91�ֿ�

Mrs. Rene’ McCracken is the Director of Agriculture at 91�ֿ�. She is married to Tim McCracken formerly of Kilgore, TX and they have three girls, Samantha, Claire, and Audrey. She began in her new position here in July 2012 with a move from Henderson, TX to Mt. Pleasant (Harts Bluff Area). Her family and her have a 40 acre stocker ranch that they plan to transition into a more sustainable farm including, gardens, poultry, orchard, cow-calf, custom fed steers, meat goats, and a fully stocked fish pond – “just for fun”. Mrs. McCracken was born and raised in Hallsville, TX where she graduated in 1988. She grew up on her family’s small farm surrounded by all the animals that she brought home to take care of including: horses, poultry of all kinds, a hawk, skunks, an owl, commercial pigs, rabbits, doves, a ferret, goats and the usual stray dogs and cats. “I always dreamed of being a veterinarian and spent most of my early childhood preparing for that” said McCracken. Later, she went to Stephen F. Austin University and majored in Animal Science with a poultry emphasis since she decided, “she didn’t want to neuter dogs and cats for a living”. She then received a full scholarship to the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville to get her Master’s degree in Poultry Science and began her career in the food industry. She served in various management roles for Campbell Soup Company, ConAgra Foods, and General Mills. In 2000, she and her husband made the decision for her to “retire” to raise their children and moved onto a 2000 acre commercial cow-calf operation in Kansas where “little house on the prairie” still existed. While there, the homesteading skills taught to her by her grandparents like gardening, canning, and even cooking homemade biscuits from scratch rekindled her enthusiasm and passion for the farming lifestyle. Her life took on another change when, the family moved back to Texas and she began working as an extension agent for Prairie View A&M University in Cherokee County. As an extension agent, she became known for her work with goats and emphasis on small farms and helping them to become more sustainable. Additionally, her husband Tim and her purchased and operated a retail feed store from 2007 to 2011. When she was approached with the opportunity to come to Mt. Pleasant and be a part of the NTCC Experience, she realized that her life and experiences were the perfect combination to prepare her to serve as the new Director of Agriculture for NTCC.

Mr. Chad Henry is the Agriculture Instructor at 91�ֿ�. He is married to Melody Henry, the Associate Dean of Out-Reach Services at NTCC, and they have three children, Jace, Keely, and Kincade. Mr. Henry was born and raised in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He grew up working on his family’s ranch in Southwest Louisiana. In the past, they raised registered Beefmaster cattle, commercial cattle, rice, soybeans, milo, and horses. Today the ranch is primarily a commercial cow/calf operation. Mr. Henry attended McNeese State University on a rodeo scholarship and was a member of the 1991 Southern Region Men’s Championship Team. He competed at the College National Finals Rodeo in tie-down roping, team roping, and steer wrestling.

He transferred to Texas A&M University-Commerce after marrying the former Melody Oden in 1994, and graduated with his Bachelor of Science Degree in Animal Science in 1995. He worked as a Graduate Assistant in the Agriculture Department while pursuing his Master’s degree. He graduated in May 1997 with his Master of Science Degree in Agriculture. In August of 1997, Mr. Henry began his career at 91�ֿ�. He was hired as the Rodeo Coach and Farm Manager. He worked as Farm Manager until 2001. In August of 2001 he became Agriculture Instructor and Rodeo Coach, and in the fall of 2008 became full-time Agriculture Instructor. To reach Mr. Henry, phone 903-434-8177 or send an e-mail to chenry@ntcc.edu.

Mr. Doug Beason is the Manager of the NTCC Demonstration and Research Farm which lies to the east of NTCC’s main campus, across FM 1735. Mr. Beason is a life-long resident of Morris County, near Daingerfield, TX, and graduated from Daingerfield High School in 1977. In 1981, Mr. Beason graduated from Texas State Technical Institute (now Texas State Technical College) in Waco, TX, obtaining his associates degree in Welding Technology. Upon completion of his degree, Mr. Beason began a 20-year career with LeTourneau Technologies, Inc.™. To reach Mr. Beason, phone 903-572-0115 or send an e-mail to dbeason@ntcc.edu.