CAFES Prexy Council Selects Lora Berg as Inaugural CAFES Club Advisor of the Year

The South Dakota State University College of Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Sciences (CAFES) Prexy Council selected Lora Berg as the inaugural CAFES Club Advisor of the Year award recipient. The award was added to the 2023 slate of awards to showcase the work and time that club advisors put in outside of work hours to support and enhance student activities. A committee of CAFES students evaluated all club nominations based on advisor responsibilities, passion for the organization, impact on students and more. 

Berg is currently the director of marketing and communications for CAFES and serves as the advisor for Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow (ACT) and Sigma Alpha Sorority, in addition to being a co-advisor for Little International. 

“The word advisor, by definition, is a person who advises in a particular field,” said Tessa Erdmann, junior agricultural communications student, and Sigma Alpha Sorority President. “Lora does that and so much more – it is time to recognize the person who does it all for so many.”

During her time as an agricultural journalism student from 1984 to 1988, Berg was actively involved in SDSU’s ACT chapter. When she returned to campus in 2015 to fulfill her current role in CAFES, the chapter had dissolved. Berg played an influential role in helping students re-establish the club and is always willing to share her communications expertise with students on campus. This past fall, the SDSU ACT chapter hosted the National ACT Professional Development Conference for the first time on the Brookings campus, and Berg played a key role in the success of the conference by supporting the students and assisting with the planning process. 

She later volunteered to advise Little International and Sigma Alpha Sorority in 2017. Berg met her husband, Dan Berg, during the Little “I” Lamb Lead contest in 1985 and enjoys being involved now as a staff member and alumni. Her knowledge and passion impact the organization and its members, participants and attendees when planning the annual two-day campus tradition. 

“Receiving the first CAFES Club Advisor of the Year award is both extremely awesome and very humbling. It has been a true privilege to be an advisor for the Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow, Sigma Alpha and Little International,” Berg said. “I believe very strongly in the success of our CAFES students and the leadership, networking and new experiences that can be gained by participating in CAFES clubs and organizations.”

Among her countless marketing and communications responsibilities, students note that Berg always attends each meeting with a positive outlook and offers her advice to ensure excellence in all activities. 

“Not only does she strive to help each club find success, but she strives to help individual students find success whether they are in a group she advises or not,” said Kristen Smith, sophomore agricultural communications student and ACT Club President. “Her enthusiastic energy can light up a room and I think that support speaks volumes about her character.”