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AG ONLINE
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The College of Agriculture Faculty/Staff Newsletter
Iowa State University
December 17, 1999 No. 135
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C O N T E N T S
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COLLEGE NEWS
- Help recognize our graduating seniors Saturday
- Number of Pro-Ag graduates increases
- Strategic plan group to meet Jan. 12
- Awards to be given at spring convocation on Jan. 13
- Provost Richmond plans to visit college Jan. 20
- College surpasses United Way goal
- Orientation set for 15 new faculty members
- Openings for China study-abroad trip next summer
- Full slate of ag distance education courses in spring
- Writing successful industry grants on the Web
- Plant breeding focus of plant science lectures
- 4-H looking for workshop ideas for youth conference
- Gamma Sigma Delta seeks award nominations
- Miller Faculty Fellowship proposals due Feb. 1
- College sponsors broadcasts from farm radio conference
- Next Ag Online a week later than usual
- Deadlines & Reminders
COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
- Tips to avoid online rip-offs
INFOGRAZING
- Where are all the big men on campus?
- Where the men are at Iowa State
- More ISU women pursue science, technical degrees
INTERNAL VOICES
- Hardest thing is easiest in distance education
EXTERNAL VOICES
- Rural areas need helping hand from land-grants
MARGINALIA
- This message brought to you by the College of Agriculture
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C O L L E G E N E W S
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HELP RECOGNIZE OUR GRADUATING SENIORS ON SATURDAY
Agriculture faculty and staff are encouraged to help recognize our approximately 215 graduates at Saturday's college convocation in C.Y. Stephens Auditorium. A reception will begin at 8:15 a.m. and the program at 9 a.m. Norma Leo, senior in agricultural business, will speak. She also will receive the distinguished service award from the Ag Council. Other senior awards will be presented to Nathan Welch, microbiology, for academic achievement; Jennifer Smith, agricultural business, leadership excellence; and Geoffrey Peterson, agricultural business and international agriculture, as outstanding senior.
NUMBER OF PRO-AG GRADUATES INCREASES
Tonight (Friday) six students in the college’s Pro-Ag program will earn master's of agriculture degrees. Traditionally, only one or two have graduated each semester. In the past year, the program has become integrated into the college’s regular academic program, said Robert Martin, head of agricultural education and studies, the department that oversees the program. Faculty and staff have increased efforts to reach out to students and to enhance communication with those off-campus. Administrators also are proposing a set of core courses to make it easier for students to complete requirements in a timely fashion. (See "Internal Voice" for a quote from a master’s of agriculture student.)
STRATEGIC PLAN GROUP TO MEET JAN. 12
Faculty and staff are invited to the next meeting of the college’s strategic plan committee on Jan. 12 in the Sun Room, Memorial Union, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
AWARDS TO BE GIVEN AT SPRING CONVOCATION ON JAN. 13
The College of Agriculture spring convocation will be held Thursday, Jan. 13, at 4 p.m. in the Sun Room, Memorial Union. Come at 3:30 p.m. for refreshments and stay for a reception at 5 p.m. College awards will be presented and faculty and staff who received awards during the past year will be recognized.
PROVOST RICHMOND PLANS TO VISIT COLLEGE JAN. 20
Provost Rollin Richmond will visit the College of Agriculture on Jan. 20. An open forum with faculty and staff is planned. More details will be coming.
COLLEGE SURPASSES UNITED WAY GOAL
The College of Agriculture has surpassed its goal for the 1999 United Way/Habitat for Humanity Campaign. The goal was $36,600, and as of Dec. 3, the total committed was $40,693. That total makes up almost 20 percent of the ISU total of $208,406. Deanne Brill, Budget and Finance Office, was the leader for the college campaign.
ORIENTATION SET FOR FIFTEEN NEW FACULTY MEMBERS
Planning to attend a college orientation session on Jan. 6 are 15 new faculty members from the departments of agricultural and biosystems engineering, agricultural education and studies, agronomy, animal science, forestry, food science and human nutrition, horticulture and sociology. The orientation helps new faculty understand the college’s mission and organization; informs them of teaching, research and extension activities; and encourages involvement in diversity and globalization programs.
