MADISON, Wis.— For more than 70 years, a special group of Wisconsin women have represented our state's agriculture industry through the Alice in Dairyland program.

The 73rd Alice in Dairyland, Julia Nunes, joins Alyson Bruner to trace the history of the program.

The program started as a way to promote Wisconsin's dairy industry, then expanded to the state's entire agriculture industry, with events at county fairs, school classrooms and now, over video chats.

The very first Alice was Margaret McGuire from Highland, Wisconsin. In 1948, Margaret was selected to host a month-long centennial exposition at the Wisconsin state fair park and tour the United States as an ambassador for Wisconsin's dairy industry.

The role changed in 1952, when it became a one-year full-time contract employee of the Department of Agriculture and was officially made a representative of all Wisconsin agricultural products. While serving as the 5^th Alice in Dairyland, Beverly Ann Steffan from Appleton brought boxes of cheese to Hollywood stars, served samples at grocery stores, and rode in the 1953 Rose Parade.

The Alices of the 90s began to travel the world. During her tenure in 1991, Renea Troeller from Rubicon joined a trade mission to Japan to promote Wisconsin beef and Christmas trees.

Two years later, Angela Corbin from Bellevile traveled overseas and was made governor for a day in Chiba prefecture during a trade mission to Japan.

Angela Rule of Mineral Point served as the 46th Alice in Dairyland in 1994. She says her favorite memory of that year was "time spent with the producers and the children." She went on to become the vice-chancellor of enrollment and student success at UW-Platteville.

Julia Nunes of Chippewa Falls was named the 73rd Alice in Dairyland in 2020, at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. The role drastically changed, with Nunes conducting most of her interview virtually and spending less time on farms and in classrooms.

In partnership with Dairy Farmers of Wiscosnin, Nunes conducted a virtual tour of her family's registered Holstein dairy farm, a tour that was viewed by students statewide.

Due to the circumstance around the pandemic, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection decied in January 2021 to cancel the 2021 Alice in Dairyland finals and allowed Nunes to continue in her current role as Alice in Dairyland until July 15, 2022. Nunes will officially become the 74th Alice in May 2021. You can follow her adventures on Facebook and YouTube.

Applications for the 75th Alice in Dairyland will be made available on Jan. 3, 2022. After being selected at the Dane County finals, the 75th Alice in Dairyland will begin her term on July 5, 2022.