March 26, 2019

Frueh participating in agricultural leadership program

Joseph Frueh

Joseph Frueh, an admissions representative for the School of Agriculture Sciences, recently was accepted to Agricultural Leadership of Tomorrow (ALOT), an advanced leadership experience for professionals in agriculture and agribusiness in Missouri and beyond.

Frueh was accepted into the program’s 16th cohort, which gathered for its first session in February in Columbia and consists of 26 participants who were selected though a highly competitive process.

“I wanted to share my passion for Northwest and our School of Ag,” he said. “It was really a good fit for me to come in here. I travel around the four-state region, talking to high school students and sharing my stories and those stories that other students have shared with me to really build that passion in others.”

Frueh, a Pickering, Missouri, native, earned his bachelor’s degree in agricultural education at Northwest in 2015. He joined the University staff that same year as an admission representative and remains connected to the School of Agricultural Sciences as well as the ag industry through work on his family’s farm.

Frueh says he hopes to further develop his leadership skills to be a stronger advocate for the agriculture industry and the ag programming Northwest offers.

“My passion for ag comes from that background of growing up on the farm and really wanting to make sure that people are making that educated decision,” Frueh said. “There’s so many job opportunities in the ag field.”

ALOT began in 1983, and its alumni serve on the boards of almost every agricultural organization in Missouri.

The program provides two years of adult leadership training targeted toward rural leaders and agricultural producers who have a passion to promote Missouri agriculture and strengthen their rural communities. It consists of 10 three-day sessions, a week-long seminar in Washington, D.C., and a two-week international experience in July 2020 to a country that impacts Missouri agriculture.

The program enhances participants’ communication and leadership skills, expands their understanding of agricultural issues, encourages involvement and leadership initiative in their industry and communities, and connects participants to ALOT’s 400 alumni participants across Missouri. ALOT introduces participants to hundreds more of Missouri’s innovative and involved citizens who offer personal experiences and insights to help them be more effective leaders.