OSU Extension in Summit and Portage Counties are teaming up to offer Annie’s Project from February 21st – March 28th, 2019. Annie’s project is a six-week program designed to address risk management education for farm women. Its objective is to educate women entrepreneurs so that they are more prepared to make farm management decisions. While a large number of farm women own and operate farms, others play a major role in the decision-making process of farm operations for farm families. Annie’s Project provides in-depth sessions on topics that are important for decision-making on the family farm. The program topics covered include human resources, legal risks, financial risks, marketing risks, and production costs and risks.  Sessions are designed to be interactive between the presenters and the participants, with information tailored to the needs of the participants.  

Annie was a woman who grew up in a small rural community with the life-long goal of being involved in production agriculture. She spent her lifetime learning how to be an involved business partner with her husband, and together they reached their goals and achieved success. Annie’s daughter, Ruth Hambleton, a former Extension Educator for the University of Illinois, founded Annie’s Project in 2000 in honor of her mother. Annie’s Project is designed to take Annie’s life experiences and share them with other women in agriculture who are living and working in this complex, dynamic business environment.