Crystal Jauer stands in a cornfield near the farm she grew up on and now works at east of Hinton. Jauer, on the executive board of Iowa Women in Agriculture, advocates for women in farming and works to connect them with information they need to succeed. [Click to enlarge]

Crystal Jauer, a mother of two, is working back on the same rural Hinton farm she grew up on.

And she's loving it.

"I like the interactions with people, the variety, and the farming lifestyle -- having the kids grow up with the family values," she said.

Jauer, who advocates for women in farming with nonprofit group Iowa Women in Agriculture, enjoys having her daughters tag along with her and her husband Jeremiah whether they're fixing fence, pulling weeds or riding in the tractor.

She can't predict whether her two girls will go into the agriculture -- she originally had no intention of going into agriculture herself -- but there are some things she hopes to teach them while they grow up.

"The biggest thing is confidence and self-esteem. You can do what you set your mind to," she said. "And hard work always pays off."

That same philosophy is what compelled Jauer to say yes when she got a call asking her to join the Iowa Women in Agriculture's representative board more than a year ago.

"The group's purpose is to be a leading advocate for women in agriculture," she said, explaining that the non-profit organization aims to connect women with information and support they need to succeed.

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"This is a place where they can have questions answered," she said. "This is a place they can feel that they're not discriminated against because they didn't know something."

Discrimination against women in agriculture isn't as bad today as it was, Jauer said, but it still can be a factor.

"We want to help women become an equal player in their operations," she said.

According to a 2004 study, nearly half of the farmland in Iowa is owned or co-owned by women.

For some, Jauer said, if their husband dies and leaves them in charge, actually running the farm can be a foreign idea to them.

"Some women grew up in a generation that was never part of it -- they made lunch, ran errands -- they were never part of the decision making," Jauer explained.

Other women, like herself, are choosing to go into agriculture and want to stay informed.

"We're a group for any woman with any interest in the agriculture industry, any interest in learning more, for any woman that's part of an operation," Jauer said. "I think it applies to a lot of women."

Iowa Women in Agriculture offers information on everything from grain contracts to crop insurance. A big topic for the group is the marketing side of farming.

"The markets are so volatile right now, and the markets are the foundation of where our income comes from," Jauer said. "We want to help women know the value of their land and what they produce."

The group also gives women the chance have direct questions answered by experts in the field related to the question.

On the group's website, www.iowawomeninag.org, a link to "Networking Education Team" allows people to click on one of 20 topics ranging from finance to dairy to grain to government programs. Then they can anonymously type their question, which will be emailed to six experts in that field. Those experts will email back a response to the original question.

Jauer, who now wears many hats including taking care of records for her family's farm, working as a crop insurance agent, running combines in the fall and helping with the family custom spraying and seed sales businesses, said that kind of assistance is what originally drew her into agriculture.

When she graduated from high school she had no intention of going into the field. Her dad suggested she try some ag classes at Kirkwood Community College. She liked them.

"I think it was the people, the one-on-one help," she said.

Now she's one of the go-to people for other women. Serving on the executive board of Iowa Women in Agriculture, Jauer helps connect women with the information they need to make good decisions. The mother of two is not only a teacher for her daughters, but also for women across Iowa.

"I'm around this every day," she said, sitting at the office building at her home farm site. "But what's common knowledge to me is really not out there for everyone. That's what has kept me tucked into this organization."

Iowa Women in Agriculture is hosting its Second Annual Women's Conference at the end of this month in Riverside. The conference runs July 30-31 and hits topics including "Basic Marketing: Learning the Language," "Ethanol: Fuel, Food, Future" and "Landowner/Tenant, Flexible Cash Rent: The Best of Both Worlds."

Last year, Jauer said, one man even attended the conference.

"He said he'd rather learn in this setting than any other one," she said.

For more information, or to register, visit www.iowawomeninag.org.