The 2019 ARPAS elections will be open May 1 to 30, 2019. An email notification will be sent to all members, with information about the 2019 nominees and how to cast a vote.
The 2019 Nominees
ARPAS President-Elect
- Ryon Walker, PhD, PAS – Livestock Consultant, Noble Research Institute – Oklahoma
- Daryl Kleinschmit, PhD, PAS, Dipl. ACAN – Research Nutritionist–Dairy, Zinpro – Nebraska
ARPAS NE Regional Director
Ryon S. Walker, PhD, PAS
Born in south Louisiana, Ryon Walker grew up in Hillsboro, Texas, spending most of his time playing football, showing cattle, being involved in FFA, and hunting. Walker received his BS (1997) and MA (2000) degrees in animal science at Texas A&M University. In 1996 Walker interned with Leachman Cattle Company in Montana and developed his passion for beef cattle reproduction checking heats on 1,500 cows for AI. Walker moved to Ft. Collins, Colorado, where he met his wife, Laree, and received his PhD in reproductive physiology from Colorado State University in 2004.
Walker started his career as an extension beef cattle specialist at the University of Minnesota, and from 2004 to 2010 he worked with cow/calf producers throughout the state. In 2010 Walker and his family moved to north Louisiana, where he served as an assistant/associate professor, Northwest Beef Extension Program leader, and Beef Research Program leader for the Louisiana State University AgCenter Hill Farm Research Station’s 350 head cow/calf herd. Since 2017 Walker has served as a strategic livestock consultant for the Noble Research Institute, working with beef cattle producers throughout the southern Great Plains.
During his tenure at Minnesota and Louisiana, Walker has spoken at 210 engagements (92 as invited speaker); authored or co-authored 66 extension publications, 16 referred manuscripts (9 as primary author), and 32 abstracts and conference proceedings; and received over $423,000 in grants and support. Walker has been a member of several organizations, including ARPAS, ASAS, and NCBA. Walker and Laree have three kids (Calob, Cydnee, and Cash) and love spending time in the outdoors together.
Daryl Kleinschmit, PhD, PAS, Dipl. ACAN
Daryl Kleinschmit is from a family farm in northeast Nebraska where they operated a dairy along with a farrow-to-finish swine operation and a small feedlot. He also participated in 4-H and FFA. Kleinschmit earned his bachelor’s degree in animal science from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln; master’s degree in animal science from the University of Delaware, Newark; and doctoral degree in animal science at South Dakota State University, Brookings. His master’s thesis focused on the evaluation of Lactobacillus buchneri in the preservation of fermented feeds, particularly in corn silage. His doctoral dissertation pertained to the utilization of amino acids by dairy cattle fed rations containing high levels of distillers grains.
Kleinschmit has 11 peer-reviewed publications along with numerous abstracts and popular-press articles. He is a member of ADSA, ASAS, and the Hoof Trimmers Association and is a board-certified member of ARPAS.
Kleinschmit has been a dairy research nutritionist with Zinpro since 2013. Before joining Zinpro, Kleinschmit was a dairy nutritionist for a Midwest United States–based feed company, supporting the company’s international growth in both beef and dairy species as an on-farm consultant, by proving technical services for sales personnel, and as a researcher. His duties at Zinpro include providing technical services and support for dairy to the sales team and overseeing dairy research projects. Kleinschmit lives in Hartington, Nebraska, with his wife, Jill, and his four children.