Speakers for 2026 Conference
The 2026 98th Iowa State University Soil Management and Land Valuation conference will be held (in person at Scheman Building) on Wednesday May 20th, 2026. This will be a one-time conference and the following speakers are guest instructors. A short bio is provided for each of the confirmed speakers. See details of the speaker's topics on the program agenda.
Steve Elmore began his career at Pioneer Hi-Bred nearly 30 years ago and later served as Chief Agricultural Economist for the heritage company. Since then, Steve has presented and consulted with farmers, business leaders, and policymakers globally. In 2012, he joined Governor Terry Branstad on an Iowa trade mission to Brazil. Today, Steve is Chief Economist at Corteva Agriscience, and he previously worked at Iowa State University’s Economics Department’s Food & Agricultural Policy Research Institute (FAPRI) and has authored more than 20 publications.
Dr. James Koltes is an Associate Professor within the Animal Breeding and Genetics group in the Department of Animal Science at the Iowa State University. His research has two main focuses areas, including: 1) identification of new traits for use in the genetic improvement of production efficiency traits in dairy cattle (e.g., feed intake and methane yield); and 2) development of software to help identify genes and genetic markers responsible for production differences in economically important traits. Dr. Koltes is particularly interested in leveraging data reuse to developm tools for public good that help other genetics and genomics scientists in their respective research areas. At ISU, he is a member of the Genetics and Genomics and Bioinformatics interdepartmental graduate programs and also an advisor to the Translational Artificial Intelligence center (TrAC). Dr. Koltes is an instructor for ANS 3510 Principals of Domestic Animal Genetics, ANS 4340 Dairy Systems Management, ANS 5560 Current Topics in Genome Analysis and ANS 6530 Applied Breeding Strategies.
Pete Burmeister is a Relationship Officer with Farm Credit Services of America, based in Cedar Rapids. He works closely with clients to understand their businesses, identify risk, and deliver thoughtful financial solutions. Pete brings a relationship-first approach to his work, combining strong credit fundamentals with practical, real-world insight gained through on-farm knowledge and partnerships with clients across a diverse range of agricultural industries.
Jeff Burgus began his banking career in 1982 in SE Iowa working his way up through the ranks from teller to bookkeeping to Vice President of Ag Lending. He was involved in a DeNovo bank start up in 1995 and is currently President and CEO of Mediapolis Savings Bank in Mediapolis, Iowa. Mediapolis Savings Bank has banks in four different towns. Jeff is a graduate of Mediapolis Community High School, Southeastern Community College and Iowa Wesleyan College with a degree in Business Administration. He has attended various banking schools and has made presentations at the Iowa State University Bankers School. Jeff has also been a past Chairman of the IBA Ag Committee. He has been an active member of the Mediapolis Development Company, the Mediapolis Partners for Progress, the Mediapolis Education Foundation as well as numerous other community and church committees.
Dan Culhane, CEcD, CCE, is the President & CEO of the Ames Chamber of Commerce where he oversees a staff of 20 and programs for 9 organizations. In his current role he has led several initiatives including the modernization of the Ames Municipal Airport, the annexation of over 1,300 acres for the creation of Prairie View Industrial Center, and the recruitment and expansion of over 75 companies to the Iowa State University Research Park and the Ames Metropolitan Statistical Area supporting the creation of thousands of jobs.
He is a 1993 Graduate of Iowa State University with a B.S. degree in Community & Regional Planning and a 1998 Graduate of the University of Oklahoma’s Economic Development Institute. He earned his CEcD (Certified Economic Developer) in 2000 and the Chamber industry’s highest designation, the Certified Chamber Executive (CCE), in 2011.
Dan has served on numerous boards and is a current member of the YSS Foundation board. He has also served on the board of the United Way of Story County and chaired the 2017 campaign, which was the largest campaign in its history and remains today. He co-chaired Reggie’s Sleep Out in Ames to promote the needs of homeless youth as well. He has served as chairman to several organizations over the years including the Iowa State University Athletics Letterwinner’s Club, the Iowa Chamber Alliance – a coalition of Iowa’s largest community’s Chambers of Commerce, the Professional Developers of Iowa, and the Mid America Economic Development Council – a multi-state peer group from Ohio to the Dakota’s.
Dr. Keith Schilling is the State Geologist of Iowa and Director of the Iowa Geological Survey at the University of Iowa. Dr, Schilling is also a research engineer at IIHR-Hydroscience and Engineering at the University of Iowa and an adjunct assistant professor at the University of Iowa Department of Earth and Environmental Science and at Iowa State University Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management. He received an M.S. degree in Water Resources from Iowa State University and a Ph.D. degree in Geology from the University of Iowa. His research has focused on a variety of water-related issues in Iowa, including groundwater flow and quality, surface and groundwater interaction, nonpoint source pollution and watershed and floodplain processes.
Carolyn King: Having joined the team in January 2021 as an Operations Agronomist, Carolyn has played a pivotal role in the development and delivery of Continuum Ag®’s products, including RightWay®, Regen Roadmap, and CI Certification®. Over time, she has risen to the position of VP of Operations, where she effectively manages the team responsible for delivering these innovative products.
Carolyn’s academic journey includes earning a bachelor’s degree in Agronomy from Iowa State in 2018, followed by a Master’s in Agronomy from the same institution in 2023. Her early career saw her as a Research and Field Agronomist for a seed company before making the transition to Continuum.
Rooted in agriculture, Carolyn remains actively involved in her family’s farming operation in Western Illinois. Her grandfather, an early adopter of no-till and cover crops in the region, influenced her commitment to sustainable farming practices. Currently residing in Keota, IA, Carolyn brings a wealth of experience and a deep connection to agriculture to her role at Continuum Ag®.
J.D. Hollingsworth is a 5th Generation Farmer and Area Soil Health Specialist with the Iowa NRCS in Southeast Iowa. J.D. graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in agronomy in 2003. He started working at a research farm right out of college before pursuing a job with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in 2006. During his time with the NRCS he was a Soil Conservation Technician where he designed ponds and terraces, a Civil Engineering Technician where he worked on more complex engineering practices for southeast Iowa, and most recently, the Area Soil Health Specialist for 24 counties in southeast Iowa. J.D. lives near Packwood in southeast Iowa with his wife, Becky, and their two children. He farms with his dad, Dave, on their family farm where they primarily grow corn and soybeans. They also grow some cereal rye and winter wheat to use for cover crop seed on their farm. J.D. and his dad utilize no-till and cover-crops on all the acres that they farm.
Kristine Tidgren is the director for ISU’s Center for Agricultural Law and Taxation (CALT) and is an adjunct associate professor in the Agricultural Education & Studies Department at ISU. Kristine’s work focuses on studying and interpreting laws impacting the agricultural industry. Since joining CALT in 2013, Kristine has written hundreds of articles and blogposts to keep tax professionals, practicing attorneys, producers, and agribusiness professionals informed about legal developments impacting their business. Kristine teaches AgEds 451, an agricultural law class and regularly collaborates with other agricultural law and tax professionals throughout the country.
Chad Hart was born and raised in southwest Missouri. His parents raised a few cattle and operated a small meat locker. He received a B.S. in economics with minors in mathematics, history, and astronomy from Southwest Missouri State University in 1991. He received a Ph.D. in economics and statistics in 1999 from Iowa State University. Chad became a faculty member at Iowa State in 2008. He is a professor in economics, extension economist, and the crop markets specialist for the university.