The University of Georgia Agricultural and Applied Economics Department   Featured Stories

Former FFA Officer Wants to Represent Farmers 

Carol Spruill has been all over the world meeting people in agricultural industries, and those people have kept her interested in agriculture. 

Spruill is a junior studying agricultural economics in our college. After she finishes her undergraduate degree, Spruill plans to go into either environmental or agricultural law, so she can make an impact on the quality of life of the people who work to grow our food.

Residents of Hoschton, Ga., in Jackson County, Spruill's family runs a horse boarding operation. While in middle school, Spruill became involved with Future Farmers of America and 4-H. She stayed active with 4-H horse projects and FFA public speaking projects through high school and eventually became a state, and later a national, FFA officer. 

It was her national title that allowed Spruill to travel throughout the world. She did so to fulfill her official FFA duties, but as a result, she had to postpone enrolling in UGA for a year. As an FFA officer, she traveled to 38 states to train state officers, attend conferences and present leadership development seminars. She also traveled to Germany and Japan to meet fellow students and people involved in agriculture. 

"It was a lot of fun and it's always good to have an appreciation of another culture," Spruill said. 

The events that the national officers attended usually focused more on personal development and networking rather than on specific agricultural issues. Spruill said that just because it's called "Future Farmers" doesn't mean that it's just for people interested in agriculture as a career. It's good for everybody because the programs teach entrepreneurial and people skills, she said. 

"Actually, there were very few times we did anything concerning agricultural topics because FFA has become so leadership oriented," Spruill said. 

Now, she's a student at UGA and a member of the Beta Class of Sigma Alpha, the fledgling agricultural sorority on campus, and president of the National Agricultural Marketing Association. She's also just been voted a member of the 2001 Homecoming Court, even though she can't figure out how she got there. But to anyone else who meets her, it probably wouldn't be a big surprise.

Spruill isn't sure where she wants to practice law after she finishes graduate school: a government office, a large corporation or in a private practice in the agricultural heartland of the United States.

"I know I want to help support the future of the agricultural industry," she said. "But whether I help one individual farmer or 1,000, I really don't care." 

Article and photograph by Merritt Melancon, Education, Communication and Technology - Athens
CAES Connector

Soccer-playing Ag Economist Loves a Challenge 

It's got to be a challenge. If it's not, Greg Fonsah loses interest. 

Greg Fonsah is settling into his new job in academia, and he and his wife are enjoying raising their children in Tifton. Whether it's managing a large farm, guiding a marginal agricultural business into the black, standing before a classroom or scoring a goal in a soccer game, his motivation comes from the challenge. 

"I'm a problem-shooter. I come in, identify the problems and come up with solutions," said Fonsah, 43. "Once a problem is solved, it's time to go to the next." 

Fonsah's current challenge officially began in June when he became a new assistant professor and Extension economist for the college's department of agricultural and applied economics on the Tifton campus. He specializes in fruits, vegetables and pecans. 

The Experience

Fonsah brings 13 years of international food industry management, production, marketing, research and teaching experience to his new position. 

His past challenges include: 

• working for two of the largest multinational fruit companies in the world, as a consultant and an agricultural superintendent, handling production, quality control, marketing and shipping of fresh fruit, including bananas, pineapples and mangoes throughout the world. 
• serving as the general manager of Aloha Farms Inc., Hawaii, the largest banana plantation on Oahu and the first to export high quality sweet bananas to the Japan, Korea and Hong Kong markets weekly. 
• lecturing on business, economics and agricultural-related subjects in various countries around the world, including China, the United States and Cameroon. 

Now his work focuses on reducing the cost of production, increasing productivity, improving quality and expanding both domestic and export markets for Georgia fruits, vegetables and nuts. 

"Georgia can produce the crops," he said. "It's getting rid of them that is a challenge."

Challenge vs. Home Life

But sometimes a challenge has to take the backseat to more important things, he said. Because of his work in turning the banana plantation around in Hawaii, he was asked to manage a 16,000-acre banana plantation on Hainan Island in China.

Fonsah goes over strategy with his 16-and-under Tifton soccer team. 
Fonsah and his wife, Kailan, who is from mainland China, decided this was one challenge they could pass on. Fonsah and Kailan met while both attended Berea College and married in 1984. 

In retrospect, Fonsah feels they made the right decision about China. They had recently welcomed a new addition to their family, daughter Leilani, now 17 months old. And their son, Derrick, 16, had been enrolled in six different schools in three years. 

"It was time to settle down," Fonsah said. "And I had always wanted to go back into higher education so I could share my experiences with my students and colleagues." 

So, he searched and found the job offer with the UGA CAES. 

"We didn't know anything about Georgia but the job description perfectly fit my portfolio," he said. And his wife liked the name 'Georgia.' " 

So far, the move has proven correct. 

"Tifton is a good place to raise children, and UGA is the place to be," he said. "We feel like we chose the best place to live and pursue an academic career." 

Fonsah appreciates professional challenges, but his passion is soccer. He is quick to tell you that Cameroon is the world's leader in soccer competition. 

He and his son are currently playing in two soccer leagues in Georgia and around the Southeast. He also coaches a 16-and-under soccer team in Tifton. 

"Right now, I've got more than enough challenges to keep me busy for some time," he said. 

Article and photographs by Brad Haire, Education, Communication and Technology - Tifton 
CAES Connector

Grant Humphries Is Retiring

Grant Humphries will be retiring effective March 1, 2002 after 33 years of service to the University of Georgia. He started working at the Coastal Plains Experiment Station in July 1963 as a cytological technician with the Grass Breeding Department under the supervision of Dr. Glenn W. Burton. From 1965 until 1967 he worked with USDA, performing the same duties with the Grass Breeding Department. His duties included microscopic  screening of chromosomal anomalies induced by chemical and radiation treatments of pearl millet seed. After graduating from the Agricultural Economics Department at the University of Georgia, Grant began working with the department at the Griffin Station in March of 1972 as a field enumerator. In that position, he gathered data through personal interviews of farmers, dealers, processors and manufacturers in Georgia and surrounding states. He worked as a field enumerator until 1992 when he became research coordinator. In the latter position he conducted surveys and analyzed economic data. His work contributed to numerous publications, which are listed on his web page .

Grant was reared on a farm in Southwest Georgia near Thomasville, GA. He attended Berry College and Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. He graduated in June 1971 with a BSA in Agricultural Economics from the University of Georgia.  He spent three years in the U.S. Army stationed in Berlin, Germany from 1960-1963.

Grant's dedicated service to the Agricultural and Applied Economics Department is duly recognized and greatly appreciated. We wish him the best in retirement.