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COLLEGE NEWS
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COLLEGE HAS NEARLY 98 PERCENT PLACEMENT RATE
The College of Agriculture continues to have one of the highest placement rates among ISU colleges. The college’s Career Services office surveyed 602 out of 607 students who graduated during the period from fall 2001 to summer 2002. Of those surveyed, 97.7 percent had either found jobs or were in graduate school. The survey found 81.7 percent with jobs and 15.9 percent were pursuing further education. Mike Gaul, career services director, said placement figures remained surprising despite a sluggish economy and the impact of the 9/11 tragedy. The college also remains among the highest at the university for graduates finding jobs in Iowa with 67.7 percent.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON COLLEGE FARMLAND
Recently, the College of Agriculture and others at Iowa State have fielded questions on farmland issues in Story and Boone counties. Some questions have involved the Committee for Agricultural Development (CAD), a nonprofit corporation affiliated with ISU. Some have involved ISU’s plans for a new, modern dairy facility. Others have asked about ISU’s future needs for agricultural land. A college website lists answers to these and other questions about how ISU and CAD use and manage farmland. Also, a link is provided to a PDF fact sheet (96 KB) on ISU farmland.
FOOD SCIENCE STUDENTS SAVOR SUCCESS AT REGIONAL CONTEST
A team of students from the Food Science Club won a regional contest qualifying to compete in the National Institute of Food Technologists' (IFT) Food Science College Bowl in July. This is the second Iowa State team to compete in the national college bowl. The team became eligible after winning the IFT’s Student Association North Central Region's competition April 5 at Kansas State University. Iowa State’s team will compete against five other university teams at the IFT annual meeting in Chicago. Elizabeth Gutierrez, a food science and human nutrition graduate student from Round Lake Park, Ill., is captain of the team. The members of the college bowl team are: Elizabeth Lenihan of Morrisville, Pa., Jasmine Kuan of Ames, Jennifer Kuesar of Jakarta, Indonesia, Roy Santoso of Semarang, Indonesia, