North Dakota State alumnus recognized for commitment to leadership, community
CROOKSTON, Minn. – Feb. 10, 2011 – North Dakota State alumnus Brant Bigger and his wife Tami will receive special recognition for their commitment to leadership and their community at the Agassiz Leaders Awards Banquet on Saturday, March 26 at the University of Minnesota Crookston. They, along with individuals from fifteen other counties in northwestern and west central Minnesota will be recognized for their involvement.
Brant grew up on a dairy and beef farm near Frazee, MN. He currently works as a Lab Technician in a molecular biology laboratory in Fargo, ND with the USDA - Agriculture Research Service. Tami also grew up on a farm in the Frazee area and is a Registered Nurse (RN) at the VA hospital in Fargo.
Brant and Tami Bigger are Becker County’s representatives in the Red River Valley Emerging Leadership Program. They have been taking part in educational sessions along with other rural leaders since November 2010. Those sessions are focused on personal leadership styles, communication, community leadership, legislative issues, and personal vision and goal setting.
This is the twenty-seventh year the Emerging Leadership Program has brought together individuals from across the region for recognition and training seminars. There are now more than 900 leaders in northwest and west central Minnesota who are alumni of the program. The program, which grew out of the King Agassiz Program of the Red River Valley Winter Shows, was developed in 1985 by a small group of people who felt there was a need to help individuals develop their leadership potential. It continues to focus on the belief that effective leadership can be learned and that leaders grow into positions of leadership, motivated by a sense of responsibility for themselves and their communities.
The Emerging Leadership Program is a program of the University of Minnesota Extension and the Northwest Minnesota Foundation. Major financial contributions for the program are made available through the Red River Valley Development Association and the West Central Initiative. Additional support for the program comes from ag producer groups, electric cooperatives, and community businesses and individuals in counties throughout northwest and west central Minnesota who contribute financially to the program each year.
Family and friends of Brant and Tami Bigger, and program alumni, are invited to attend the March 26th banquet in Crookston. Tickets can be ordered from the Extension Regional Office–Roseau by calling 218-463-0291 or toll free 1-888-241-4546.
information courtesy of the University of Minnesota
