Our dedicated team of agricultural agents and staff have been recognized for their outstanding work across multiple initiatives.

Here are some of the key accomplishments from our team:

Margaret Ross:

• Awarded 1st Place in the 2024 NCACAA Communications Awards for both Computer-Generated Presentation with Script and Published Photo. Her educational poster on the Coastal Plains Chicken Project - Poultry Processing Demonstration earned praise.
• At the 2025 Extension Conference, Margaret’s team won the Search for Excellence Southeast District Team Award and Overall Team Award for the Egg-cited About Embryology Project.
• Her poster on the Coastal Plains Chicken Project also earned 2nd Place at the Poster Contest.
• 2025 Search for Excellence State Award Winners - Area Specialized Poultry Agent Team - Margaret Ross, Lauren Greene, Richard Goforth, Jonas Asbill for Educational Poultry Processing Demonstrations.
• 2025 Second place state winner - Published Photo - NC Association of County Agricultural Agents Communications Awards.
• Duly Elected as 2025- 2026 Director of the NC Association of County Agricultural Agents - Southeast District.
• Invited Speaker at multiple poultry industry events throughout the year including the Broiler Supervisors’ Short Course, NCSU Poultry Science - Commercial Egg Layer class

Sarah Ware:

• Received a State Team Award at the North Carolina Extension Association for Family and Consumer Sciences Annual Conference for the Full Circle Project in Jones County.
• Co-presented Hooked on Seafood and delivered Sourdough 101 & 102 train-the-trainer sessions to Family and Consumer Sciences agents statewide.
• Earned certification in Traceability in Retail Food Establishments, strengthening capacity to support food safety compliance and retail food operations.
• Serves as State Vice President of Public Affairs for the North Carolina Extension Association for Family and Consumer Sciences, supporting statewide communication, advocacy, and member engagement.
• Continued her PhD in Nutrition at NC State, advancing into her second year of doctoral coursework and research

Emoni Burgess:

• Winner of the 2025 NCCEAPA Executive Board Award
• Advisor of the Southeast District’s N.C. Cooperative Extension Administrative Professionals Association (NCCEAPA).
• Created and executed the FCS Family Summer Challenges with Sarah Ware
• Received 3 shoutouts from county employees and the county manager this year

Kristi Welke:

• Started the Tri-County Livestock Association. This association will focus on all species of livestock and all aspects of owning livestock. We will have guest speakers, farm tours, demonstrations and more!
• Led a Raising Livestock on Small Acreage program attended by 18 participants across four counties, covering fencing, rotational grazing, and pasture management.
• Created the Craven/Pamlico Dairy Project that successfully had 8 youth show and participate in the Northeast Junior Dairy Show.
• Completed Large Animal Technical Rescue Training through 4-Hooves Large Animal Rescue Training.
• Re-Certified in Cattle Artificial Insemination through NC State Extension Beef Program.
• Worked with local producers to address challenges such as starting a pasture from scratch, pest control, weed control, and pasture/hayfield management.

Won awards through Jones County Employee Wellness for the 6-week community spirit challenge as well as the “Maintain don’t Gain” challenge.

Lisa Rayburn:

• Completed a Master of Science in Horticulture degree and was accepted as a student in the PhD program at North Carolina State University.
• Worked closely with local growers, addressing challenges including pest and disease identification and control, fertility issues, food safety and more.
• Managed eleven research trials including: three diamondback both mating disruption studies, a guava root knot nematode resistance sweet potato variety trial, and two long-cane raspberry research studies.
• Was an invited speaker at the North American Raspberry and Blackberry Growers Association Annual Meeting.
• Was selected by NCSU specialists to attend the Southern Regional Small Fruit Diagnostic Training.
• Led or cooperated with other agents in conducting grower meetings and pesticide trainings that provided timely information and pesticide credits to over 200 pesticide applicators.

Read our 2025 Success Stories