Southern Plains Region Enumerator of the Year announced

AUSTIN, TEXAS — United States Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) Southern Plains Region named Rusty Basham of Winnsboro the Enumerator of the Year for 2023.

An enumerator is a person trained to conduct interviews or make field counts and record the information gathered. NASDA and NASS partner to hire enumerators under a cooperative agreement to serve the United States, its agricultural producers, and rural communities.

Under the cooperative agreement, NASDA employs over 2,000 part-time enumerators who collect statistical data for NASS agricultural surveys. The cooperative agreement began in 1972. NASDA and NASS have operated this cooperative program continuously in all 50 states since 1978.

Basham received the award because of his exceptional dedication to the NASS mission of providing timely, accurate and useful statistics in service to U.S. agriculture.

“Without a doubt, Rusty Basham more than deserves the 2023 Enumerator of the Year for the Southern Plains Region,” said Wilbert Hundl, Jr., regional director of the NASS Southern Plains Region Field Office. “In all projects, from the complex to the urgent, Rusty Basham continually demonstrates excellence in teamwork, data collection, and strengthening respondent relations.”

Basham began his career in agriculture 25 years ago, when he and his wife started a plant nursurey in Emory, Texas. His success is based on many qualities, but the one that stands out is his unique quality to reach producers and convey to them the importance of the information from survey respondents.

In 2008, Basham started with the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) as a NASS enumerator, partnering with agricultural producers to provide quality statistical data.

For more information on NASS surveys and reports, visit www.nass.usda. gov or call the NASS Southern Plains Region Field Office at 1-800-626-3142.