USDA Names New NRCS Officials

WASHINGTON, Aug. 13, 2004—USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service Chief Bruce I. Knight today announced several leadership changes within the agency. He named a new associate chief and three new regional assistant chiefs.

Knight named Dana D.York, director of the Operations Management and Oversight Division since 2001, as associate chief. When she assumes her new position Sept. 5, 2004, York will become NRCS’ first female associate chief. She will succeed Thomas A. Weber, a 32-year veteran of NRCS. His retirement takes effect Sept. 3, 2004.

Knight also announced the restructuring of the agency’s six regional offices to three—East, Central and West. Three new regional assistant chiefs, which are newly created positions, will head these regions and will be stationed in NRCS’ national headquarters in Washington, D.C. The regional assistant chiefs and their territories are: Richard I. Coombe, East; Merlin E. Bartz, Central; and Sara Braasch, West.

“I am pleased to name these individuals to prominent leadership positions within NRCS,” Knight said. “Each of them brings tremendous talents, professionalism and a commitment to this agency’s mission—to conserve, maintain and enhance the quality of the nation’s natural resources.”

As associate chief, York will manage the agency’s overall programs and operations, including a $2.8 billion annual budget.

York, a Tennessee native, began her 27-year career with the former Soil Conservation Service (SCS) as a student trainee while attending Tennessee Technological University. She has held various positions with NRCS and the former SCS in Tennessee and Ohio, including soil conservationist, district conservationist and deputy state conservationist. She joined the NRCS national headquarters staff in 1999 as a special assistant to the chief.

The three regional assistant chiefs will provide overall management direction for NRCS programs and activities. In addition, they will supervise state conservationists and the directors of the Pacific Basin and the Caribbean Area.
Coombe is a farmer and former New York state assemblyman and director of the Watershed Agricultural Council, Inc., of New York. He will oversee the Caribbean Area and the following states: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia.
Bartz is a farmer and former Iowa state senator and special assistant to Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment Mark Rey. Bartz will oversee the following states: Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin.
Braasch is a former congressional staffer, commodity executive and executive director of the Idaho Rural Partnership. She will oversee the Pacific Basin and the following states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
Biographical information about Dana York is available at http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/about/leadership.html#danayork; Tom Weber, http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/about/leadership.html#management; and the Regional Assistant Chiefs, http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/about/leadership.html#racs

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