Staff

Anne Marsh - NAC Director

Anne joined NAC in 2022, having served as Acting Director for the Center for part of 2020. She is the Forest Service’s lead for agroforestry and manager of NAC’s personnel and resources. Anne works closely with Forest Service regions/areas, research stations, institutes, national program leaders, and a wide range of other USDA/Federal, state, Tribal, university, non-governmental, and international cooperators. Anne can be reached at anne.marsh@usda.gov.

Mark Batcheler, Natural Resource Specialist

Mark joined NAC in 2023 having recently completed graduate school at Washington State University. His current research focuses on the use of silvopasture as a means of reducing wildfire intensity. Mark also investigated the influence of multiple grazing and forestry management systems, including silvopasture, on soil biogeochemistry. Mark is based in the Pacific Northwest. Mark can be reached at mark.batcheler@usda.gov.

Gary Bentrup - Research Landscape Architect

Gary Bentrup has been with the National Agroforestry Center since 1999. His research investigates the planning and design of agroforestry systems for multiple ecosystem services including mitigating and adapting to climate change. His research portfolio focuses on developing evidence-based decision support tools and resources for agroforestry including systematic reviews, illustrated design guidelines, financial calculators, and plant selection guides. Gary can be reached at (402)437-5178 ext. 4018, or via email to gary.bentrup@usda.gov.

Pam Bergstrom - NRCS National Technical Assistance Agroforester

Pam has been the National Technical Assistance Agroforester since 2022. Pam provides technical support and assistance, updates the national NRCS conservation practice standards for all five agroforestry practices, and assists with education/outreach for conservation professionals. Pam can be reached at Pamela.Bergstrom@usda.gov.

Samantha Bosco, ORISE Fellow

Samantha is an Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education postdoctoral fellow. Bosco received her PhD from Cornell University in 2022. Her transdisciplinary and community-based dissertation examined the past, present, and future role of temperate nut trees in both Haudenosaunee and non-native communities in New York. Her work with NAC includes topics related to agroforestry plant materials. Samantha can be reached at samantha.bosco@usda.gov.

Aaron Joslin, ORISE Fellow

Aaron is an Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education postdoctoral fellow. He received his MS and PhD from the University of Georgia, where he conducted agroforestry research in the Eastern Amazon of Brazil. His dissertation focused on crop and tree growth, plant and soil nutrient stocks, and climate change potential of an improved fallow slash-and-mulch agroforestry system. After graduating he served as an Agroforestry Specialist with the Peace Corps in Peru. Since then he has taught forestry at Southwestern Community College in Sylva, North Carolina and conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Georgia. His work with NAC will focus on agroforestry species selection and ecosystem services. Aaron can be reached at aaron.joslin@usda.gov.

Todd Kellerman - GIS Specialist

Todd uses geospatial tools and data to identify where agroforestry is and where it could go for the greatest impact. Inventory efforts include using remote sensing technology to map and assess agroforestry as well as mapping survey response data for agroforestry use insights. His current work focuses on developing methods to identify windbreaks using high-resolution imagery and assessing carbon sequestration benefits of trees outside forests in agricultural areas. Todd lives in Lincoln, NE with his wife and two boys. Todd can be reached at (402)437-5178 ext. 4037, or via email to todd.kellerman@usda.gov.

Kate MacFarland - Agroforester

Kate’s work focuses on providing leadership for national and regional workshops and trainings, developing outreach materials for science delivery to a range of technical and general audiences, and supporting the integration of agroforestry into USDA programs. Kate is also involved with NAC’s human dimensions work. Kate can be reached at katherine.macfarland@usda.gov.

Annabelle Moore, Project and Communications Resource Assistant

Annabelle joined NAC in February 2023 as the Project and Communications Resource Assistant. Annabelle helps with the Agroforestry Outreach Partner Project, which liaises with 13 partners, from universities to non-profits and for-profits to coordinate, review and edit 300 communications pieces to include videos, case studies, tip sheets, and webinars. The project highlights regional and practice specific agroforestry initiatives to include urban programs and features farmers and communities across the country from Appalachia to Hawaii. Annabelle can be reached at annabelle.moore@usda.gov.

Matt Smith - Research Program Lead

Matt Smith joined the NAC in 2019. His current research explores the human dimensions of agroforestry and how economic, social, and environmental drivers impact adoption. A key component of this research is the National Agroforestry Survey, which will quantify the reasons why producers use agroforestry by practice type and how they establish and manage their systems. His research portfolio also includes investigations into how silvopasture management effects key ecosystem services. This includes carbon storage and the potential to mitigate wildfire severity through fuels reduction. Feel free to contact Matt if you have questions or a research collaboration in mind. Matt can be reached at Matthew.Smith4@usda.gov.

Janine Siatkowski, Information Resource Assistant

Janine joined the NAC team as part of the 2023 winter cohort for the Resource Assistant Program through the US Forest Service. Her work is concentrated in creating scientific graphics for agroforestry and designing the Center’s publications. Janine also works with the Technical Transfer team in reviewing and editing the Center’s many outreach products. Janine can be reached at janine.siatkowski@usda.gov.

Kirsten Stuart - Support Services Specialist

Kirsten has been the Business Manager at NAC for 27 years. She provides advice, counsel and/or instruction to employees on both work and administrative matters. She plans, directs and coordinates a variety of office service programs that principally support office functions which include (but are not limited to) budget tracking, travel, assisting with grants and agreements, procurement of administrative supplies and equipment, property management, space management, records management, printing, mail service, facilities, and equipment maintenance. She also provides support and information to the public and USDA employees. Kirsten can be reached at (402)437-5178 ext. 4010, or via email to kirsten.stuart@usda.gov.

Katherine Favor - ORISE Fellow

Katherine is an Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education Agroforestry Climate Hubs fellow. She received her MS in Agroforestry from the University of Missouri Columbia, where her research focused on vineyard agroforestry systems in Argentina. She has worked as an Agroforestry Specialist both nationally and internationally, helping farmers and ranchers learn about and adopt agroforestry and other climate-smart practices. In her work at NAC, she primarily works with the USDA Climate Hubs to research and promote agroforestry as a tool for mitigating and adapting to climate change. Katherine can be reached at katherine.favor@usda.gov.

Sam Feibel - ORISE Fellow

Sam is an Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education Fellow. He is a recent graduate of the Yale School of the Environment where he earned a Master of Environmental Management. Prior to graduate school, he worked with the Water Science Institute leading fieldwork and geospatial analysis on USDA NRCS Conservation Innovation Grant projects in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. He also served as an Agriculture Food Security Advisor with the Peace Corps in Madagascar. Sam is also involved in NAC’s technical assistance and science delivery work. He can be reached at samuel.feibel@usda.gov.