MEDIA RELEASE
September 14, 2023
Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association (OSCIA) is pleased to announce that starting the week of October 9, 2023, Ashley Honsberger will take the helm as the new Executive Director. Honsberger brings a strong background in administration and leadership, most recently holding the position of Executive Director for the Poultry Industry Council.
Andrew Graham, the current ED, will retire after a celebrated career spanning 43 years, 33 of those with OSCIA. He served as executive director at Soil and Crop for more than eight years.
OSCIA is a unique not-for-profit grassroots farm organization. 48 county and district associations encompassed by 11 designated regions make up OSCIA’s network of members. The diverse membership has a significant presence in all agricultural areas of the province and across all major sectors. The OSCIA mandate is to facilitate responsible economic management of soil, water, air and crops through development and communication of innovative farming practices. They are farmers actively seeking, testing, and adopting optimal farm production and stewardship practices. The organization focuses squarely on producer education and has been delivering stewardship programming to Ontario producers for 36 years. Their top research priority is soil health.
Honsberger brings to Soil and Crop 15 years of experience working in the agriculture sector focusing on non-profit leadership and continuous business improvements that ensure the organizations she has led best serve their stakeholders. Over the course of her career, she has moved into increasingly complex roles, and working alongside government partners, she brings valuable insight, experience and leadership as OSCIA moves towards the next horizon.
“My career to date has focused on doing good work well,” says Honsberger, “which for me means leveraging funding effectively for maximum impacts, leading teams through times of change and opportunity, and ultimately being focused on how all of these resources help farmers in their endeavours.”
She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in English Language and Literature from University of Waterloo (2007) and earned a Master of Science degree in 2015 from the University of Guelph in Capacity Development & Extension, International Development Studies.
“We are truly excited to introduce Ashley Honsberger as our new executive director,” says Steve Sickle, OSCIA President. “Ashley is the right person at the right time for the next stage in our organization’s journey. Her collaborative leadership style will be an excellent compliment to the expert staff already at OSCIA.”
“At this stage of my career I have an aspiration for leading a long standing, membership driven organization who is a leader in the Ontario agriculture sector,” remarks Honsberger. “I am keen to bring my experience to the OSCIA Executive Director position to support an organization that helps producers meet the ongoing challenges of future-ready farming and communicate those innovations to the public.”
For more information contact:
Steve Sickle, President