Becoming Alice in Dairyland

Alice in Dairyland is a marketing professional with a 75-year tradition of promoting agriculture in Wisconsin. This is a one-year contractual position with the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). The professional hired will work full-time beginning July 5, 2022 as a spokesperson providing public relations and communication services for DATCP from the Madison headquarters for the contract year.

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The search for the next Alice in Dairyland is a job interview process beginning in January when applications become available. By early February, interested applicants must submit a resume, cover letter, references, and application form to be reviewed by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP).

In order to qualify for an initial interview in mid-February, applicants must demonstrate:

Considerable knowledge of and/or work experience with Wisconsin's agriculture industry
Three or more years of experience, education, or training in communications, marketing, education, or public relations
Public speaking experience
Experience planning and executing public relations, marketing, or media campaigns

After individual interviews at DATCP, up to six qualified candidates are asked to move on to the next step in the process. In March, these six candidates attend training and professional development seminars at DATCP and are officially announced to the public at a press conference in the county hosting the final interviews. At the training events, candidates receive several assignments to complete prior to the final interviews in May.

In early May, the candidates travel to the host county for the final step in determining the next Alice, a three-day partially public job interview. Over the course of these three days, candidates are evaluated by a three-member interview panel as they demonstrate their ability to do Alice's job via TV interviews, radio interviews, speeches, writing samples, interactions with the public, and agricultural knowledge. The public is invited to attend two evening events, including the selection of the next Alice in Dairyland. Based on the scores of all evaluation criteria, the next Alice in Dairyland is selected and formally announced.

More information about the Alice in Dairyland program can be found here.