Nelson
The Indiana State Department of Agriculture selected a Franklin resident as its new deputy director.
ISDA officials chose Katie Nelson, of Franklin for the job. Nelson has been with the department since 2017, when she was hired as the program manager of policy and regulatory affairs. She’s been the ISDA’s director of legislative affairs since 2020, according to an ISDA news release.
As deputy director, Nelson will work with ISDA director Don Lamb to achieve the department’s mission and strategy. She’ll oversee day-to-day ISDA operations, represent the department at events and work with producer organizations to identify growth opportunities for Indiana’s agriculture sector, the release said.
With the ISDA, Nelson evaluated the legislative and regulatory landscape at all levels of government, positioning the department to support Indiana’s agriculture industry. She also served as executive director of the Indiana Land Resources Council, created to help state and local decision-makers with land use tools and policies. In her new role, Nelson will continue to serve as a liaison between agricultural businesses, state agencies and local government units, according to the release.
“Working for ISDA over the past several years has provided me with numerous opportunities for personal and professional growth, and allowed me to support my favorite industry, agriculture,” Nelson said in the release. “I am looking forward to this new challenge of supporting our outstanding staff and continuing to pursue the ISDA mission of bettering Indiana agriculture within policy work, growing economically and enhancing our stewardship of natural resources.”
