Growing Our Own: Sunrise Announces Inaugural Class of Sunrise University

Jun 03, 2021


Sunrise Cooperative has announced the addition of nine team members as an extension of its RISE FFA Career Program. The new members of the Sunrise team are full-time employees and the inaugural class of Sunrise University.
 
Sunrise University is an expansion of the RISE FFA Career Program. In 2021, Sunrise has offered a full-time position to nine individuals. These new employees will learn all facets of the cooperative to expand their knowledge in agriculture. Their employment will allow Sunrise to grow our own team with dedicated employees that have learned from the start about Sunrise and our customer-owners. The recent graduates will build their career paths through first-hand experience in what we have coined as Sunrise University.
 
The inaugural class of Sunrise University includes Zach Allgyre (Seneca East FFA), Colton Boyer (Clear Fork FFA), Hannah Cleveland (Bellevue FFA), Brayden Cole (Lorain County JVS FFA), Shaun Hall (Shelby FFA), Eli Ott (Monroeville FFA), Dan Utz (Buckeye Central FFA), Jacob Walters (Van Buren FFA) and Seth Wells (Miami East FFA). These new employees are 2021 graduates that were active with their FFA chapter and had a desire to enter the agriculture workforce following graduation.
 
“Our partnership with Ohio FFA has developed a great connection to the future leaders in ag,” said George D. Secor, President/CEO of Sunrise. “We are not going to wait for new employees to find us, we need to develop our own. Through Sunrise University we are going to grow our own replacements and strive for continued success of our customer-owners.”
 
 
 
The RISE FFA Career Program was established in 2019 and is a partnership with the Ohio FFA. Yearly, Sunrise provides a pick-up truck the newly elected Ohio FFA State President to drive during their tenure, along with a commitment to hire a recent graduate that was active with their FFA chapter and wants to enter the workforce right out of high school. The first recipient of a full-time position was Ethin Bendickson from the Miami East FFA Chapter, and most recently Jacob Walters of the Van Buren FFA Chapter was honored as our second recipient of a full-time position through the program.
 
The application process for the 2022 program will open in the fall. If you have any questions contact Morgan Niedermier, Vice President of Marketing, at (419) 332-6468 ext. 222 or through email at morganniedermier@sunriseco-op.com.


Sunrise Cooperative, Inc. is a leading agricultural and energy cooperative with its corporate headquarters located in Fremont, Ohio. We offer team-based solutions across multiple divisions including agronomy, grain, energy and feed, as well as a nationally recognized precision ag department and our own crop nutrition division, PCT | Sunrise. Sunrise is a 100-percent farmer-owned cooperative, and we are committed to bringing innovative choices and expert solutions to our customer-owners. At Sunrise, we offer you the best choices delivered by the best team through our state-of-the art facilities and expertly trained employees. We strive each day to grow your success.
 

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