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From the
Dean
Colleagues,
Twice in March I had the opportunity to witness some of Purdue Agriculture’s citizen advocates in action in Washington D.C., meeting with their Congressional representatives and talking about what Agriculture research, teaching and Extension means to them in a very personal way. These people don’t get paid for the time they spend advocating for Purdue Agriculture. They do it because they believe in and support the work we do. And the fact that their advocacy comes from their personal connection to Purdue strengthens the impact their messages have with our state and national leaders. The connection to Purdue Agriculture for some is their or their children’s involvement in 4-H. Some are Agriculture alumni. Some are connected through membership on county Extension boards. Some have taken advantage of Purdue Agriculture resources to help them start a business, find locally-grown food markets, help their community make land use decisions, or get help to deal with disasters—natural and man-made. Some have put Purdue Agriculture agronomic research to work on their farms, or used insights about the direction of the agricultural markets to guide their decisions. Every one of them has their own unique relationship with us. Talking to these people—and many others around Indiana—and hearing their stories always serves to remind me that we do make a difference by being the source of unbiased, science-based information to help people to improve their lives and their communities. We should always be looking for ways to communicate our science and connect Purdue Agriculture to those we serve. Is our web presence as informative and complete as it can be? Are we offering programming that is relevant, timely, educational and useful? Is our research focused on problems important to our stakeholders, broadly defined? Are we getting the word out about the purposeful research we do? The basic question is what can we do to best serve those looking to us as a partner they can trust? I realize it takes a lot of energy to ask questions like this when we feel like we are doing all we can do. But, asking these questions may also point out activities that have served their purpose, freeing up time and energy for new activities better aligned with the issues of the day. Many of you have experienced the feelings I did with our advocates in Washington, DC. The thrill of knowing you have made a difference, and the realization that the need for what you do, and will do, has never been greater. Thanks to all of you for what you will do that our citizen advocates will be talking about in future trips to Washington.
All the best,
News around Purdue Agriculture
Foster named head of Department of Agricultural Economics
Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090323FosterAgEcon.html Extension names new ANR Director
Dr. Mintert is a native of Missouri where he grew up on a corn/soybean farm near St. Louis. He earned Bachelor’s/Master’s degrees in Agricultural Economics at Purdue University followed by a Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics at the University of Missouri. He joined the faculty at Kansas State University in 1986 and currently serves as Professor, Extension State Leader and Extension Livestock Marketing Economist. Dr. Mintert has established an outstanding record of Extension, research and teaching at KSU and I am thrilled that he will be bringing that record to Purdue Extension. "As the search committee visited with Extension professionals at Kansas State University, it became clear that Dr. Mintert’s commitments to excellence in Extension programming and his collaboration with Extension Educators are highly valued," says Dr. Hibberd. "A great example of his work is the Ag Manager website (www.agmanager.info) that he developed. I am very enthused to bring a seasoned Extension professional to this important leadership role in our organization."
Craig Beyrouty to be new Colorado State University Dean of College of Agricultural Sciences
Faculty and A/P Staff PromotionsCongratulations to the faculty and administrative and professional staff members who have been advanced in rank beginning with the next fiscal year. Faculty Promotions From Associate to Professor From Assistant to Associate From Associate Clinical/Professional Professor to Clinical/Professional Professor Adjunct Promotions Tenure Only Administrative/Professional Staff Promotions To Rank 6 To Rank 5 To Rank 4
Ag Communications Head search committee set Dean Jay Akridge has named the committee to conduct the search for the next head of the Agricultural Communications department. The committee will begin work in mid-April to find the successor to Chris Sigurdson, who is now Purdue's Assistant Vice President for External Relations. The search committee members are: Dale Whittaker, Committee Chair, Associate Dean and Director of Academic Programs
Spring Fest offers fun, educational activities for entire family
Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090408KirkpatrickSpringfest.html
Open house shows off Hageman Center
Professors develop climate and climate change curriculum
Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090325ShepardsonClimate.html
Chip can make sure safe food products aren't unduly discarded
Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/hp/BhuniaBiochips.html Study shows how glaciers affected deer evolution Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090326RhodesMuleDeer.html
Mice and men should have more in common in clinical trials
Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090330GarnerMice.html
Honors and Awards
Four College of Agriculture faculty members have been named University Faculty Scholars: Dr. Lisa Mauer, Food Science; Dr. Andrew DeWoody, Forestry & Natural Resources; Dr. Marshall Porterfield, Agricultural and Biological Engineering; and Dr. Greg Hunt, Entomology. Select associate and full professors who have been tenured within the last five years are awarded this distinction in recognition of their scholarship. Faculty scholars, nominated by committees from their academic areas and approved by the provost, receive additional funding to support their research. The program was created in 1998.
Congratulations to Tom Turpin, Melissa Shepson, Gary Bennett and their colleagues Jos Holman, Michele Farley and Rob Jackson who won the “Educational Video for Youth” award for their production of “Catch the Reading Bug”. The award was presented by the Board Certified Entomologists of Mid-America as one of the 2009 Entomology Educational Project Awards at the North Central Branch annual meeting of the Entomological Society of America in St. Louis, MO. The video was used to introduce young people to entomological ideas and arthropods in a fun way through the summer reading program. DVDs of the video were distributed by the Indiana Pest Management Association and it was available for download on the Indiana Library website. The video was widely used in Indiana and other states. Student News
Students turn corn, soy into cupcake wrappers, cork, toilet paper
Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090323TaoCornSoyContest.html Ag student leadership dynasty continues
Robert Hays, a sophomore YDAE major, was elected as the College of Agriculture's student government senator.
