LEIGHTON R. LIESNER

*** * **** **, ****, AZ ***** 575-***-**** (Cell) ad1ydc@r.postjobfree.com

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

A resolute leader with an accomplished background in administration, field programs, integrated pest management, program management, information technology, entomology, research, data analysis, technical writing, technical presentation, personnel management, and innovation. Experienced in fusing traditional management principles with technologies to maximize cost to benefit ratios and implement synergistic solutions based on best management practices from both areas. Skilled at improving, streamlining, and scaling operations to accelerate program results, lower program costs to stakeholders and mitigating limiting factors while efficiently achieving organizational goals.

KEY COMPETENCIES & GENERAL MANAGEMENT STRENGTHS

Strategic Planning

Organizational management

Budgeting, marketing, and program planning

Managerial accounting and finance

Personnel management and development

Conflict resolution and negotiation

Written and oral communications

Managing complex/rapidly changing demands

Technology and information management

Data analysis and retrieval

Infrastructure and fleet management

Authoring state rules and interpreting statutes

EDUCATION

Project Centrl, Rural Leadership Program 2017

Graduate Coursework Fall 2003 to Spring 2005

New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM

Managerial Accounting ● Financial Statement Analysis and Security Evaluation ● Marketing Management B.S. in Agricultural Biology 1996

New Mexico State University. Las Cruces, NM

WORK EXPERIENCE

Technician

Southwest RPX, General Contractor

October 2022 to Present

Accomplishments: Mastered many aspects of general construction in a commercial residential environment. Established a record of problem solving, innovation, facilitation, and customer service. Duties: Perform various construction tasks in support of residential construction, renovation, onsite service calls, resource management, equipment repair, maintenance, customer service, and customer relations. Executive Director/Agency Head

Arizona Cotton Research and Protection Council – Phoenix, AZ December 2011 to August 2022

Accomplishments: Achieved eradication of the Pink Bollworm, the costliest introduced pest of cotton in the Southwest. Increased sales of Council atoxigenic technology from 1 + million pounds to over 5 million pounds. Developed and constructed a new production plant increasing output from three tons per day to three to five tons per hour. Expanded EPA registration of our technology into four additional commodities, and successfully commercialized Council atoxigenic technology. Duties: Under direction of the Council, administered all Council activities and interests including Fiscal, research, field programs and surveys, program development, staffing and staff development, planned and organized council meetings and committees, coordinated bale assessment collection and cultural control compliance. Developed and administered cooperative agreements, contracts, and other legal instruments. Developed, directed, and coordinated product research and development, production design, marketing, and sales of atoxigenic solutions for aflatoxin in field and orchard crops. I was responsible for all legal and statutory requirements for the Council as a state agency including, audits, sunset reviews, rule creation and auditing, grower referenda, regulatory programs, employment and procurement requirements, lien collection, IT/GPS/GIS resources, among others. Consistently managed Council funds to ensure successful program execution with sufficient reserves to allow for response to new unforeseeable pests, diseases, or program requirements, and insured positive carryover from one fiscal year to the next. Directed the Leighton R. Liesner

disbursement and receiving of the agency’s federal, state, and other grants and research funds, while ensuring deliverables were fully satisfied. Administered the agency’s independent vehicle fleet. Authored and delivered informational and educational materials for cooperators, stakeholders, and the public at large regarding all Council activities and programs in a variety of formats and settings. Developed, coordinated, and managed working relationships with a wide array of state, federal, stakeholder, foreign, and private entities important to the successful execution of the Councils aims and goals. Sterile Insect Technique Program Coordinator/Field Program Manager Arizona Cotton Research and Protection Council – Phoenix, AZ January 2006 to December 2011

Accomplishments: Successfully delivered billions of sterile moths over cotton fields across Arizona utilizing up to five aircraft and achieved eradication of the Pink Bollworm. Significantly improved the accuracy and efficiency of Pink Bollworm identification accuracy and protocols across the international program.

