Twenty-four people working in agricultural and related industries in the Valley and other parts of the state have been selected to take part in the latest California Agricultural Leadership Program.

The selected fellows will be inaugurated into the program during a ceremony Oct. 12 at the Clovis Veterans Memorial District.

This will be the 48^th time the program has been put on to provide advanced leadership development experience over 17 months for emerging agricultural leaders, according to a press release from the Salinas-based California Agricultural Leadership Foundation.

The selected fellows will study leadership theory, effective communication, motivation, critical and strategic thinking, change management, emotional intelligence and complex social and cultural issues.

Seminars occurring over 55 non-consecutive days will be run by faculty from Fresno State, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and UC Davis. The fellows also will take part in seminars involving national and international travel.

“Congratulations to the outstanding individuals selected for Class 48 who represent the broad spectrum of California agriculture in terms of commodities, geography and diversity,” Barry Bedwell, president of CALF, said in a press release. “We look forward to their upcoming journey in becoming ‘leaders who make a difference’ for California agriculture.”

The program is underwritten by individual and industry donations, at a cost of about $55,000 per fellow, the release continues.

The fellows are:

Kelly Ansaldo, Rehrig Pacific Co., Fresno

Grant Baglietto, Baglietto Seeds, Stockton

Eric Bream, Bream Family Farms, Lindsay

Paul Crout, Vineyard Professional Services, Templeton

Linsey Dale, Imperial County Farm Bureau, Imperial

John Ellis, J.G. Boswell Co., Corcoran

Andrew Fisher, Fisher Farms, Blythe

Tim Fitzgerald, G3 Enterprises, Modesto

Lauren Hajik, Kahn, Soares & Conway, Sacramento

Mark Krebsbach, Western Milling, Visalia

Melissa Lema, Western United Dairymen, Ferndale

Ian LeMay, California Fresh Fruit Ass., Fresno

Jazmin Lopez, Pisoni Farms, Gonzales

Adam Lovgren, Wonderful Nurseries, Wasco

Jarrett Martin, Central California Irrigation District, Gustine

Kelly Mora, Heritage Ag Insurance, Chico

Barzin Moradi, California Department of Food and Ag, Sacramento

Alejandra Navarrete, E&J Gallo Winery, Lodi

Bryan Nickerson, Western Growers, Irvine

Punit Parmar, Driscoll’s, Watsonville

Carissa Ryström, Morrison & Co., Chico

Jess Thomas, True Jerky, San Francisco

Joey Vander Schaaf, Vander Schaaf Dairy, Escalon

Mitchell Yerxa, River Vista Farms, Colusa