Rodney Cravens

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About Rodney

My wife, Jenna, our three children, Lucy, Henry, Grady and I reside on the family farm that was purchased by my great-grandfather in 1918. I grew up on a dairy farm a mile down the road where I developed a passion for agriculture and cattle. My Christian faith and sports, especially basketball and baseball, played a huge role in my formative years. After high school I attended College of the Ozarks, majoring in physical education, and upon graduation I taught social studies and coached a variety of sports for 9 years in my hometown of Hartville. I am currently the elementary principal at Hartville School District in south-central Missouri and have served in that position since 2013.

My father, Joel, and I have run commercial beef cattle together since he retired from the dairy in 2013. Steve and Judy Freeman have been a huge influence on our operation. We have gained invaluable knowledge from them regarding soil health, grazing practices, cattle adaptability, and profitability. They are the reason we began using South Poll bulls and since 2014 we have been "breeding up" using fullblood bulls. We currently run approximately 150 cows and are continually working to improve our genetics. I have a passion for pedigrees and improving genetics through proper selection. We have begun registering our females and in the future I hope to be able to provide the commercial cattlemen with bulls and females that work in a low-input, grass only environment.