Jasper Cunningham, Michigan FFA National Officer candidate, Junior at Michigan State University, and owner of the Seed Boy Seed Company (left) meets with Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager at the Agriculture Department.

Jasper Cunningham is a busy young man.  A Junior at Michigan State University, Michigan FFA’s National Officer candidate, and the owner of his own business:  the Seed Boy Seed Company.

Like many FFA members, Jasper, of Ravenna, Michigan, didn’t grow up on a farm, but farming and agriculture is in his blood.  An Ag Business major, he’s been in the FFA since his freshman year in high school. Read more »

Under Secretary Dallas Tonsager visits with North Vernon, Indiana residents as they celebrate their new water system, thanks to USDA Rural Development.

U. S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development, Dallas Tonsager, was in Indiana July 19 and 20, reviewing how the agency’s programs and services are helping create jobs and improve the quality of life in the Hoosier state. Read more »

State Director for Michigan James J. Turner, Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager, homeowner Sherion Jones and Area Specialist Lori Grover.

U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager made two visits to Michigan in the last few days and joining him in his travels was Rural Development State Director for Michigan James J. Turner and several of our staff as he crossed the state. Read more »

USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager had a unique opportunity to see the many dynamic things happening in rural Maine communities during his visit earlier this month. Each of the projects he visited represented a different way in which USDA Rural Development’s Programs are playing valuable roles, providing a multitude of benefits, including renewable energy, business sustainability, job creation and retention, distance learning, and telemedicine.

USDA Officials tour a new USDA-funded wind project that meets much of the power needs of a Maine island.

For example, I joined the Under Secretary and the Northeast Region State Directors on a ferry to Vinalhaven, a remote island community 12 miles off the coast of Maine. Once there, we were greeted by Town Manager Marjorie Stratton, and led on tours of the Fox Islands Wind site by Fox Islands Wind CEO George Baker, and COO Bill Alcorn. The three immense wind turbines will generate about as much clean renewable wind power as the Fox Islands use, which is between 10 and 10.5 million kilowatt hours per year. USDA Rural Development provided funding support to make possible the total $14 million wind turbine project. Read more »

USDA Rural Development has a long history of collaboration with the Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota.  I’ve seen the power of these collaborations first-hand, both in my current role as Under Secretary for Rural Development, as well back in the 1990s when I had the opportunity to serve as Rural Development’s State Director in South Dakota.

I recently returned to the tribe’s Pine Ridge Reservation, accompanied by twelve Midwestern USDA Rural Development state directors.   We traveled across the reservation, seeing both cultural landmarks and projects that have been impacted by USDA. Read more »

Under Secretary Dallas Tonsager visits with prospective homeowner Linda Diaz at a self-help housing subdivision in Laurel, Delaware. USDA helps thousands of limited-income families each year as they purchase or repair homes.

Today, June 1, is the first day of National Homeownership Month, which is celebrated each June to highlight the important role housing plays in creating jobs, maintaining viable rural communities and contributing to the economy. Read more »