UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Three Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences faculty members have received national honors for their volunteer service in Ukraine and eastern Europe as part of the Farmer-to-Farmer Program administered by nonprofit organization CNFA Inc., with funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Kathleen Kelley, associate professor of horticultural marketing and business management, Peter Ferretti, professor emeritus of vegetable crops, and Kenneth Bailey, associate professor of agricultural economics, received the President's Volunteer Service Award from the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation for their work in helping to introduce innovation, improve business skills and increase rural incomes for more than 85,000 people.

In all, 40 award-winning volunteers from across the country contributed a combined 626 days of skilled work with farmers and aspiring rural entrepreneurs in Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus.

The Penn State faculty members were among only seven recipients of gold-level awards, denoting more than 500 hours of service. Deanna Behring, director of international programs for the college, says the awardees' contributions are a reflection of their commitment to making a difference through volunteer service.

"I'm happy that Penn State's ag faculty were part of helping Ukraine make the transition to a free-market, democratic society," she says. "As Americans, we count on having access to low-cost, abundant food and fiber, but most people don't appreciate the agricultural efficiency and innovation that make it possible. In agriculture, we're closer to the entire process of production that can make prosperity possible, so many of our faculty are willing to travel and share the basic principles that can make a profound impact on a community's comfort and security."

Founded in 1985 as Citizens Network for Foreign Affairs, CNFA, Inc is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to promoting private enterprise and entrepreneurship as the source of economic growth in developing nations. Its John Ogonowski Farmer-to-Farmer Program matches American farmers, agribusiness people and land-grant university faculty with farmers, farm groups and agribusinesses in developing countries to provide voluntary technical assistance, through funding from the U.S. AID. First authorized by the U.S. Congress as part of the 1985 Farm Bill, the program has placed more than 11,000 American volunteers in more than 80 countries.

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EDITORS: Contact Deanna Behring at 814-863-0249 or by e-mail at dmb37@psu.edu.

Writer-Editor: Gary Abdullah 814-863-2708 gxa2@psu.edu