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C O L L E G E N E W S
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NOVAKOVIC VISITS COLLEGE AND CAMPUS
Andrew Novakovic, candidate to be dean of the College of Agriculture and chairman of Cornell University's Department of Agricultural, Resource and Managerial Economics, visited campus this week. You can view his vita online. Here are remarks he made (sometimes paraphrased and summarized) during his visit:
On engagement: I take it as a given that we are motivated in no small part by the needs of our students and our stakeholders. The phrase "customer driven" is popular in the management literature, but we must be careful to distinguish between being controlled by our customers versus being oriented towards them and their needs. We must be customer oriented. We must bring together the many constituencies we serve as we set and reset our course. We must understand their needs as well as they do and be responsive to them within the context of our core missions and capabilities.
On agriculture's big challenges: 1) Population growth -- few things rival the challenge to maintain our long-term capacity to feed the world in a century when the world's population will double. 2) Discovery of agriculture's role in the ecosystem. There is great excitement about scientific advances regarding things that are incredibly small, but what will give meaning to this science is things that are very large -- too large for one person's field of vision. We surely must continue to consider the interface between production agriculture and the local environment, but the challenge is to think even beyond that to the relationship of agriculture in the context of a large ecosystem. 3) Figuring out where people can or should live -- the confluence of human ecology and natural ecology, the interaction between vital economies and quality of life. Dynamic changes in transportation cost, communication technologies, and lifestyles may offer new opportunities and new ways of thinking about the rationale for living in rural communities. 4) Empowering agriculture and rural communities -- related to, but bigger than, competitiveness as it is often defined. Agricultural businesses and rural communities must be able to distinguish between what we can influence and control and what is beyond our control. Our energies must be focused on the factors and challenges we can change.
On the College of Agriculture: What makes the College of Agriculture an exciting place to be only begins with the fact that you are already very good. The excitement really starts when you recognize how much more you can be and actively strive for it.
NEW SHIRTS FOR IOWA STATE FAIR VOLUNTEERS
In addition to free admission and parking passes, Iowa State Fair volunteers will receive a short-sleeved denim shirt embossed with the College of Agriculture logo. Volunteering is a great way to see the College of Agriculture exhibit and enjoy the fair. The fair starts on Thursday, Aug. 10 and ends Sunday, Aug. 20. Volunteers have a choice of three shifts: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Times are filling up, so don't miss your chance to participate in the 2000 Iowa State Fair. To sign up, contact Marty Behrens: 4-5616 or behrens@iastate.edu.
SUMMER MINORITY INTERNS STUDY VARIETY OF SUBJECTS
There are 19 high school and college students on campus through the end of July as part of the Summer Minority Internship program. They came from all over the nation to study with a researcher in the college. Students projects include: a focus group project with Latino/a students from Marshalltown investigating students' attitudes and perceptions regarding substance use/abuse and substance prevention programs; research assessing the effects of prescribed burning on the health and productivity of tall grass prairies in Iowa; and an analysis of misdemeanor sentencing decisions of various ethnic groups in Nebraska.
WELCOME NEW LEOPOLD CENTER DIRECTOR
A reception to welcome Fred Kirschenmann, new director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, will be held Sept. 12, 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Campanile Room of the Memorial Union. There will be a brief program at 4 p.m. Kirschenmann is president of a 3,500-acre North Dakota organic farming operation and will assume responsibilities at the center on July 1 on a partial appointment until after crops on his farm are harvested.
CONSORTIUM WILL ADVANCE BIO-BASED INDUSTRY IN THE MIDWEST
Scientists from six institutions, including Iowa State and the Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory at ISU, have formed a consortium that will conduct research and technology transfer on bio-based products and energy. The goal of the Midwest Consortium for Sustainable Biobased Products and Bioenergy is to develop a Midwest chemical industry based on agricultural feedstocks and biotechnology. Other members of the consortium are Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Ill.; University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; Michigan State University, East Lansing; and Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. Scientists from ISU's Plant Sciences Institute and the Agricultural Experiment Station will participate.
