When Kiera Sherrod was young, her grandfather often came to her house in Albany, Georgia to plant crops in her parents’ backyard for her family to maintain and harvest. This ritual also sparked the beginning of his granddaughter’s interest in agriculture.
Kiera is now a sophomore at Tuskegee University majoring in food and soil sciences. Named a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 1890 National Scholar in 2023, she credits USDA Liaison Rodney Stone with connecting her to the program. USDA liaisons serve as key USDA representatives across America. They advise and assist communities, students, faculty, institutions, farmers, ranchers, foresters and others by providing information on USDA programs and initiatives. These liaisons also develop and maintain partnerships with key collaborators to enhance greater outreach between these partners and USDA agencies, mission areas and staff offices.
“I was trying to figure out programs that could help me financially,” said Kiera. “Mr. Stone identified various options, but the 1890 program was definitely the one that stood out to help me not just in the short term, but also by giving me opportunities for later on in life, too.”
One of those opportunities came in the form of a summer internship for 1890 Scholars. Kiera interned this past summer at the USDA Farm Service Agency in Alabama under the state executive director. There she helped with administrative duties such as routing producers to the correct points of contact, modernizing paper resources to more accessible digital media, and shadowing field staff to monitor livestock health. This comprehensive experience provided a broad exposure to the agency’s responsibilities, which Kiera recognized quickly. “I gained a true understanding of USDA and how its programs touch rural areas and other agencies,” she said.
After working directly with those who provide food to our country, she gained a deeper appreciation for the USDA mission. “I felt a connection to the USDA mission due to my deep personal agricultural roots,” she said. “I want to help uplift farmers to continue doing what they love.”
After college, Kiera wants to pursue higher education in nutritional biochemistry and help educate a new generation of students interested in agriculture.
