William Thomas Hawks, known as Bill Hawks (born November 22, 1944 near

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

), is an American politician, former civil servant, agricultural businessman, and founder and CEO of AgWorks Solutions, LLC.

Early life and education

Hawks was born on November 22, 1944 near

Oxford, Mississippi Oxford is a city and college town in the U.S. state of Mississippi. Oxford lies 75 miles (121 km) south-southeast of Memphis, Tennessee, and is the county seat of Lafayette County. Founded in 1837, it was named after the British city of Oxf ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Science (1968) and Master of Science (1970) in Agricultural Economics from

Mississippi State University Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Unive ...

. Hawks served in the

United States Army Reserve The United States Army Reserve (USAR) is a Military reserve force, reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the Army element of the reserve components of the United States Armed F ...

from 1968 to 1970 where he became a corporal, the

Mississippi Army National Guard The Mississippi Army National Guard is the Army National Guard component of the Mississippi National Guard. It was originally formed in 1798. It is a component of the United States Army and the United States National Guard. It is managed by the ...

from 1970 to 1972 where he became a sergeant and the

Tennessee Air National Guard The Tennessee Air National Guard (TN ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Tennessee, United States of America. It is, along with the Tennessee Army National Guard, an element of the Tennessee National Guard. As state militia units, the units ...

from 1972 until 1980 where he became a

technical sergeant Technical sergeant is the name of two current and two former enlisted ranks in the United States Armed Forces, as well as in the U.S. Civil Air Patrol. Outside the United States, it is used only by the Philippine Army, Philippine Air Force and th ...

."Questionnaire for United States Department of Agriculture Nominees: Biographical Information (Public)", ''Nomination Hearing for William T. Hawks and Eric M. Bost'', Senate Hearing 107-435, Hearing Before the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry,

107th United States Congress The 107th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3 ...

, First Session, May 16, 2001,

United States Government Printing Office The United States Government Publishing Office (USGPO or GPO; formerly the United States Government Printing Office) is an agency of the legislative branch of the United States Federal government. The office produces and distributes information ...

, Washington, DC, 2002, page 36.

Career

Hawks started farming after finishing graduate school by owning and operating a dairy in DeSoto County in northwestern Mississippi. In the early 1970s, he began to lease land from neighbors to get started in a row crop operation Hawks was the managing partner of Hawks Farming, which farmed approximately 12,000 acres of land in three counties in northern Mississippi. This operation consisted of soybeans, double-cropped winter wheat, corn, cotton, and cattle. In the late-1980s, Hawks was a part owner in a professional farm management company, Sunbelt Land and Timber Company. During the early 1990s, Hawks owned and managed Northwest Mississippi Flying Service, an agricultural aerial application service, and owned and operated a recreational airport. The Hawks family also owned DeSoto East, a residential development company. In December 1994, Hawks was elected to the

Mississippi State Senate The Mississippi Senate is the upper house of the Mississippi Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The Senate, along with the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, convenes at the Mississippi State Capitol ...

, representing DeSoto County. During his five years as a state senator, he was a leader on the committees with jurisdiction over agriculture and the environment. In 1999, he was the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

nominee for

Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi The lieutenant governor of Mississippi is the second-highest ranking executive officer in Mississippi, below the governor of Mississippi. The office of lieutenant governor was established when Mississippi became a state, abolished for a few decade ...

. On May 24, 2001, during the

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

administration, Hawks was sworn in as the

Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs The Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs is a high-ranking position within the United States Department of Agriculture that supervises policy development and day-to-day operations of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, ...

United States Secretary of Agriculture The United States secretary of agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments. The department includes several organi ...

Ann Veneman Ann Margaret Veneman (born June 29, 1949) is an American attorney who served as the fifth executive director of UNICEF from 2005 to 2010. She previously served as the 27th United States Secretary of Agriculture from 2001 to 2005, and was the firs ...

. Hawks resigned from the USDA position in June 2005. In January 2006, Hawks formed AgWorks Solutions, a

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

consulting and government relations firm that specializes in animal health and agriculture-related trade. Since 2010, Hawks has been a member of the American Lumber Standards Board of Review and has served as Chairman since 2015. In 2014, Hawks received the United States Animal Health Association Medal of Distinction. Throughout his career, he has been active in many agricultural boards and committees such as

American Farm Bureau Federation The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), also known as Farm Bureau Insurance and Farm Bureau Inc. but more commonly just the Farm Bureau (FB), is a United States-based insurance company and lobbying group that represents the American agri ...

American Soybean Association The American Soybean Association (ASA) is an association of 21,000 American soybean producers. John Heisdorffer is the 2018 President of the Association. Stephen Censky worked for ASA for 23 years, 21 of those as CEO, and then left to become Uni ...

, and the

National Corn Growers Association The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) is an association that represents and advocates for the interests of corn growers in the United States. It is distinct from the American Corn Growers Association, a competing organization set up in 198 ...

Personal life

He has three children and is married to the former Robin Desha Lucas.

References

External links

USDA biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hawks, Bill 1944 births Living people Mississippi National Guard personnel Republican Party Mississippi state senators Mississippi State University alumni People from Oxford, Mississippi People from DeSoto County, Mississippi Farmers from Mississippi American real estate businesspeople Businesspeople from Mississippi Tennessee National Guard personnel United States Air Force non-commissioned officers United States Army non-commissioned officers United States Army reservists United States Under Secretaries of Agriculture