Duties: Under the supervision of the Director, provided support, leadership, training, development, and guidance as required in fulfilling Council directives and programs. Hired and supervised seasonal and permanent Council staff. Directly managed all sterile releases and identification personnel, resources, and activities. Worked closely with and supported field and lab personnel. Developed protocols and strategies for insect surveys, research projects, and IT/GPS/GIS resources. Assisted with program planning, budgeting, analysis and development of technical reports and presentations. Provided key programmatic information delivery for meetings and conferences as required. Conducted communications with cotton producers, cooperators, and the public at large on behalf of the Council and the Director. During my tenure in this position, my duties also included management and coordination of all Council information/data networks, hardware, and software. I provided development, training and support for data management techniques and strategies. I collaborated directly with partner program areas in the US and Mexico to further development of Sterile Insect Technique, Pink Bollworm identification, and data sharing. Worked directly with USDA, University, and other cooperators to ensure work plans developed under cooperative agreements meet with Council needs and responsibilities were satisfied. Field Unit Supervisor/Information System Technologies/Laboratory Manager South Central New Mexico Cotton Boll Weevil Control Committee – Las Cruces, NM March 1999 to December 2005

Accomplishments: Achieved 100% reduction in the Boll Weevil and 99% reduction in Pink Bollworm populations and developed key innovations.

Duties: Field program activities for eradication of the Cotton Boll Weevil and Pink Bollworm in the Mesilla Valley, Hatch, Las Uvas and Deming growing areas. Trained and supervised survey employees, pesticide applicators and identifiers. Coordinated aerial and ground pesticide applications and developed treatment strategies. Developed training for field program activities. Co-developed and implemented company policies regarding safety, pesticide handling and release. Created pesticide release statements and coordinated with local emergency response agencies. Issued job announcements and hired seasonal and clerical employees as needed. Assisted the Program Director with program financial planning and budgeting. Communicated with cotton producers, state and federal cooperators, aerial applicators, legislators, and the public at large on behalf of the Committee. Managed and maintained computer hardware, software, networks, GPS/GIS technologies, barcode systems, and program data. Generated reports, analyzed data, and prepared presentations. As principal identifier managed all insect identification related activities. Plant Protection and Quarantine Technician V.

United States Department of Agriculture, Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine – Las Cruces, NM

May 1993 to March 1999

Duties: regulatory enforcement, survey, quality control, environmental monitoring, and protocol development activities to support the Karnal Bunt Emergency Project, Rangeland Grasshopper Survey, Boll Weevil Eradication Project, and Noxious Weed Eradication Program. Managed global positioning and geographic information systems and survey data collection, analyzed data, generated reports, and prepared presentations. Integrated bar-coded data collection with GPS/GIS technology to administer resource usage, production, and density/delimiting of insect populations. Inspected pedestrians, personal and commercial vehicles for regulated items at the Columbus port of entry and assisted with the preparation of phytosanitary certificates. As lead technician, led, directed, and trained employees for program activities. Performed safety inspections including vehicles, equipment, chemicals, hazardous materials, facilities, and made recommendations based on my findings. Collected and maintained documentation and MSDS in compliance with applicable regulations.

Leighton R. Liesner

Mediterranean Fruit Fly Eradication Specialist.

United States Department of Agriculture Mediterranean Fruit Fly Eradication Project – Tampa, FL Fall 1997 (TDY)

Duties: Regulated and inspected resellers, commercial processors and wholesalers for proper handling and disposal of fruits, vegetables and refuse while conducting program relations. Utilized GPS/GIS technology to develop statistics and reports for program leadership. Laboratory Aid

New Mexico State University, Entomology Plant Pathology and Weed Science Laboratory Las Cruces, NM

October 1994 to May 1996

Duties: Assisted with biological control research projects, prepared test plots, collected data and prepared presentations. Repaired and fabricated equipment maintained environmental chambers and functioned as laboratory safety officer.

