KRIRM expands rancher learning opportunities as virtual outreach in 2021.
By Clay Mathis
Winter 2021 Newsletter
There is no doubt 2020 will be remembered as a year of uncertainty and change. We have all been forced to reconsider ‘normal’ life. Organizations and businesses of all kinds have adapted their methods for fulfilling their mission…out of necessity! The King Ranch® Institute for Ranch Management (KRIRM) is no different. Since 2003, we have held more than 100 in-person lectureships and symposia that have brought more than 6,000 people to Kingsville, Texas. We are proud of the positive impact we’ve made on ranching through our outreach programs. Yet, our proven model for producer education is evolving. The recent need for social distancing forced us to hold our first virtual lectureship and virtual symposium in 2020. Attendance at the virtual Managing Farm and Ranch Employees lectureship was on par with our typical in-person attendance and the event was a success. We were encouraged by the interest and attendance at the virtual lectureship, but our virtual 2020 Holt Cat Symposium participation was unbelievable! More than 600 people from all over the world attended the virtual symposium. We received this signal loud and clear…we must take rancher education to the ranches!
We have been planning to expand KRIRM outreach beyond in-person education by incorporating a virtual component, but we did not expect to make this change so rapidly. In 2021, we will boldly enter the arena of virtual outreach and education. We believe nothing can replace the effectiveness of face-to-face and hands-on learning, but virtual education will help overcome the geographic boundaries we have always faced and will reduce the time commitment needed for stakeholders to travel to KRIRM events. We intend to hold events in-person as the foundation of our outreach; however, we will hybridize education to deliver training face-to-face and virtually at the same time. We will host workshops that allow fluid and convenient interaction among speakers and both in-person and online attendees. The virtual modernization of KRIRM education and outreach will ensure students, ranchers, and landowners have access to high quality learning opportunities not only during 2021, but also throughout the coming decades.
I remember hearing the statement several years ago…“It’s not the well-adapted that will thrive, but the adaptable.” The year of 2020 will be noted as a time of adaptation for KRIRM. Our step into virtual education will allow stakeholders from across the globe to gain excellent rancher-focused education on the most important topics in ranching and natural resources management without leaving the ranch. We intend to be the most trusted and most accessible source for high-quality rancher education. We want to be the first choice ranch owners and upper-level managers identify for educating up-and-coming ranch employees and managers. We want to work with ranches across the nation to help build the foundation for excellence at all levels of ranch management.
View the 2021 schedule of rancher learning opportunities here.
Featured image on this post and cover image of the newsletter by Tim Cox Fine Art. View more of Tim’s work here.