Claudia Schmidt - Lead Penn State Agritourism and Assistant Professor of Marketing and Local/Regional Food Systems: cschmidt@psu.edu
Claudia is an Assistant Professor of Marketing and Local/Regional Food Systems at Pennsylvania State University. Her research specializes in expanding diversification options for small-scale agricultural producers and processors. She leads the Penn State Agritourism program, focusing on creating a research-based agritourism initiative. Claudia is also an active member of the Global Agritourism Network (GAN), the International Research Network for Agritourism (IRENA), and the Agritourism Networking Group within the National Extension Tourism network (NET).
Sarah Cornelisse - Co-Lead Penn State Agritourism and Senior Extension Specialist: sar243@psu.edu
Sarah is a Senior Extension Program Specialist at Penn State University in the Department of Agricultural Economics, Sociology, and Education. Working broadly in the areas of farm and agricultural entrepreneurship, marketing, and business management, Sarah has expertise in direct marketing, agricultural and value-added dairy entrepreneurship, agritourism, online marketing and sales, social media, budgeting, and planning and decision making.
Kathy Kelley, PhD - Professor of Horticultural Marketing and Business Management: KathyKelley@psu.edu
Kathy is Professor of Horticultural Marketing and Business Management at Penn State, where she uses her expertise in alcoholic beverage trends, wine consumer attitudes, and produce marketing. She focuses on creating educational resources like presentations, fact sheets, and webinars to help wineries, agritourism operators and agricultural producers improve their marketing strategies. Her research explores consumer preferences and aiding stakeholders in understanding and adapting to market demands.
Jackie Schweichler - Staff Attorney, Penn State Law: jks251@psu.edu
Jackie is a staff attorney at Penn State Law’s Center for Agricultural and Shale Law where she provides research and analysis on a variety of topics. As the primary author of the Shale Law Weekly Review, Jackie’s research in shale law focuses on pipelines and energy advancements while her research in agricultural law focuses on agritourism, seed law, pesticides, and rural development. Jackie has provided presentations for the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, the National Agricultural Law Center, and at the Pennsylvania Farm Show. Jackie also co-teaches Agribusiness Law and Policy for Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. Since 2019, she has managed Pennsylvania’s Agricultural Mediation Program, providing mediation services for landowners throughout the state.
Miranda Harple - Marketing & Business Development Specialist: mharple@psu.edu
Miranda is experienced working with businesses to create and implement digital marketing strategies that maximize exposure and drive sales. She helps businesses see opportunity through market research and customer analysis. Miranda is also a seasoned storyteller, filmmaker, and photographer who has worked on marketing and publications teams. She has experience across various industries, including agriculture, higher education, and non profits. She believes the stories we tell have the power to connect people and inspire our society and culture.
Brian Moyer - Founder/Director of PA Farm Markets and Education Program Associate: bfm3@psu.edu
Brian is an educational program associate with Penn State Extension at the Lehigh County office where he assists farmers and markets with marketing and regulations and food system value chains. Brian is a past board member of PASA (Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture and currently is a board member of The Seed Farm. Brian serves on the Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council and was the founder and manager of the Skippack Farmers Market from 1999 to 2009 and is the founder/director of PA Farm Markets, which provides education and resources for farmers markets and retail farm markets.
Peter Wulfhorst, AICP - Extension Educator: ptw3@psu.edu
Peter has extensive experience in land use and comprehensive planning having worked prior to Penn State Extension for 12 years with the Pike County planning department. Peter currently serves on his local planning commission and is a Board member of a local watershed organization. Peter also represents Pike County on a Local Development District in Northeastern Pennsylvania. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners.
