Instructor
Instructor
Chad McElvany is Head of Forestry Operations-North America at Molpus Woodlands Group, which has been part of the Gresham House group since June 2026.
Chad has been with Molpus Woodlands Group since March 2002 and has accumulated more than two decades of experience in timberland operations and forest management. He assumed the role of Chief Operating Officer in March 2025, where he was responsible for the day-to-day management of Molpus’s U.S. operations, including budgetary and operational oversight, operational analytics, and organizational planning and structure. Prior to being named COO, Chad served as Deputy Chief Operating Officer for two years, helping lead strategic initiatives and operational improvements across the organization. He was Operations Director and Property Manager for the U.S. Northwest Region from 2012 to 2023. Early in his career at Molpus, Chad served in a variety of operational forestry roles throughout the southern U.S., including Harvesting Manager, Division Forester, and Inventory Manager.
A 1998 graduate of Stephen F. Austin State University, Chad earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry with a minor in Biology. He remains actively engaged in the forestry profession and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Mississippi Forestry Association.
Instructor
Walt Thompson is a Tax Manager with more than five years of public accounting experience. He provides tax compliance, consulting, and planning services to a broad range of clients. Walt holds a Bachelor of Accountancy and a Master of Taxation from the University of Mississippi and is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA).
Instructor
Michael is a retired managing director formerly with ForvisMazars in Jackson, MS and now with Stevens Hill, PLLC. He served as the office industry leader for the commercial services group and provided tax compliance and consulting services for a wide variety of clients. He primarily served clients in the real estate and timber industries. He also served clients in the manufacturing industry as well as high-wealth individuals. Michael has significant experience in real estate investment trust taxation, partnership taxation, private equity transactions, and state & local tax.
Michael is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi with a BSBA degree in Accounting and an MBA. He is also a former member of the Accounting Advisory Board at USM.
Michael has served on the Board of Make-A-Wish Mississippi for over 5 years and currently serves as the Board Chair.
Instructor
Instructor
Kade Clowers is the Forest Stewardship Coordinator for the Mississippi Forestry Commission, where he manages the agency's cost-share programs for private landowners. He has been with the Commission for 12 years, beginning his career as a Forester Trainee in Attala County before serving in Oktibbeha and Winston counties.
Kade earned a bachelor's degree in forestry management from Mississippi State University. Throughout his career, he has gained extensive experience in forest management, 16th Section land management, and wildfire protection, providing him with a well-rounded perspective on Mississippi's forestry programs.
In addition to his stewardship responsibilities, Kade serves on the Mississippi Forestry Commission's Incident Management Team (IMT), where he works as a dispatcher and status check-in officer during wildfire incidents. He has also deployed on western wildfire assignments, serving as both a squad boss and sawyer.
This conference covers special tax rules and tax accounting methods pertaining to agricultural and farming activities and any tax law changes that affect farmers. Complete agenda forthcoming.
MS Dept of Agriculture & Commerce