The Center for Agricultural Profitability (CAP) received the 2025 Omtvedt Innovation Award in the team category from the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the IANR Distinguished Faculty Celebration on Sept. 25.
Members of the team are located across Nebraska, including in Scottsbluff, where John Westra, Director of the Panhandle Research, Extension, and Education Center, and Jessica Groskopf, Nebraska Extension Ag Economist, are located. Its extension efforts are a cornerstone of its innovation, delivering accessible, research-informed, and practical programming to more than 9,450 participants through 240-plus educational programs in 2024 alone.
CAP’s research is Nebraska-focused, interdisciplinary, and impactful, with 86 funded projects totaling $22.6 million since 2021.
“Since its inception, the reach and impact of the CAP Team on agriculture in Nebraska, including the Panhandle, has been substantial. The manifold ways the CAP Team uses to connect with stakeholders exemplifies the multipronged approach we encourage all Nebraska Extension faculty to use,” said Westra.
The team successfully uses webinars, articles, podcasts, meetings, workshops, and one-on-one meetings to reach their audience. The CAP team, at its core, is focused on economic issues related to production agriculture. The variety of weekly webinars CAP hosts demonstrates the multi-disciplinary nature of the expanded CAP team's efforts.
“Our goal has always been to make complex economic information understandable and usable for Nebraska producers,” said Jessica Groskopf, Nebraska Extension Ag Economist based in Scottsbluff. “This award reflects the dedication of our team to delivering timely, research-backed insights that support real-world decision-making on the farm and ranch.”
Tiffany Heng-Moss, Interim NU Vice President and Interim IANR Harlan Vice Chancellor, recognized CAP’s impact through webinars, podcasts, newsletters, and decision tools like the Agricultural Budget Calculator. She highlighted popular extension publications like the Nebraska Farm Real Estate Report and farm income forecasts, CAP’s support since 2021 of 86 funded projects (totaling $22.6 million) and 24 peer-reviewed journal articles, as well as the development of an agricultural economics curriculum for high schools, piloted by more than 20 Nebraska teachers in 2025.
In addition to Groskopf and Westra, CAP includes: Dave Aiken Esq., Tina Barrett, Ryan Benjamin, Dr. Elliott Dennis, Dr. Mary Drewnoski, Jeremy Eide, Ryan Evans, Jim Jansen, Dr. Brad Lubben, Dr. Joe Luck, Glennis McClure, Anastasia Meyer, Dr. Jay Parsons (CAP Director), Dr. Daren Redfearn, Randy Saner, Shannon Sand, and Dr. Cory Walters.
