The Board
Sharon Brantmeier (Spring 2025)expand_more
Education: BS & MS Dairy Science, UW–Madison
Current Title: President/Private Wealth Advisor
Company/Professional Affiliation: Eventus Wealth Advisors
Hometown: Sherwood, WI
Sharon is the owner/Private Wealth Advisor for Eventus Wealth Advisors. She manages a team of eleven and over 500M in client assets. Her volunteer work for Demeter/WALSAA and understanding of the college while managing a business are the main assets she brings to the board. Having grown up in the state on a dairy farm that her brother and nephews still operate, going to college in CALS and through outside and inside agricultural associations, she has a breadth of knowledge of the dairy industry in WI.
Sharon started her career in agriculture and worked for the dairy divisions of Monsanto and Vita Plus Corporation in sales and Management. This training gave her the base of knowledge when she decided to open her own business. For the past 20 years, she has grown her business from a solo advisor to a team of eleven. She has been honored to receive the Forbes Best in State Advisor for the past 3 years.
Sharon is very active in the community. She is involved in the Association of Women in Agriculture, Kiwanis, WALSAA, Demeter, Breast Cancer Recovery and PDPW. She was president of Demeter, a group that sponsors over 40k in scholarships and grants for CALS, and is still active on the board. Her husband, Randy Shaver is an emeritus faculty of CAL (Dy Sci). They live in Fitchburg, WI and have 2 grown daughters. They also own 160 acres in Wilton, WI where they grow some corn and hay but most of the land is not tillable so they grow lots of trees and wildlife
Steve Braun (Spring 2026)expand_more
Bio coming soon
Debra Crave (Spring 2026)expand_more
Education: BS Forestry and Horticulture, UW–Madison
Current Title: Vice President
Company/Professional Affiliation: Crave Brothers Farmstead Cheese
Hometown: Waterloo, WI
Debbie is the Vice President of Crave Brothers Farmstead Cheese, Waterloo, WI. She manages sales, public relations, marketing, and administrative functions for the family cheese business. For 20 years they have manufactured artisan, farmstead cheeses using only the fresh, high-quality milk from their own dairy farm. They are known for our quality cheeses and green energy story as they have a biodigester on the farm that produces electricity using the cow’s waste and waste from the cheese factory. They host many groups of buyers, students and media at their farm and cheese factory.
Before starting their family cheese business with her husband, Debbie worked in marketing at the WI Milk Marketing Board for three years. She oversaw producer communication programs and cheese company communications, events and trade shows. From 1981-1998 she worked at the WI Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection in the Marketing Division managing the International Agri-Business Center. She conducted numerous trade shows, traveled with the Governor on overseas trade missions and oversaw the Alice in Dairyland program, marketing orders and county & district fairs. Debbie worked with numerous Midwest Department’s of Agriculture on marketing and policy. She served as the 1981-82 Alice in Dairyland.
Debbie has served on the following boards: WALSAA (WI Ag & Life Sciences Alumni Association), WSCI (WI Specialty Cheese Institute), Thrive Board, WI 4-H Foundation Board, Professional Dairy Producers of WI Board, UW Madison CARET member, World Dairy Expo Board and Executive committee member.
She resides in Waterloo, WI with her husband George. They have three children who all work in the family business.
Andrew Diercks (Spring 2026)expand_more
Education: BS Ag Engineering, UW–Madison
Current Title: Vice President
Company/Professional Affiliation: Coloma Farms
Hometown: Coloma, WI
Andy is a fourth generation potato grower in Coloma, Wisconsin. With his father, Steve, they operate Coloma Farms, a 2,700 acre potato and grain farm. Both are very active within the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association (WPVGA) and serve on several committees related to marketing, research, environmental issues, and government relations at the state and national levels. Coloma Farms and the WPVGA work pro-actively with researchers and leadership within the UW system to address issues in the vegetable industry.
Andy received a BS from UW–Madison in Agricultural Engineering and currently serves on the citizen board for the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) and is a director at the Farming For The Future Foundation.
Taylor Fritsch (Spring 2026)expand_more
Taylor Fritsch is an associate attorney with Michael Best & Friedrich LLP. He grew up on his family’s dairy farm in southwest Wisconsin and was a UW-Madison CALS student from 2010-2014 graduating with degrees in both agriculture and applied economics and life sciences. He then attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln focusing on agricultural and environmental law. He was very active in several student organizations while on campus.
Fawn Gottschalk (Spring 2026)expand_more
Education: BS Managerial Accounting, UW–Stevens Point
Current Title: President
Company/Professional Affiliation: Gottschalk Cranberry, Inc
Hometown: Wisconsin Rapids, WI
Fawn is a fifth generation cranberry grower with multigenerational family, business, and industry ties to UW CALS, especially to the cranberry researchers. As President of Gottschalk Cranberry, Inc she leads and oversees the business aspect of the marsh.
Fawn currently serves on the Public Relations and Public Policy committees of the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association and as an advisor to the board of The Cranberry Institute. She serves on the board for the Boys & Girls Club of the Wisconsin Rapids Area and as Chairperson for the Town of Cranmoor. She is also the Treasurer for the Cranmoor Cooperative Co., a neighborhood water supply co-op.
Fawn lives with her sons, River and Gavyn, on the family cranberry marsh outside of Wisconsin Rapids, WI, where River has recently started his career as a sixth generation cranberry grower.
