Erica Irlbeck (Allied Industry member, Lubbock, TX) and a group of college students are working with the National Ranching Heritage Center to produce a mini documentary on the 2011 drought and the impact it had on the agricultural industry. Erica is an assistant professor of agricultural communications at Texas Tech University. She is teaching two courses this summer: video production and advanced imaging and design. During the regular term, she teaches three courses: Video Production in Agriculture, Agricultural Communications Campaigns and Professional Development. Her research interests are risk and crisis communications, agriculture in television media and agricultural communications campaigns. Erica started her duties in September 2009 after earning her Doctor of Education degree in agricultural education from Texas Tech. Prior to her academic career, she worked in agricultural television news for AgDay Television and KLBK-TV (Lubbock, TX), farm radio for Clear Channel Networks, public relations and advertising. She received her B.S. in agricultural communications from Oklahoma State University in 1998 and her M.S. in agricultural communications from Texas Tech in 2007.
Erica is married to Scott, who farms wheat and grain sorghum in the Texas Panhandle. They have one son, Jett. They enjoy cheering for the Red Raiders, gardening and traveling. This spring her husband started farming full-time with his dad outside Tulia, TX. Within one week, his wheat was “hailed out.” Erica added, “We have had incredible rainfall this year with more than 11 inches falling in May alone. It’s wonderful to have, but it has delayed planting grain sorghum, corn and cotton.”