LINKING STUDENTS AND BIOTECHNOLOGY COMPANIES
Hundreds of Iowa State students in science and agriculture majors are interested in learning about the potential for careers in biotechnology fields. Iowa companies can meet with ISU students during the second annual Biotechnology Career Day Oct. 26 at Iowa State. The all-day event enables Iowa employers to discuss job opportunities with young scientists and professionals. Last year's career day drew 12 companies and more than 400 undergraduate and graduate students. The event is sponsored by the ISU Office of Biotechnology and the Iowa Biotechnology Association.
DEADLINES & REMINDERS
June 26-27: Orientation for freshman students in the College
June 27: Farms, Food and the Future Conference, Des Moines
June 27: Western Research and Demonstration Farm field day, 6 p.m., near Castana
June 28: Northwest Research and Demonstration Farm field day, 9 a.m., near Cherokee
June 29: Armstrong Research and Demonstration Farm field day, 4 and 7 p.m., near Atlantic
June 29: Northern Research and Demonstration Farm specialty field day, on weed management, 6:30 p.m., Kanawha
June 29-July 2: Plant Sciences Institute Symposium on Biosynthesis of Glucose Polysaccharides, Scheman Building, 4-7978
July 11: Rhodes Research and Demonstration Farm field day, 4:30 p.m., near Rhodes
July 17: Muscatine Island Research and Demonstration Farm field day, 4 and 6:30 p.m., Fruitland
July 22: Animal Science golf scramble, auction and dinner to benefit the Lauren Christian Endowment, 1 p.m., Veenker Memorial Golf Course, Ames
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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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WEBMAIL CAN KEEP YOU IN TOUCH
If you're going to be traveling or off-campus this summer, there is a new Web-based e-mail service available for getting your messages. WebMail makes it possible for ISU faculty and staff to check e-mail from Web browsers on or off campus. The new service is available to those who have an ISU Network ID and use the ISU e-mail address. WebMail users can continue to use other programs (such as Eudora Pro or EasyVincent), but it's suggested that one program be chosen as a primary service to save file space. For more information, contact the Solution Center, 195 Durham Center, 4-4000. To begin using the service, visit the WebMail page.
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I N F O G R A Z I N G
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FUTURE BRIGHT FOR AG SCIENCES STUDENTS
In the year 2005 employers will be looking for students with science and marketing skills according to a report from the Office of Higher Education Programs (HEP) at the USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES). The report projects that annual U.S. job openings for food and agricultural sciences graduates will be around 58,000 and graduates will number about 57,000. The greatest demand will be for food scientists, engineers, landscape horticulturists, plant geneticists and outdoor recreation specialists. Weaker employment opportunities will exist in farm and ranch services, agricultural and forest production, general practice veterinary medicine and in some government agencies.
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E X T E R N A L V O I C E S
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WHAT DO THEY KNOW?
"They know enough who know how to learn." --Henry Adams
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M A R G I N A L I A
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HOW BRIGHT IS THE AVERAGE FIREFLY?
You probably know that fireflies are really beetles, but do you know that nearly all the light they produce is in the form of light energy? By comparison, a light bulb produces about 10 percent light and the rest is heat. That and other firefly facts are part of the Firefly Files, an Ohio State University site.
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AG ONLINE
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NEXT ISSUE: July 7 DEADLINE: July 5
EDITORS
Brian Meyer, bmeyer@iastate.edu, and Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu
Phone: (515) 294-5616 Web site: http://www.ag.iastate.edu/aginfo/
SUBSCRIBE
Ag Online, the newsletter for faculty and staff in Iowa State University's College of Agriculture, is e-mailed every other Friday. To subscribe, send your name, e-mail address and the message "Ag Online subscribe" to bmeyer@iastate.edu. To unsubscribe, send "Ag Online unsubscribe."
Iowa State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, sex, marital status, disability or status as a U.S. Vietnam Era Veteran. Any persons having inquiries concerning this may contact the Director of Affirmative Action, 318 Beardshear Hall, (515) 294-7612.