Center for Regional Food Systems

Sam is thrilled to have joined the passionate group of people working at the Center for Regional Food Systems (CRFS) to cultivate healthy, sustainable and just food systems across the state.

Sam comes from an agricultural background having grown up on a hobby farm in Washtenaw County raising and showing dairy goats in 4-H, club and national shows. She left agriculture and moved North to get a B.Sc. in Wildlife Ecology and Management from Michigan Tech University before getting an M.S. in Environmental Justice from the University of Michigan and starting a Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota focused on Anishinaabek-centered cultural plant restorations and food sovereignty. A slew of serendipitous events throughout graduate school brought Sam back to raising dairy goats and inspired her to leave her Ph.D. program and pursue a career supporting small Michigan farmers and food producers.

When not in the CRFS office, Sam can usually be found in her garden, on a livestock farm or at one of the number shows, conventions or fairs that she participates in as an active member of the American Dairy Goat Association and dairy goat industry. She enjoys sharing her passion for agriculture with young people and sharing experiences that bring them closer to their food. So, regardless of the event, she can regularly be found with several kids — goat or human — in tow.