By Emmy Powell
Communications Specialist

A Texas A&M University student with a passion for agriculture received Texas Farm Bureau’s (TFB) most prestigious scholarship.

Miranda Skaggs of Brazos County is the recipient of the 2026 S.M. True Jr. Agricultural Scholar Award.

The $25,000 scholarship is presented annually to a deserving student in honor of former TFB President S.M. True Jr.

“President True devoted his life to strengthening Texas agriculture and supporting the next generation of leaders,” TFB President Russell Boening said. “This scholarship honors students who demonstrate a passion for agriculture, a commitment to service and the leadership qualities that President True embodied throughout his life. We congratulate Miranda Skaggs on this achievement and look forward to seeing the impact she will have in the future.”

Skaggs will be a senior this fall at Texas A&M. She is double majoring in agricultural leadership and development and agricultural communications and journalism, with a minor in international agricultural development.

Agriculture has long been a part of Skaggs’ life through her family’s involvement in the industry and her participation in 4-H and FFA.

“I’m the fifth generation in my family to be involved in agriculture, so I don’t take that lightly, and I want to continue pursuing that in the future,” Skaggs said. “I showed livestock growing up for 10 years through 4-H and FFA. We raised and exhibited breeding heifers, market steers and market barrows.”

At Texas A&M, Skaggs is involved in COALS Council as programs committee co-chair, ALEC Aggie Reps secretary, Muster Host, AGLS student recruiter and Saddle & Sirloin Club futurity sponsorship and awards chair.

Skaggs has competed in skillathon and assisted with Texas A&M’s Beef Cattle Short Course.

Her experiences have extended beyond the classroom through study abroad programs in the United Kingdom and Mexico. She’s also held internships with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo and the International Junior Master Gardener Program with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension.

This summer, Skaggs will intern in Washington, D.C., for U.S. Rep. Jake Ellzey.

After graduation, Skaggs plans to pursue a career in agricultural law and policy.

“I would love to be an attorney and work in agricultural law or agricultural policy in the future,” she said. “After learning the legislative system and how we’re able to make an impact on such a large scale and represent farmers and ranchers in such a meaningful way, I knew I wanted to purse law.”

At the center of Skaggs’ future goals is a desire to advocate for agriculture.

“With only 2% of the United States population actively involved in producing the food, fiber, fuel and shelter for our growing world, it’s really important to me, now more than ever, that people have an understanding about the impact of agriculture in their daily lives,” she said.

Skaggs has been involved with Texas Farm Bureau for 10 years. She competed in the Speak Out for Agriculture Challenge, assisted TFB programming through Master Gardeners and is active in Texas A&M Collegiate Farm Bureau.

“The financial support from Texas Farm Bureau will help me continue to be a voice for agriculture in a generation that is often disconnected from such a vital tradition in our country’s past,” Skaggs said.

Scholarship finalists
Four additional finalists for the award were:

  • Elleigh Campbell, District 2, Hale County
  • Audrianna Poage, District 8, Burnet County
  • Carlee Hoffmann, District 10, Bexar County
  • Carlton Bauer, District 12, Caldwell County

Each finalist received a $5,000 scholarship.

Scholarship details
The S.M. True Jr. Agricultural Scholar Award was established in 2014 by the TFB board of directors to recognize True’s commitment to agriculture.

True and his wife, Anna Jean, farmed in Hale County where they grew cotton, wheat, feed grains and raised cattle. True maintained a keen interest in farming and agricultural issues until his death in 2012.

True served as TFB president from 1982 to 1993. He had a passion for improving the lives of farmers and ranchers and believed Farm Bureau was the organization that best represented agriculture because of its grassroots orientation.

To be eligible for the scholarship, the students must have at least 60 hours of college credit and be enrolled in a four-year college or university. To receive the full amount, the recipient must continue to major in agriculture, maintain a satisfactory grade point average and maintain TFB membership for the duration of the scholarship.

To view the full list of 2026 TFB scholarship recipients, visit texasfarmbureau.org/scholarships.