OPENINGS FOR CHINA STUDY-ABROAD TRIP NEXT SUMMER
Faculty and staff are encouraged to spread the word to students about openings for next summer’s ISU China study-abroad program, May 10 to June 22. Openings for an additional 10 students are available. Thanks to support from Cargill, students will fly free to China, where they will earn six credits, spend time in three cities and participate in many field trips. Cost to students is $2,200. Application deadline is Jan. 15. Applications are available in 18 Curtiss. For more information: Vanessa Lutz, 4-8447 or vlutz@iastate.edu.
FULL SLATE OF AG DISTANCE EDUCATION COURSES IN SPRING
The college has 36 distance-education courses available for the spring semester. Twelve departments are offering the courses on the Web, ICN, CD-ROM, videotape or a combination of these delivery methods. Some courses require admission to an ISU degree program, others don’t. One new course is organic crop production. In 1998-99 there were 904 off-campus students compared with 570 two years earlier.
WRITING SUCCESSFUL INDUSTRY GRANTS ON THE WEB
Fifty persons attended a Dec. 3 grant success workshop sponsored by the college and the Experiment Station. One presenter, animal scientist Max Rothschild, has posted his notes on writing industry grants on the web. It can be found online.
PLANT BREEDING FOCUS OF PLANT SCIENCE LECTURES
The Plant Science Lecture Series will feature "Plant Breeding Technology: Issues After 2000" on Jan. 6-7, Molecular Biology Auditorium. Researchers from several universities and companies will speak on the past and future of plant breeding.
4-H LOOKING FOR WORKSHOP IDEAS FOR YOUTH CONFERENCE
Faculty and staff are asked to consider presenting workshops at the Iowa 4-H Youth Conference, June 20-22. The 4-H office requests responses by Dec. 30. The conference attracts about 1,000 high school students. Workshops are opportunities to inspire Iowa teens to develop skills and interests that may be new to them. For more information: Wendy Brock, 4-1607 or x1brock@exnet.iastate.edu.
GAMMA SIGMA DELTA SEEKS AWARD NOMINATIONS
Gamma Sigma Delta, the honor society of agriculture, seeks nominations for its awards -- University Mission Awards in teaching, research and extension, Alumni Award of Merit, Alumni Membership and Faculty Membership. Deadline is Feb. 15. For more information: Ron Deiter, 4-5771 or rdeiter@iastate.edu, or Curt Youngs, 4-5541 or cryoungs@iastate.edu.
MILLER FACULTY FELLOWSHIP PROPOSALS DUE FEB. 1
Miller Faculty Fellowship proposals are due to the dean’s office on Feb. 1. The fellowships are meant to help enrich undergraduate education. The dean will forward the proposals, in priority order, to the Center for Teaching Excellence by March 1.
COLLEGE SPONSORS BROADCASTS FROM FARM RADIO CONFERENCE
In November, the college sponsored the on-site broadcasts of WNAX Radio, Yankton, S.D., at the annual meeting of the National Association of Farm Broadcasters in Kansas City. The radio station had approached the college to be a non-corporate sponsor. The college supplied copy for sponsor spots which ran 16 times on the station (see "Marginalia). WNAX also conducted three interviews with Ken Prusa, food science and human nutrition, about his research and on the wide range of careers for agriculture graduates.
NEXT AG ONLINE A WEEK LATER THAN USUAL
The next Ag Online will be sent three weeks from now, on Jan. 7, and not on Dec. 31, which is a university holiday.
DEADLINES & REMINDERS
Dec. 20: Promotion and tenure nominations due, 138 Curtiss
Jan. 3: Foreign travel grant applications due, 138 Curtiss
Jan. 12: College strategic plan meeting, Sun Room, 10 a.m.
Jan. 13: College spring convocation, Sun Room, 4 p.m.
