Christian Michael Dalton
Christian is the son of Rita Dalton. Originally, he lived in Sneedville, Tennessee, where he graduated from Hancock County High School. While at HCHS, he was an active member of student government, 4-H and FFA. In his senior year, he served as the Student Council President, 4-H All-Stars Upper 8 Scout, Tennessee State 4-H Council Senior Representative, and FFA Chapter Vice President.
After high school, he attended the Herbert College of Agriculture at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communications. At UTK, Christian was an active member of Collegiate 4-H and FFA, Block and Bridle Club, and the Animal Science Arena Crew. During his senior year, he served as a Herbert College Ambassador.
He received a master’s degree in animal science from the Herbert College of Agriculture at UTK. While there, Christian attained his degree via an assistantship to serve as the manager of the Brehm Animal Science Arena, where he oversaw the care of livestock animals being housed on campus and managing undergraduate workers. His thesis The Predictive Capability of Vaginal Cytokine Profile on Pregnancy Status of Dairy Cows evaluated the ability to diagnose pregnancy status in cows 14 days earlier than the industry standards at that time by using cattle immune profiles.
During his last year of graduate school, Christian was offered a role in the University of Tennessee’s Cooperative Extension service to serve as an Extension 4-H Agent in Greene County, Tennessee. In this position, he worked to finish his master’s while also building a county 4-H program in Greeneville that highlights Agriculture, S.T.E.M., and Professional/Personal Development for students in grades 4-12. He was awarded the George S. Foster Outstanding Young Agent Award for his efforts in county extension work. In 2025, he was named the County Director of Extension, where he serves as the leadership for UT’s 8 employees in the Greeneville office. He also serves as a liaison to the Greene County Government in this role.
Christian’s professional interests include the development of programs to promote agriculture to youth while creating new opportunities for students to learn or experience new things. He often helps promote and support his staffs’ goals, which center around the UT Extension Mission to provide education on topics such as Livestock, Forages, Horticulture and Gardening, Family and Consumer Sciences, Physical and Mental Well-Being, and positive youth development. He enjoys working with the Herbert College of Agriculture as a Young Alumni Ambassador, where he helps ensure current and future Vols get the same great benefit that he did from his time at UTK.
Away from work, Christian enjoys spending time at home with his wife, Emily, as they work to rebuild his family farm in Hancock County, Tennessee.
