement Federation Board of Directors, and he served in a volunteer role as the Executive Director of the Beef Improvement Federation from 2009 to 2015. Dr. Cassady’s research focused on food animal genetics and genomics with special emphasis on the improvement of efficiency of production as it relates to pigs and beef cattle. Dr. Cassady, his wife, Dr. Beverly Shelbourn, DVM, and their two sons, Joseph and Cody, live in Brookings County, SD.