May 11, 2026
Contact: Janese Heavin, heavinj@missouri.edu
Photos courtesy of Charlie Lewis
Charlie Lewis is driven by land and the possibilities it holds. He works it, questions it and studies it, searching for new ways to grow food while also protecting the soil that nurtures it.
This weekend, Lewis graduates from the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources with a degree in environmental sciences, an emphasis in land and soil and a determination to bridge conversations between farmers, policymakers and natural resource managers.
It will take further research into best practices, but ultimately, he wants various stakeholders to understand how their decisions impact one another to strengthen connections and find practical, lasting solutions.
“I want to continue to be involved in research because there’s a lot more we need to find out before we can start prescribing things for people to do,” he said. “Agriculture is so important and has such a profound impact on the environment. I want to use what I’ve learned to support both.”
Now, he’s heading west to Montana State University for graduate school to sharpen those goals.
Charlie Lewis at an alumni event with Truman the Tiger.
Breaking ground
Lewis grew up on a farm near Ashland, Missouri, where his family raises Angus and Hereford cattle, Tennessee Walking Horses, hunting dogs and quail. For him, agriculture has always been a way of life, but his experiences in FFA in high school, including competing on the soil judging team, confirmed his passion.
“I fell in love with all things soil and all things earthy,” he said. “I found a community through FFA in high school and being surrounded by farmers my whole life. It also showed me there is room for improvement. Farmers are doing important work — feeding all of us — but they’re not getting represented enough. I want to support them while also promoting best land management practices.”
When it came time to choose a college, Lewis had a team of Tigers rooting for Mizzou. His dad, Jay Lewis, BS ’95, and mom, Carla Lewis, BS Ed ’97, M Ed’05, are alumni, as is his sister, Ginny, BHS ’22. His grandmother, Carrol Lewis, once worked in the CAFNR dean’s office.
“I grew up going to football games and wearing black and gold,” he said.
At Mizzou, Lewis found a campus where learning happens both in and outside of the classroom.
A freshman introduction to environmental sciences class included field trips to adjacent industries such as the power plant and University of Missouri Research Reactor. Last semester, he took a forest ecology course that included seven weeks of soil study at one of Mizzou’s research farms.
“I loved the hands-on experiences,” he said. “Any lab where I got to be outside was my favorite.”
Beyond the classroom, he stayed involved with FFA, representing Mizzou at two national conventions. He also stepped into leadership roles as a CAFNR ambassador, a member of the Mizzou Collegiate Farm Bureau and a student representative on the CAFNR Alumni Board.
Through Farm Bureau, he’s learned about the policy side of the agricultural industry, visiting the Missouri Farm Bureau offices in Jefferson City and the national bureau in Washington, D.C. This spring, he attended the American Farm Bureau’s Young Farmers and Ranchers Leadership Conference in Portland, Oregon, the first time Mizzou’s chapter has participated in the event.
Working the soil
Last summer, Lewis’s future came into focus through Oklahoma State University’s Rural Renewal Initiative, part of the National Science Foundation’s Research Experiences for Undergraduates program.
After a week of training in Stillwater, he headed to Tipton, Oklahoma, where he studied nitrate levels in soil and traced how those pollutants find their way into drinking water.
The experience extended into the community. He volunteered at local events, painted churches and helped with a 4-H camp.
“This is exactly the type of work I want to do: research, rebuilding small communities and working with farmers,” he said.
At Montana State University, Lewis will be a graduate research assistant focused on studying nitrogen fixation in the soil through dry bean and legume production.
It’s work he hopes leads to a career in research, be it in academia, government or industry.
“I’ve been telling my friends lately that I have three main goals,” Lewis said. “To help as many people as possible — and you do that through research; to spend as much time with friends and family as possible; and to see as many places as I can.”