Research Assistant

United States Department of Agriculture, Methods, and Development. Phoenix, AZ May 1992 to August 1992

Duties: Collected data for insecticide and biological control experiments, fabricated insect cages for experiments, monitored aerial applications, calibrated aerial spray equipment, and entered research data. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND COMPUTER SKILLS

Network Administration

Assembly, upgrading and troubleshooting of computers and networks

Database operation (Oracle, Access, and Dbase)

Implementation and management of barcode systems

Global Positioning and Geographic Information System data collection and integration

Microsoft and Novell network software

Windows 7, Windows 10, Windows 11, Windows Server 2016/2019, and Exchange Server

Microsoft: Word, Excel, Access, Power Point, Publisher, and Outlook

Lotus: Approach, Word Pro, 123 and Freelance

Internet Explorer, Firefox, MapInfo Professional GIS, Arc View GIS, Pathfinder Office GPS, Google Earth

Remote access applications, backup applications, virus detection and diagnostic/maintenance applications

Satloc and AgNav aerial application software programming and data analysis

Production plant controls planning, configuration and optimization

Basic single board computer setup, configuration, and implementation.

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OTHER JOB SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Public speaking, public relations, interpersonal communication, team building, technical writing, and presentation delivery

Planning, organizing, and conducting meetings

Fiduciary management based on sound accounting and ethical principles

Organizational purchasing procedures and contract bid processes

Familiar with Environmental Impact Statements, phytosanitary and import/export processes

Excellent record of success in producer/operator/cooperator relations in programs

Familiar with Arizona Open Meeting Law

Workman’s compensation issues

Advisor, Alpha Gamma Rho, Alpha Lambda Chapter, New Mexico State University, 2002 to 2006

Regulatory program administration, federal and state regulation interpretation

20+ Years volunteer 4-H you leader volunteer

Leighton R. Liesner

SELECT PUBLICATIONS AND AWARDS

2021 Corteva Agriscience IPM Team Award

Issued by Plant-Insect Ecosystems Section, Entomological Society of America · Jan 2021 Tabashnik, B. E., Liesner, L. R., Ellsworth, P. C., Unnithan, G. C., Fabrick, J. A., Naranjo, S. E., Li, X., Dennehy, T. J., Antilla, L., Staten, R. T., & Carrière, Y. (2020). Transgenic cotton and sterile insect releases synergize eradication of pink bollworm a century after it invaded the United States. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(1). https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.201-***-**** Carrière, Y., Antilla, L., Liesner, L., & Tabashnik, B. E. (2017). Large-scale evaluation of association between pheromone trap captures and Cotton Boll infestation for Pink bollworm (lepidoptera: Gelechiidae). Journal of Economic Entomology, 110(3), 1345–1350. https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/tox086 Carrière, Y., Degain, B., Hartfield, K. A., Nolte, K. D., Marsh, S. E., Ellers-Kirk, C., Van Leeuwen, W. J. D., Liesner, L., Dutilleul, P., & Palumbo, J. C. (2014). Assessing transmission of crop diseases by insect vectors in a landscape context. Journal of Economic Entomology, 107(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1603/ec13362

Tabashnik, B. E., Morin, S., Unnithan, G. C., Yelich, A. J., Ellers-Kirk, C., Harpold, V. S., Sisterson, M. S., Ellsworth, P. C., Dennehy, T. J., Antilla, L., Liesner, L., Whitlow, M., Staten, R. T., Fabrick, J. A., Li, X., & Carrière, Y. (2012). Sustained susceptibility of pink bollworm to BT cotton in the United States. GM Crops & Food, 3(3), 194–200. https://doi.org/10.4161/gmcr.20329 Tabashnik, B. E., Sisterson, M. S., Ellsworth, P. C., Dennehy, T. J., Antilla, L., Liesner, L. R., Whitlow, M., Staten, R. T., Fabrick, J. A., Unnithan, G. C., Yelich, A. J., Ellers-Kirk, C., Harpold, V. S., Li, X., & Car- rière, Y. (2010). Suppressing resistance to BT cotton with sterile insect releases. Nature Biotechnol- ogy, 28(12), 1304–1307. https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt.1704 REFERENCES AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST

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