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Obama Nominates Two for Ag Lending Board

In a statement released Monday, the ""White House"":http://www.whitehouse.gov announced that it would nominate two persons with national standing to serve on the board of directors for the ""Federal Agriculture Mortgage Corporation"":http://www.farmermac.com/, the GSE otherwise known as ""Farmer Mac"":http://www.farmermac.com/.

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The names of former Iowa Gov. Chet Culver and ""University of Illinois"":http://www.uillinois.edu/ professor Bruce J. Sherrick will now go before the Senate for confirmation to the board.

""I am pleased to announce that these experienced and committed individuals have agreed to join this Administration, and I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead,"" ""President Barack Obama"":http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/president-obama said in a ""statement"":http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/07/14/president-obama-announces-more-key-administration-posts.

According to the statement, Chet Culver served as Iowa governor from 2007 until 2011. Currently the manager and director of the ""Chet Culver Group"":http://www.chetculvergroup.com/, a renewable energy consulting firm and advocacy group, he previously served as Iowa's secretary of state and taught government and history in his role as a high school teacher.

Culver holds degrees in political science and teaching from ""Virginia Polytechnic University"":http://www.vt.edu/ and ""Drake University"":http://www.drake.edu/, respectively.

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""I am honored the President has indicated his intent to nominate me to the ""Farmer Mac"":http://www.farmermac.com/ board of directors,"" Culver said in an e-mail to _MReport_. ""I look [forward] to the nomination process in the U.S. Senate and hope to join the board soon so I can help fulfill the board mission of strengthening _[sic]_ financing for rural America.""

Sherrick currently doubles as a professor of agricultural and applied finance and director of the Center for Farm and Rural Business Finance at the ""University of Illinois"":http://www.uillinois.edu/. The statement holds that his research focuses on risk analysis, crop insurance evaluation, and financial institution models. Also a managing partner at consulting firm integrated Financial Analytics & Research, Sherrick obtained his Ph.D. in finance and marketing from ""The Ohio State University"":http://www.osu.edu/

Neither Sherrick nor the ""University of Illinois"":http://www.uillinois.edu/ could be immediately reached for comment.

According to its Web site, the federal government created ""Farmer Mac"":http://www.farmermac.com/ in 1988 in order to supply consumers with a secondary market of loans for agricultural housing and real estate. In the past, Congress has authorized it to purchase securities, establish an office of secondary market oversight, revisit and restructure its structural operations, and back securities guaranteed by lenders supportive of financing needs for electrification and telecommunications systems, according to ""_The Iowa Independent_"":http://iowaindependent.com/58569/culver-nominated-to-serve-on-farmer-mac-board.

Its board of directors includes several presidential appointees and directors. According to ""_The Independent_"":http://iowaindependent.com/58569/culver-nominated-to-serve-on-farmer-mac-board, ""Farmer Mac"":http://www.farmermac.com/ held a surplus of over $200 million above its statutory requirements, and previously made some $2.2 billion available in funding to the agricultural industry.

The news service reports that members of the board of directors receive approximately $30,000 in annual salary each year, alongside a per diem allowance that reimburses members for travel, food, and other expenses on official business.

About Author: Ryan Schuette

Ryan Schuette is a journalist, cartoonist, and social entrepreneur with several years of experience in real-estate news, international reporting, and business management. He currently lives in the Washington, D.C., area, where he freelances for DS News and MReport.
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