The Certified Cotton Gin Staff

Samuel Jackson provides two staff members to manage the program. Neil Turner serves as the Program Director and Casey Newsom serves as the Assistant Director. Together they are responsible for the day-to-day activity, marketing strategy, developing communication materials and responding to inquiries.

As the program sponsor, Samuel Jackson also lends support from the rest of its staff on a as needed basis. They lend a wide assortment of skills and technical expertise that can be called on as needed by the demands of the program.

Neil Turner, Director

Neil earned a Bachelors of Science in Agricultural Engineering from Texas A&M University. Upon graduation he was hired by Samuel Jackson and began his career in the cotton industry. His background includes extensive field work, product development and marketing. Over the course of his career he visited several hundreds of gins spread over five continents, helping them improve operating efficiency and protect fiber quality.

Today, Neil calls on that experience in his role as Director of the Certified Cotton Gin Program. His office is located near Dallas, Texas. He is married and has two daughters.

"As a young man entering the cotton industry, I was fortunate to have some very kind people give me an opportunity to learn from and work with to improve their gins. The majority of the industry does not realize how much effort some select gins put into delivering a quality bale. I consider it an honor to help promote the recognition and value of the gins that adhere to the good ginning practices advocated by the Certified Cotton Gin Program."
- Neil Turner

neil@certifiedcotton.com

Casey Newsom, Operations Director

Casey graduated from Mississippi State University with Bachelors of Science degrees in Industrial Technology and Agriculture Engineering Technology and Business. It was part of his curriculum requirements that initially brought him to Samuel Jackson as part of their Internship Program. During his internship, he traveled to gins across the entire U.S. Cotton Belt providing technical assistance with their cotton conditioning equipment. As a full-time employee, he continues to travel working with gins on employee training, plant efficiency improvements, and ultimately helping gins to produce a higher quality bale.

Casey visits hundreds of gins per year giving him a perspective that can only be attained through direct relationships with each operation. He uses this perspective as a guide in his daily activities as Operations Director of the Program. He and his wife live in Lubbock, TX.  

"It's exciting to be a part of a program with such optimism for our industry. I am honored to be affiliated with some great people in our industry and enjoy being a positive voice for their efforts."
- Casey Newsom