CALS Online and Dean’s Message
June 30, 2025
Dean’s Message
Hello CALS – We have a short week with the Fourth of July on Friday! Enjoy the long weekend. Last week, a number of key things happened in the college, including a celebration at the Northern Research and Demonstration Farm for its 95th anniversary and for the opening of a new building there! This new building with offices, a conference room, a multi-purpose room and a shop is the new “front door” of the college in the north central region of the state, and a very welcome addition to the utility and future of the station…
Top Stories
Retallick Named Next Associate Dean for Personnel and Finance
Mike Retallick, chair of the Department of Agricultural Education and Studies, has been selected to serve as the next associate dean for personnel and finance for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, effective July 1. He will continue serving as department chair, in addition to being the new associate dean, until August, when Jeff Iles, professor of horticulture and previous chair of the Department of Horticulture, will step in as interim chair of the AGEDS department. “I’m humbled by the opportunity to join the dean's leadership team and look forward to working across the college's departments and units to advance the great work we do in teaching, research and Extension and Outreach…,” Retallick said.
Research
More than Half of Rural Counties are ‘Legal Deserts’
A new study finds that a shortage of lawyers is a common problem in rural areas. The research on legal deserts by David Peters, sociology, and undergraduate researchers Emily Meyer and Emma Bartling, both in agricultural and rural policy studies, found more than half of the 2,307 rural counties in the contiguous U.S. have an insufficient number of practicing private attorneys. Their findings were published in the spring edition of the South Dakota Law Review.
ISRC Welcomes Tidal Grow AgriScience as Industry Partner
Tidal Grow AgriScience has joined the Iowa Soybean Research Center as its newest industry partner, and the company will serve on the ISRC’s industry advisory council.
Extension and Outreach
Haying Equipment Demonstration Planned at McNay Farm
ISU Extension and Outreach is hosting a haying equipment demonstration field day on July 8 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the McNay Memorial Research and Demonstration Farm in Chariton. Sessions will showcase different types of haying equipment with demonstrations from industry representatives, followed by an equipment trade show.
Northwest Field Day Includes Weed Resistance Roundtable
The Northwest Research and Demonstration Farm in Sutherland is holding a field day on July 9 at 9 a.m. The program will include information on present and future corn yields, a weed management update and a presentation on drone operations and applications. An optional roundtable will begin after lunch on weed resistance and the EPA Herbicide Strategy.
Garden Academy to Launch in September
The Iowa Master Gardener Program and ISU Extension and Outreach will launch Garden Academy in September, providing high-quality gardening education in a refined format for both aspiring Iowa Master Gardeners and home gardening enthusiasts. Interested participants can choose from two program tracks: Iowa Master Gardener Volunteer or Iowa Home Gardener.
Around the College
ISRC Announces Leadership Transition
Mark Licht, agronomy, and Steve Whitham, plant pathology, entomology and microbiology, will join the Iowa Soybean Research Center as co-directors, effective July 1. After 11 years of leadership, Greg Tylka, founding ISRC director and Morrill Professor of Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology, will step away from the center at the end of 2025 to focus on his research responsibilities.
Iowa State Collaboration Caps Off Historic Farm State Fair Exhibit
A team of faculty, staff and students in the Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering came together to construct a historical silo that will be part of an exhibit in the Agricultural Building during the Iowa State Fair.
Monarch Conservation: More than Just Milkweed
When people think of monarch butterflies, they often think of milkweed. And rightly so. Monarch caterpillars feed exclusively on milkweed and cannot survive without it. But the monarch-milkweed connection only covers half of the story - the caterpillar stage. Adult monarchs have their own requirements and resource needs that conservation efforts must also address. The native flowering plants adult monarchs need for nectar is addressed in a June 26 blog post for Iowa Learning Farms.
ISRC Seeking Volunteers for Meals from the Heartland Event
The Iowa Soybean Research Center is looking for approximately 50 volunteers to help package 38,000 Taco Mac meals for the center’s fifth annual Meals from the Heartland event. Sponsored by Cargill, the event is scheduled for Aug. 1 from 1-4 p.m. at the Hansen Agriculture Student Learning Center. Volunteers receive a free T-shirt. The meals are distributed locally to SHOP on campus and Food at First in downtown Ames.
Calendar
July 2: Iowa Learning Farms Conservation Webinar
The Iowa Learning Farms conservation webinar on Wednesday, July 2, at noon, will feature Alejandro Plastina, director of the Rural and Farm Finance Policy Analysis Center at the University of Missouri. He will present “Adoption and Disadoption of Conservation Practices in the U.S.”
July 15: Welcome Reception and Appreciation Salute
A welcome reception for Glen Ritchie, incoming chair of the agronomy department, and an appreciation salute for Mary Wiedenhoeft, who has served as interim department chair for two years, is July 15 from 10 a.m. to noon in the Agronomy Hall commons.
More Events Listed on CALS Website
Find more events on the CALS Events webpage. Submit events for inclusion on this list to madelyno@iastate.edu or jstewart@iastate.edu.
Infograzing
Most ISU Vehicles Will Have Hands-Free Capability
Transportation Services has been working to ensure most of its vehicles have hands-free capability to comply with new legislation beginning July 1 that prohibits drivers from using electronic communication devices while driving—unless the device is used hands-free. However, some of the vehicle types do not offer Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, etc. Drivers are encouraged to plan accordingly.
A New Name: University Marketing and Communications
Effective July 1, Strategic Relations and Communications will change its name to University Marketing and Communications. The name change was recommended by Segal, the consultant that completed a campuswide communications and constituent engagement assessment earlier this year.
Volunteers Sought for State Fair Exhibit
Faculty and staff volunteers are sought to run the university’s main exhibit at the Iowa State Fair, Aug. 7-17. Visitors to “Your Iowa. Your State. Your University” will learn how Iowa State has created measurable impact in Iowa in the areas of family, health, education, community, food and technology. Volunteers receive admission to the fair, a themed T-shirt to wear during their shift and two tickets to the Cyclone football home opener on Aug. 30. The online registration form is first come, first served.
Marginalia
Celebrate the Parks Library Centennial with Digital Exhibit
The Heart of the University is a digital exhibit commemorating the Parks Library centennial. It traces the library’s beginnings in 1868 and its nomadic existence of being housed in Old Main, Morrill Hall and Beardshear Hall before the first dedicated library building was constructed and opened in 1925. Explore photographs, building plans, reports and more archival materials that document the evolution of the collections, services, staff and programs offered by the library over time. The interactive digital exhibit is rooted heavily in the physical exhibit curated by Greg Bailey, and it will expand throughout the year with additional content highlighting its evolution from the 1930s onward.
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online
Julie Stewart, Editor
jstewart@iastate.edu, (515) 294-5616
https://www.cals.iastate.edu/cals-online
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, is published by email every Monday. The deadline for submitting content is 12 p.m. on Thursday.