AMES, Iowa — Wallaces Farmer and Iowa Master Farmers presented their Iowa Master Farmer Exceptional Service Award to two Iowa State University Extension and Outreach field specialists.
Steve Johnson, an extension farm management field specialist, and Clarke McGrath, an extension field agronomist, were honored at the Master Farmer Awards Program March 16 in Des Moines. The award is presented periodically to those who have spent their careers serving farmers.
Johnson and McGrath work directly with farmers. They were nominated by farmers who have benefitted from their informational programs.
McGrath is the On-farm Research and Extension coordinator for the Iowa Soybean Research Center at Iowa State. He previously worked for 13 years as the extension field agronomist in western Iowa. McGrath earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural business at Iowa State in 1991 and a master’s degree in professional agriculture in 2006.
Johnson has served as the extension agricultural business management specialist in central Iowa for 17 years, presenting at more than 100 meetings and workshops each year. Johnson earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agricultural education from Iowa State in 1978 and 1983 and a doctorate in vocational education from Colorado State University in 1995.
