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athann Kress’ introduction to American life and American agriculture didn’t happen until she was well into her teenage years. Before then, her family lived wherever her parents’ Air Force careers took them — mainly the Middle East and Brazil. But when she was 12, she was welcomed into a Mennonite family on their Iowa farm. “My love of agriculture started with this family,” she says. “The whole, very rural, community I lived in gave me a good understanding of what it means to be in agriculture. It’s about sustaining life. It’s the cornerstone of national security.” Kress took to farm life right away after she moved to Iowa. She enjoyed baling hay and all the chores required for raising hogs, sheep, corn, and soybeans. Like many farm kids, she belonged to 4-H, where she showed sheep and did public speaking. “I owned part of the flock of sheep by the time I graduated from high school,” she says, “and friends I made in 4-H are still my friends today.” Soon, her own career took off, and she found herself working at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, where, as the national director of 4-H, she took a special interest in establishing 4-H for military children. The arc reached its current pinnacle in 2017, when Kress was appointed dean of the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences at Ohio State University — the
Cathann Kress leads Ohio State University President Kristina Johnson, among others, on a tour of the Farm Science Review in London.
first woman to hold that position at OSU. She also holds the title of vice president for agricultural administration there. Kress says the best part of her job as dean is the people around her. “I get to work with brilliant scientists working on a range of things that are important — food security, carbon management, and soybean plant improvement,” she says. “And the students — their optimism and their energy are wonderful. We also have 45,000 living alumni who are deeply engaged with our college. They want to help and to come to events. It’s the people who make it all possible, and I love being part of it.” Continued on page 24
Cathann Kress (above, center, and opposite page, speaking) says working with people is the best part of her job at Ohio State University, where she is the first woman to lead the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.
FEBRUARY 2022 • OHIO COOPERATIVE LIVING 23