Carol Karahadian (Spring 2026)expand_more
Bio coming soon
Tom Kennedy (Spring 2025)expand_more
Education: BS Dairy Science, MS & PhD Veterinary Science, UW–Madison
Current Title: Managing Principal
Company/Professional Affiliation: Eleven Bravo LLC
Hometown: Waunakee
Tom is the founder of Eleven Bravo consulting, previously held senior R&D leadership roles with Boehringer Ingelheim’s Animal Health business unit, the former Mallinckrodt Veterinary Inc., Bayer Animal Health, and Central Life Sciences. He was also a commissioned Army infantry officer.
In his current role, he is involved with the development of novel therapies for diseases of livestock and companion animals with a local, country and world-wide mission. He is privileged to have a view of animal agriculture and the challenges arising in a climatically changing world and be involved in the development of new therapies and approaches to disease control.
Tom was elected Secretary Treasurer of the American Association of Veterinary Parasitologists (AAVP) in 1993 and served for 6 years, then elected Vice-President and Program Chair and President and is a member of the Past-President’s ad hoc committee serving the president of the AAVP. He is also a member of of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the American Society of Parasitologists (ASP) and the World Association for the Advancement of Veterinary Parasitology (WAAVP), member of the Executive Board and elected President for 2007-2011, and founding member and President of the Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM) Society. Member of Rotary International for many years, secretary-treasurer and president of local club.
Kevin Krentz (Fall 2024)expand_more
Education: Farm & Industry Short Course Certificate, UW–Madison
Current Title: President
Company/Professional Affiliation: Wisconsin Farm Bureau
Hometown: Berlin, WI
Kevin was first elected to the WFBF board of directors in 2012 to represent District 5, which includes Adams, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Juneau, Marquette, Waushara and Winnebago counties. He is president of Krentz Family Dairy Inc. He started his farming career in 1994 when he purchased his father’s 60 cows. He grew the farm to 600 cows and 1,300 acres of crops. Kevin and his wife, Holly, have a daughter and three sons.
Kay Maas (Spring 2025) expand_more
Education: BS & MS Meat Science, UW–Madison; MS Human Kinetics, UW–Milwaukee
Current Title: Consulting Clinical Dietician
Company/Professional Affiliation: MC Services
Hometown: Pewaukee, WI
Kay is a consulting clinical Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. In addition her meat science degrees at UW–Madison, she also earned a second master of science in Human Kinetics with an emphasis in Exercise Physiology from UW–Milwaukee in 2001 and completed a Certificate in Dietetics from Mount Mary University in 2008. She has a varied work history with experience as a technical consultant in the meat processing industry, teaching experience as an adjunct lecturer for UW–Milwaukee and Mount Mary University, and dietetics experience as a clinical dietitian for Froedtert Hospital in Milwaukee.
Kay continues practicing in the dietetics field by volunteering at the Bread of Healing Clinic in Milwaukee. Kay and her husband Duane live in Pewaukee, WI, and they have three daughters. She enjoys running, biking, and supporting the Badgers.
Matt Mikolajewski (Spring 2024)expand_more
Education: BS Natural Resources, UW–Madison; Master of Urban Planning, UW–Milwaukee
Current Title: Economic Development Director
Company/Professional Affiliation: City of Madison
Hometown: Madison, WI
Matt was appointed Economic Development Director for the City of Madison in 2015, after serving as the City’s Office of Business Resources Manager since 2007. He works with businesses and developers by providing financial and technical assistance to help them succeed within the City of Madison. His office also manages all of the City’s real estate work.
He has two decades of local government experience. He started his career in the Milwaukee area, before taking a position with the City of Madison in 2007. He is a certified Economic Development Finance Professional (EDFP).
A lifelong fourth-generation Wisconsinite, Matt currently lives on the east side of Madison. He recently had the honor of serving as Board President and Director of the Wisconsin Economic Development Association, a statewide professional organization.
Jeannette Nussbaum (Spring 2025)expand_more
Education: BS Ag Econ, UW–Madison; MBA, Lake Forest Graduate School of Management
Current Title: Director of Financial Planning & Analysis
Company/Professional Affiliation: BDO USA, LLP
Hometown: Chicago, IL
Jeannette is an experienced finance professional and strategic thinker with the ability to translate financial information into actionable insight. In her current role, she is responsible for providing meaningful, timely, and actionable analysis to the Executive Team, Board of Directors, and internal customers, of financial and operational information.
Prior to her career at BDO USA, LLP she was a financial analyst for Baxter Credit Union. She currently resides in Chicago where she is the Treasurer/Board Member of 221-unit condominium association, with an annual operating budget of over $2M.
Mark Pfeiffer (Spring 2025)expand_more
Education: BS Horticulture with certificate in business management, UW–Madison
Current Title: Vice President of Internal Operations
Company/Professional Affiliation: Organic Valley
Hometown: Viroqua, WI
Mark has over 20 years of agricultural business experience specializing in sales, operations, and finance management. At Organic Valley, he leads our internal manufacturing teams where they process fluid milk from standardizing to condensing, manufacturing milk powders and butter/ghee and slicing and shredding cheese. He also oversees all our facilities management groups and our renewable energy business unit consisting of 5 megawatts of wind power.
He credits his CALS degree with launching his 12 year career in the green industry working for The Brickman Group and TruGreen LandCare where he led several successful business units out of Denver, CO and Seattle, WA. However, he found his true passion coming back to the Midwest and working in the organic food industry for one of the largest organic dairy cooperatives at Organic Valley.
Mark enjoyed a seven-year stint as the chair of the public Viroqua Area Montessori School after helping them found the school in 2013. He also provided financial and strategic advisement to several local non-profit groups in the Driftless area where he currently lives with his family.