Jan. 20: Provost Richmond visits college
Feb. 1: Miller Faculty Fellowship proposals due, 138 Curtiss
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C O M M U N I C A T I O N S K I O S K
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TIPS TO AVOID ONLINE RIP-OFFS
Internet scams give new meaning to the warning, "Let the buyer beware." PC Computing gives the following guidelines to avoid being ripped off online. Never respond to spam or bulk e-mail. Use credit cards to make purchases because if its number is stolen, you’re only liable for the first $50 and banks will often cover that for good customers. Print out order confirmations to use as evidence, just in case. Beware of sales sites that seek a lot of personal information, which may be more valuable than what they sell. Be sure to use verification services offered by most online auctions. Ignore advice or offers from complete strangers. (PC Computing, December)
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I N F O G R A Z I N G
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WHERE ARE ALL THE BIG MEN ON CAMPUS?
Many colleges and universities have declining numbers of male students. Fifty-five percent of U.S. undergraduate students were men in 1970. Today that number is less than 45 percent. In 1997 women earned 652,400 bachelor’s degrees, while men earned 520,500. At a recent conference of higher-education presidents, deans and professors, explanations were grouped into two categories. Some say women are better prepared, both psychologically and academically, for college. Others say men are more opportunistic than women, and seek jobs that pay well with no degree required. (The Chronicle of Higher Education, Nov. 26)
WHERE THE MEN ARE AT IOWA STATE
This fall there are 2,888 undergraduates enrolled in the College of Agriculture. Fifty-eight percent (1,686) are male and 42 percent (1,202) are female. Across campus, there are 12,037 male undergraduates (55 percent) and 9,864 females (45 percent), according to the ISU Annual Statistical Report, Fall 1999.
MORE ISU WOMEN PURSUE SCIENCE, TECHNICAL DEGREES
According to ISU’s Program for Women in Science and Engineering, the number of women pursuing undergraduate degrees in science, engineering and other technical fields has steadily increased in recent years -- from 1,811 in 1986 to 3,021 in 1999. In the College of Agriculture, the number of undergraduate women enrolled in technical fields has increased from about 400 in 1986 to almost 1,000 in 1999. That 1999 total is the most of any ISU college.
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I N T E R N A L V O I C E S
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HARDEST THING IS THE EASIEST IN DISTANCE EDUCATION
"The hardest thing about distance ed is also the easiest thing: You are ultimately responsible for your own failure or success; no professor prods you. Communicating with the teacher often makes the difference between your success and failure." Patricia Barrett, a USDA federal warehouse examiner in Laurens, Iowa, who is working on an ISU master’s of agriculture degree. (AgComm newsletter, May 1999)
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E X T E R N A L V O I C E S
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RURAL AREAS NEED HELPING HAND FROM LAND-GRANTS
" … Rural entrepreneurs need a helping hand [from land-grant universities]. That help includes technology transfer, business and technical assistance, and assisting states and communities in building the infrastructure that will foster successful businesses … Rural quality of life represents a new frontier for many land-grant universities. Science and technology are bread and butter, but ‘distance culture’ may seem much further afield. Yet to the extent that every university represents the fullness of human endeavor, new ways must be found to let that fountain reach the most rural reaches of your state." Mark Drabenstott, vice president and director, Center for the Study of Rural America, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. Drabenstott presented the Hatch Memorial Lecture at the 112th annual meeting of the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges in November.
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M A R G I N A L I A
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THIS MESSAGE BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE
The following is the copy supplied by the college that aired on WNAX radio during the National Association of Farm Broadcasters’ annual meeting in November (see "College News"): "Agriculture students at Iowa State University have the best of many worlds. They study in top-ranked academic programs. They have classmates from around the globe and a choice of 22 international study opportunities. They make new friends in departments, learning teams, clubs, sororities, fraternities and dorms. They enjoy Big-12 sports. And they get jobs -- half in business and industry -- the rest in science, education, production and natural resources. Iowa State’s College of Agriculture, helping students become their best."
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AG ONLINE
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NEXT ISSUE: Jan. 7 DEADLINE: Jan. 6
EDITORS
Brian Meyer, bmeyer@iastate.edu
Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu
Phone: (515) 294-5616 Web site: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/
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