If you’re throwing a party, you’ll want to invite Rick. He’s that guy: fun, outgoing, and able to make others feel immediately comfortable. He’s also the first to respond to a new idea with an enthusiastic, “Let’s try it!”

Rick brings a strong background in science and agriculture and 17 years of facilitation, training, and speaking experience to Vivayic. Rick’s teaching department developed a mission for their students: Production Agriculture Practices + Scientific Principles & Methodology = Students Prepared for Future Careers in Agricultural Industries. Rick brought the mission to life for students as he and his department redesigned all 16 of their class offerings to be more rigorous, inquiry-based, and rooted in science. Rick was recognized by the National Science Teachers Association in 2011 for doing just that! During Rick’s 10 years of teaching and serving as an FFA advisor in Wisconsin, he built an impressive program with deep roots in the community focusing on activities that were purposeful and relevant.

Rick’s experiences, can-do attitude, and natural ability to consider learning from the student perspective make him an immediate asset to our education outreach and industry clients.

In Rick’s personal life, he likes to live in the extremes. Why run a 1/2 marathon when you could do a full? Why listen to the radio when you can experience live music? When Jimmy Buffet performs annually in your hometown amphitheater, you go! Growing up, Rick and his six siblings worked collaboratively with their parents on their family farm as they milked 40 cows and managed 240 tillable acres where they grew everything they needed for the cattle. They were the workforce for the operation and, to this day, Rick still has a love for manual labor. Rick and his wife, Brooke, are passionate about family and advocating for children waiting to be adopted. For many, a family of ten children fits that pattern of extremes, but Rick and Brooke were made for it; it’s a beautiful orchestra of love, organized chaos, and fun.