RC&D Coordinator Wayne T. Jipsen, USDA – Natural Resources Conservation Service Email: wayne.jipsen@co.usda.gov Wayne was raised on a small farm in southwest Iowa. He received a B.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Biology from Iowa State University. Following graduation, Wayne returned to the agri-business world, dividing his time between farming and supervising the construction of steel grain bins and grain handling systems. In 1986 Wayne decided to pursue a career off-farm. He spent the next 3 ½ years as a park ranger, working in recreation and natural resource management at a variety of federal areas in Oklahoma, Texas, New York City (Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island), Seattle, and Lake Okeechobee, Florida. His next assignments were as a biologist managing invasive species management programs with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ in Jacksonville, Florida and Washington D.C. From there he moved to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, managing their Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program in Florida. Wayne next decided to devote his time to Heifer International, a non-profit organization working worldwide to reduce hunger and foster community development through the introduction and/or improvement of livestock resources and the environment. Here he served as Farm Steward at the organization’s 1,200-acre experiential learning facility in Arkansas, supervising the Ranch’s various agricultural endeavors. Wayne returned to the federal workforce in 2001, serving as RC&D Coordinator for the newly authorized Historic Trails RC&D Area in south central Wyoming. Following three highly successful years there, Wayne transferred to Colorado Big Country RC&D.