ALABAMA A&M UNIVERSITY, Ala. — The National Association of County Agricultural Agents (NACAA) awarded Urban Regional Extension Agent Marcus Garner with one of its highest honors — the Distinguished Service Award. Garner received the award during NACAA’s Annual Meeting and Professional Improvement Conference held July 8-12 in Denver, Colorado.

The NACAA Distinguished Service Award recognizes Extension professionals with more than 10 years of exceptional service. These individuals also demonstrate excellence in educational programming, outstanding leadership and a sustained commitment to the Cooperative Extension mission. Recipients are respected by their peers and recognized for making significant contributions to the communities they serve.

“It is an honor to receive the award and to be recognized by my peers,” said Garner, who has more than 23 years of service with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama Extension) at Alabama A&M University (AAMU).

Garner received the award along with Alabama Extension colleagues Janet Jones and Alice Moore.

Kudos from Leadership

Janet Jones, Alice Moore, NACAA President JJ Jones, Garner and Jennifer Wells

“It was a pleasure to support Marcus as he received this prestigious NACAA award,” said Jennifer Wells, associate director of Alabama Extension at Alabama A&M University. “His greatest strength is his ability to teach and connect with people. Whether he is educating older adults about container gardening and lawn maintenance, planting trees at The People’s Patch or teaching youth about water conservation, he makes complex topics easy to understand and apply.”

Majed El-Dweik, vice president of research and economic development, further added, “I have known Marcus for the past four years and regard him as a trusted agricultural educator and leader. While his expertise and dedication are widely known, Marcus has built lasting relationships through his genuine commitment to serving stakeholders and communities. It is this commitment of service that earned him the trust and respect of people across the state. The honor from NACCA is a well-deserved milestone in his Extension career, and we are doubly proud that he is a graduate of AAMU.”

Alabama Educated

A native of Aliceville, Alabama, Garner earned an Associate of Science degree in ornamental horticulture from Bessemer State Technical College before continuing his education at AAMU, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in plant science with a concentration in horticulture. He later earned a Master of Business Administration with a concentration in agribusiness from AAMU in 2017.

Today, Garner specializes in home grounds and gardens, home pest management and water conservation practices. His programming emphasizes environmental stewardship, sustainable landscape management, food system awareness and consumer education. Through the years, he has developed strong partnerships with homeowners, community leaders and others in the agricultural industry.

Additional Work

In addition to his Extension responsibilities, Garner serves as the Alabama Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) state coordinator. In this capacity, he works with Extension professionals, researchers, agricultural educators and producers. Together they promote sustainable agricultural practices, professional development opportunities and research-based educational programming.

He is also the coordinator for Water Wheels, a mobile water conservation lab that aids in educating audiences about water conservation.

Garner is grateful that Extension and statewide partners have allowed him to serve communities, educate families and help people make informed decisions.