FAI R WEATH E R FE A T HER By Brittany Simers In addition to pursuing his master's of business administration, graduate studentJ acob Feather had a lot on his plate this year. Managing being a student, husband, father and farmer lef't:Jacob with little spare time. During the rare moments he was not working, he thought about career plans for the future. Jacob discovered he wanted a career that \\·ould extend beyond the home, field and classroom. According to J acob, growing up around agriculture showed him a love for farming. He said he started searching for a way to combine business and farming after he graduated from Harding in ~fay 2014, with a bachelor's degree in business management. "Once I decided that was what I wanted to pursue, l got to thinking about how to grow agriculturc,"J acob said. "Trade magazines talk about a global market and how the world is no longer flat. My idea was to find a way to pursue agriculture differently than how it is now and to also make money and still help people." Assista nt professor ofbusincss Mike Allen said he sawJ acob's enthusiasm for international farming develop through a business course. "As we were going through international business. that's when he started talking a lot about the opportunities he saw in farmland," Allen said. "People are discovering oil and different kinds of energy, but when it come to farmland, it's not like God is creating more ofit." Because ofproximit)' and the cost oftravel, Central or South America sounded like ideal countries to start an international farming program, according toJ acob. "1 would like to mrn land in the country and be able to have a manager run the farm,"Jacob said. "I would go there a couple times a year for those first few years to take new technology that they don't have right now and introduce them to it, help them learn and providejobs for other people." Callie Feathcr,Jacob's wife and a Harding alumna, said she knew Jacob's dream would add challenges to their busy schedule. "He is very busy in the spring and fall, and has a break during the winter, but we realize if'his dream comes true, he could be making multiple trips," Callie said. "This cl ream will take a lot of preparation to become a reality, but withj acob's work ethic, I believe this dream can become a reality in the future for our family." Jacob's knowledge of business and his own experience with farming provided him with a mindset for tackling future challenges, according to Allen. "It's more than just picking a piece of land in a foreign country," Allen said. "It's also understanding the culture and [the] needs of those customers. I think he's well on his way." J acob said he wanted to spread more thanjust agricultural de\'elopment through his plan. ·'I want to use it as a mission to help spread the [Gospel] to those people who are my employees or just people in the community," J acob said. "I have challenges, but if I can overcome them, I think I'll reap great rewards." Graduate student Ja co b Feather tends to his farm in GriffithuilLe, Arkansas, while also taking classes in management and business ethics. He returned as a graduate student to take business classes with the aspirations of mo11ing himself and his farm s internationally. I Photos by Macy Pate
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