Andrew Wilson, GCSAA Class A director of agronomy at Bethpage State Park Golf Course , Jill Seymour, CGCS, superintendent at Charleston Springs Golf Course, GCSAA past president Mark Jordan, CGCS and Dallas Cooks, Ph.D. student in agricultural and extension education at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, were panelists at the Leading Turf Together Power Hour at the 2026 GCSAA Conference and Trade Show in Orlando. The panel was moderated by Brandon Bell, talent and culture lead for Syngenta in North America. Photo by Tyler Stover
What might the next 100 years of turfgrass leadership look like?
At Wednesday afternoon’s Leading Turf Together power hour, panelists and attendees discussed the future of the turfgrass workforce, including crucial questions of recruitment and accessibility.
Dallas Cooks is a Ph.D. student in agricultural and extension education at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University who came to a passion in agriculture as an elementary school student in Augusta, Georgia, where her class took regular field trips to local golf courses. That early access, she said, was key to informing her professional journey.
“Exposure is the biggest piece,” Cooks said. “Sometimes students have one goal they want to reach, but don’t see all the different avenues that can get to the same goal. I worked at the Masters in high school. I didn’t think I’d be sitting here today because of that experience.”
In addition to Cooks, the panel included GCSAA past president Mark Jordan, CGCS; Jill Seymour, CGCS, superintendent at Charleston Springs Golf Course in Lincroft, NJ; and Andrew Wilson, GCSAA Class A director of agronomy at Bethpage State Park Golf Course in Farmingdale, NY. The panel, sponsored by Syngenta, was introduced by Stephanie Schwenke, marketing manager at Syngenta, and moderated by Brandon Bell, Syngenta’s talent and culture lead for North America.
“Excellence in turf management comes from uniting diverse experiences and talents,” Schwenke said in her opening remarks. “Shaping the future of this industry requires all of us working side by side united in purpose.”
Bell agreed, noting that recognizing past successes over the last century of the turfgrass management profession is key to directing where the field heads next.
“We would be remiss if we didn’t talk about the roots and celebrate them as they inform the present and hopefully the future,” Bell said. “What we’re going to do is widen the aperture a bit and think about not just what people look like, or where they’re from, but how they think and what they bring to the economy of ideas.”
To that end, Jordan noted the GCSAA Centennial Experience on the Trade Show Floor just two floors down from where the panelists sat. He said the exhibit gave him inspiration in several different directions — from its foundation to its mindset of growth and innovation.
“The most astonishing point I picked up was that we’ve changed as an industry, but we’ve stayed the same, stayed true to the same elements Col. John Morley introduced,” Jordan said. “I look forward to seeing this industry grow.”
Seymour said that as technology changes, along with hiring practices and expectations from golfers, it’s important turfgrass professionals (both the old hands and the up-and-comers) remember the fundamentals.
“Technology is great, but it can go sideways,” she said. “Kids coming out of school now need to know there are old school ways that work. It’s good to get out of our head sometimes and remember that we’re just farming grass in the end.”
Wilson says he’s looking for curiosity and discipline in his employees, wherever they come to him from.
“The skills we want are someone coachable, reliable, with a good attitude,” Wilson said. “You’re looking for that spark, whether it turns into a love for agriculture or something else.”