People in agriculture for Dec. 14, 2012

Honored

* Crystal Mitchell, of Pendleton, Ore., won the Senior Public Speaking National 4-H Championship with her nine-minute speech on equine cloning 2012 Eastern National 4-H Horse Round Up Public Speaking Contest in Louisville, Ky.

Appointed

* Art Anderson has been chosen to serve as general manager and chief operating officer of J. Frank Schmidt and Son Co., a shade, flowering and specialty ornamental tree nursery headquartered in Boring, Ore..

* Linda Chimenti will become the executive vice president and chief executive officer of the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology on Feb. 1. She is currently chief operation officer.

* James Harsh, a Washington State University faculty member since 1983, has been appointed chair of the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, effective Jan. 1.

Elected

* Valerie "Val" Heusinkveld, of Boise and the chief financial officer of CradlePoint, and William "Bill" Kearns, of Laguna Beach, Calif., and a principal in acquisitions and leasing for LBA Realty, have been elected to the University of Idaho Foundation Inc. board of directors. Laine Meyer, of Los Altos, Calif., and a retired vice president and director of Work Place Solutions with Hewlett-Packard, was elected chairman of the board.