Ag Ambassadors welcome new membersPurdue's Ag Ambassadors will include nine new faces in the coming year. Seventeen students were interviewed for the coveted Ag Ambassador team and the following students were chosen: Emily Diekman – An Sci Purdue Ag Ambassadors are student volunteers who represent the College of Agriculture in a variety of ways. They Lead campus tours for parents, visitors, and prospective students; Give presentations about careers in agriculture, and college life; Represent the College of Agriculture at information fairs; and Host alumni and dignitaries at school and University events. Tracie Egger, Assistant Director of Academic Programs for Recruitment and Leadership Development, leads the group.
Animal Sciences team wins at North American Intercollegiate Dairy Challenge
The team coached by Dr. Mike Schutz and Dr. Tamilee Nennich consisted of Austin Deardorff, Macy, Ind.; Kurt Fischer, Attica, Ind.; Megan Kron, Evansville, Ind.; and Jared Roberts, Westfield, Ind. The Purdue team combed through cow and farm management data, as well as financial records, then conducted an on-site evaluation. They also interviewed the farm owner. After identifying opportunities to increase efficiency and profitability for the herd owner, the team presented its findings to a judging panel comprised of a dairy business owner and four experts in dairy nutrition, herd health, reproduction, and financial management. Teams were judged on their analysis of the operation, recommendations, and overall presentation. Dairy Challenge was designed by professionals from the allied dairy industry and university educators to bring classroom training to life in the real world for students preparing for dairy careers.
University News
Purdue responds to fiscal challengesPurdue University officials on April 1 announced there will be no salary increases as part of the next fiscal year budget that begins in July. Earlier this year, the university administration ordered a 2 percent cut from the general budget fund and other cost-saving measures for the coming year. "Indiana families are facing enormous pressures, and so is higher education," said Purdue President France A. Córdova. "Hard times mean we must work harder and smarter to preserve the high-quality education we offer and its value for students and their families. At the same time, we need to ensure the vitality of our work force of dedicated faculty and staff. A policy that holds the line on salary increases will help us do that. Everyone is being asked to share the burden." Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090401CordovaBudget.html Runners, walkers and volunteers sought for Purdue Cancer Center ChallengeThe Purdue Cancer Center Challenge is drawing near with another way to help defeat cancer. The 5K run/walk will start at 8:30 a.m. April 18 outside Ross-Ade Stadium. Runners, walkers, volunteers and sleepers — yes, sleepers — are wanted. One option is to "sleep in" on Saturday morning, i.e., participate in spirit and in donating without doing the route. Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/insidepurdue/2009/090407_CancerCenter.html Eligibility verification package required to insure dependentsFaculty and staff who cover dependents on their Purdue insurance need to pay special attention to a Dependent Eligibility Verification Package that they will receive at home in April. Coverage on dependents will be dropped if the required information and verification documents are not received by May 13. Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/insidepurdue/2009/090406_dependent-verification.html Purdue, Rutgers will lead $30 million U.S. homeland security research centerPurdue and Rutgers universities will co-lead an international research and education group in a six-year, $30 million U.S. Department of Homeland Security center to create methods and tools to analyze and manage vast amounts of information for all mission areas of homeland security. The agency's new Center of Excellence in Command, Control and Interoperability will comprise the Purdue and Rutgers teams. Both will contribute to developing new methods to aid homeland security personnel in preparing for, preventing, detection of, response to and recovery from terrorist attacks as well as natural and manmade disasters. Full story: http://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009a/090402EbertHomelandSecurity.html
Mark your calendar
April 18 & 19: Spring Fest on campus from 10 am – 4 pm on Saturday and Sunday. College of Agriculture and other units from across campus present this educational event. Spring Fest information on the web: http://www.extension.purdue.edu/sfest/ April 19: Agriculture Awards Reception in Stewart Center Room 302/306 at 2:00 p.m. Contact Kelly Lough at 494-3150 for more information. April 22-23: Ag Council Pancake Breakfast from 10 p.m. – 2 a.m. Contact Tracie Egger at 494-8470 for more information. May 15: TEAM Award Presentation and Reception from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. in the Deans Auditorium and Gallery of Pfendler Hall. Contact Debbie Claeys at 496-7894 for more information. May 16: College of Agriculture Commencement reception in the Ross-Ade Pavilion from 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. RSVP is required to Debby Bible at debby@purdue.edu. Contact Debby Bible at 494-8593 for more information. May 16: Commencement exercises for College of Agriculture graduates at 2:30 p.m. in the Elliott Hall of Music. Tickets are required. Call 494-6157 for more information. June 10-12: 4-H Science Workshops on campus. Contact the 4-H Department at 494-8435 for more information. June 15-17: Indiana FFA State Convention on campus. Contact Brian Buchanan at 317-878-4178 for more information. June 22-24: 4-H Round-Up on campus. Contact the 4-H Department at 494-8435 for more information.
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