Jackie Buckley of Mandan, N.D., will be honored as the Agriculturalist of the Year at this year’s North Dakota State University (NDSU) Little International Showmanship Contest.

The 96th Little International will be held Feb. 11-12 at Shepperd Arena on the NDSU campus. Little ‘I’ is organized by more than 300 members of the NDSU Saddle and Sirloin Club and led by manager Ashlyn Dilley.

Buckley will be honored at the Agriculturalist of the Year banquet on Friday, Feb. 11, at the Sanctuary Events Center in Fargo.

Buckley, a retired NDSU Extension agent of 37 years, has served the citizens of North Dakota through her numerous leadership positions. She has been a member of the Morton County Weed Board, Bismarck/Mandan Agriculture Chamber Committee, Morton County Crop Improvement Association, North Dakota Living Agriculture in the Classroom Committee, and coached the Morton County 4-H and Mandan FFA livestock judging teams.

Buckley, a 1979 NDSU graduate, majored in animal science and minored in food nutrition and agriculture communication. While at NDSU, she was involved in the Saddle and Sirloin Club, actively holding officer positions, showing animals in Little ‘I’, advocating for agriculture as a Little ‘I’ princess and receiving the honor of the club’s outstanding senior award.

Buckley currently serves as a Morton County commissioner and teaches Animal Science 114 Lab at Bismarck State College to stay connected with agriculture and people.

Tickets for the Agriculturist of the Year banquet are $20 and can be purchased by contacting Ashlyn Dilley at littlei.management@gmail.com or 701-739-3361.

The NDSU Little I Livestock Showmanship contest begins at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 12, with Saddle and Sirloin club members and other students showing beef, dairy, swine and sheep. The showmanship finals begin at 5:30 p.m. that night.

For more information on this year’s event, visit https://www.ndsusaddleandsirloin.com/.

NDSU Agriculture Communication – Feb. 3, 2022

Source: Claire Leiseth, Little I Publicity Chair, claire.leiseth@ndsu.edu

Editor: Kelli Anderson, 701-231-6136, kelli.c.anderson@ndsu.edu