The ACPF National Hub is a collective of partners from the Iowa Water Center, North Central Region Water Network, Iowa State University, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and the Minnesota Water Resources Center. We work in teams focused on the administrative, training, technical, and outreach and communication aspects of ACPF delivery and support. Meet some of those team members
Rick Cruse
is a professor in the Department of Agronomy at Iowa State University and the Director of the Iowa Water Center. With research focused on water-driven soil erosion and soil management, he co-leads the Daily Erosion Project and the ACPF National Hub. As the administrative leader for the ACPF National Hub, his primary project duties involve building strategies for increasing ACPF use and expanding geographical coverage of the ACPF framework. When not focused on soil, Rick is a happy, albeit unsuccessful, hunter.
Contact Rick about ACPF partnerships and strategic direction
Pam Miksell
is the Program & Outreach Specialist for the ACPF National Hub helping to coordinate and communicate program activities across our multidisciplinary teams and within the broader ACPF community. As a primary point of contact, she is happy to engage in conversations about the Hub, the ACPF, and conservation in general. Pam recently graduated from Iowa State University (B.S. Forestry, Certificate Soil Science) and also holds a degree from the University of Iowa (B.S. Business Administration). Pam lives in Des Moines, IA, is fascinated by all things nature, is a master at jigsaw puzzles, and loves a good pun.
Contact Pam about ACPF National Hub products and services, and connecting with the ACPF community
Robin McNeely
is the ACPF Technical Team lead responsible for overseeing the creation, editing, review and management of GIS data related to the ACPF toolbox, the sharing of results and helping with ACPF training and outreach. She has worked with Iowa State University in Ames for 25 years and has been the GIS Facility manager for nine years. When she moved to Ames in 1990 for graduate school, she thought it would be a short three-year stint and then a move to somewhere with more mountains and trees. Apparently, GIS had other plans for her and once she discovered the joys of spatial data analysis, Iowa became home.
Contact Robin about ACPF Core Data and submitting new Core Data
Kevin Erb
is the Program Manager of the Conservation Professional Training Program (CPTP), University of Wisconsin-Madison, Division of Extension. He leads the CPTP team responsible for developing, updating and deploying training for ACPF users and those using ACPF outputs in watershed planning. A Certified Crop Advisor (CCA), Kevin’s outreach and research focuses include ag impacts on surface and groundwater quality, nutrient management planning and manure spill response/prevention.
Contact Kevin if you or your staff are looking for ACPF training
Emily Zimmerman
is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management and the Global Resource Systems Program in the Department of Horticulture at Iowa State University. Emily’s research focuses on innovation and application of geospatial data and tools to identify areas of potential resource concern, characterize the potential for best management practices (BMPs) in those areas, and estimate biophysical and economic outcomes associated with those BMPs. As part of the ACPF National Hub team, Emily’s primary areas of interest are in the ACPF Financial and Nutrient Reduction Tool (ACPF FiNRT) and integration of ACPF and ACPF FiNRT in post-secondary education course curricula.
Contact Emily about ACPF FiNRT and any post-secondary education course curricula
Dave James
is a recently retired Geographic Information Specialist at the USDA/ARS National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment in Ames, Iowa. Formally trained as a Geographer, his efforts are directed toward the employing scientifically- sound principles of spatial data analysis and information management to agricultural research topics. Dave provides GIS technical support to the ACPF National Hub through the development of custom applications and database management. He is one of the original ACPF developers.