Jessica Dammers-Hemphill, M.S.

Raised in Stephenville, Texas, Jessica Hemphill grew up with roots in agriculture. She maintained her ties to agriculture through her grandparents, 4-H, and FFA. Hemphill was the type to jump into every event possible. Through livestock showing, judging, and the Pasture to Packer Program, she developed an appreciation for the agricultural industry and a curiosity about how it is communicated to the public, a combination that now defines her career.

Today, Hemphill and her husband co-own and operate a cow-calf and direct-to-consumer beef business, which allows her to understand agriculture from a production and communications standpoint. Through these experiences she is equipped to translate complex agriscience topics for diverse audiences.  

Hemphill has a love for West Texas and its agricultural community, which is what drew her to Texas Tech University. After visiting Texas Tech through high school endeavors and livestock judging camps, she got connected with the Department of Agricultural Education and Communications and quickly realized agricultural communications was the right fit for her interests and strengths. She earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agricultural communications from the department. As a graduate student, Hemphill was funded through the Center for Agriscience Communications at Texas Tech (CATT) to conduct beef consumer communication research utilizing audience segmentation strategies. Her graduate work earned national and regional recognition such as Outstanding Manuscript Western Region American Association for Agricultural Education (AAAE; 2024), Outstanding Research Poster Western Region AAAE, and Distinguished Manuscript National AAAE (2024), deepening her interest in social science research.

In her current role as Communications and Research Project Manager for CATT, Hemphill contributes to a range of projects. One of her primary projects is in collaboration with the Texas Produced Water Consortium (TxPWC), where she is exploring stakeholder and public perceptions using social media listening tools and Q-sort methodologies. Hemphill’s work also includes some small-scale projects such as social media campaigns and communication efforts for organizations affiliated with TTU. Hemphill integrates a variety of qualitative and quantitative tools to conduct her research. She has experience in using stakeholder interviews, Q-Sort methodologies, Sprout Social, and Meta Business Suite to inform develop data-informed communication strategies.   
 
As Communications and Research Project Manager for CATT, Hemphill is excited to expand CATT’s partnerships and impact. She is passionate about bridging agriculture and the public across Texas Tech and the greater West Texas community.