About Us
Farm Foundation Staff
Our team is passionate about food and agriculture and works hard every day to build a future for farmers, our communities and our world.
Meet the Team
Executive
Shari Rogge-Fidler
President and CEO
Shari Rogge-Fidler joined Farm Foundation as president and CEO in 2019. She has a unique perspective, developed through her experience as a fifth-generation farm owner and operator, entrepreneur in the organic branded food industry, and founder of an agribusiness consulting firm. Shari was also CEO of a group of companies serving 1,000 farmers. She has lived and worked abroad for many years, including London in financial services and across Europe with the Boston Consulting Group. Shari has served on several corporate boards, including Farm Credit Mid-America and Coastal Pet. She currently serves on the board of GroGuru, an AgTech company, and as a trustee of as a trustee for The Nature Conservancy. Shari has a B.Sc. in Business Administration from the University of Kansas and an MBA from the Harvard Business School.
Farm Foundation Staff
Tim Brennan
Vice President, Programs and Strategic Impact
Tim Brennan joined the Farm Foundation staff in May 2013. Prior to that, Tim spent the majority of his career at the University of Chicago, working in a variety of roles at the Booth School of Business, Law School and College. He also served as the director of alumni relations and marketing for Northwestern University’s School of Law. Tim has also worked with a wide range of non-profits as a consultant and board member. He grew up on a small farm in Northeastern Ohio, and currently lives on a hobby farm in the Chicagoland area. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Westminster College, New Wilmington, PA.
Todd Price
Vice President, Operations
Todd Price came to Farm Foundation after two decades of leadership in the agricultural education field. This included time at Living History Farms, The Museums at Prophetstown, and Wagner Farm as founding director. Prior to joining Farm Foundation, Todd was superintendent with the Glenview Park District. Todd was raised on his family’s Iowa grain and livestock farm. Today, he is part-owner of the farm, which was established in 1853. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Simpson College, and he is a graduate of the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foundation program. Todd volunteers with the Glenview 4-H club and local FFA chapter and is on the board of directors for Cook County Farm Bureau.
Karl Binns
Director of External Affairs
Karl Binns joined Farm Foundation in May 2025. He’s a nationally recognized agriculture and food system advocate, international speaker, and Certified Non-Profit Executive (CNE). Karl brings a decade of leadership experience in non-profits and higher education, alongside private sector work in value chain, talent, and philanthropic projects. He’s also an HBCU graduate, LEAD Maryland Class X Fellow, Herrsching International Seminar Fellow, and Climate Reality Action Fellow.
Morgan Craven
Director of Programs and Events
Morgan Craven came to Farm Foundation in 2015 as the events manager, then moved into the senior manager of events role before her current role. Prior to joining the Farm Foundation team, Morgan served as the conference and events manager at Trinity Christian College and as a premium hospitality game-day staff member for the Chicago Bears NFL team. Craven also worked at various Hilton brand properties furthering her hospitality experience. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, in recreation, sports leadership, and tourism management.
Jordyn Landberg
Director of Marketing and Communications
Jordyn joined the Farm Foundation team in May 2025. Jordyn brings nearly two decades of experience as a marketing and communications leader helping nonprofit and philanthropic organizations tell their stories, strengthen their brands, and connect with their communities. At Farm Foundation, Jordyn brings her passion for mission-driven work and her expertise in strategic marketing and communications to support collaboration and innovation across the agricultural sector. She previously led communications at Michael Reese Health Trust and the Les Turner ALS Foundation, where she built impactful campaigns that elevated visibility, deepened engagements, and drove successful fundraising. Raised in rural Indiana as the daughter of a third-generation agribusiness owner, Jordyn feels a personal connection to Farm Foundation’s mission to build a brighter future for farmers, communities, and the food system. She is a proud graduate of Butler University – Go Dawgs! – and lives in Gurnee, Illinois with her husband and two sons.
Katie Merkle
Programs and Events Manager
Katie Merkle joined the Farm Foundation team in 2023. She began her career in hospitality with an emphasis in culinary arts, cooking in restaurants throughout the Chicagoland area and eventually expanding into planning events, serving as senior events director at a full-service catering and event planning firm for nearly a decade. Katie’s curiosity for all things food and agriculture led her to a position as resident chef at a historically preserved gentleman’s farm in the Chicago suburbs, working in the fields of a certified organic farm, and as a garden educator for a boutique organic gardening firm. Katie attended Western Illinois University and went to culinary school at The Cooking and Hospitality Institute, Le Cordon Bleu. In her free time, she can be found lost in the garden, cooking, or hiking with her husband and rescue pup.
Ellen Prather
Marketing and Design Coordinator
Ellen Prather joined the Farm Foundation team in November 2022. Her background covers multiple disciplines including, graphic design, marketing, communications, and photography. Her previous position was as the marketing and development associate at JOURNEYS | The Road Home, a non-profit agency that provides both shelter and social services to the homeless. She holds a degree in general studies with certificates in graphic and web design.
Liz Wilkin
Administrative Associate
Liz Wilkin joined Farm Foundation in the spring of 2023, providing key support to both the CEO and the Vice President of Operations. She brings a diverse professional background with experience spanning the insurance, IT, education, and wellness sectors. Her contributions were instrumental in the successful launch of the state-of-the-art Innovation & Education Campus in the fall of 2023. Liz holds a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations from Northern Michigan University. Outside of work, she enjoys hiking, traveling, and playing tennis.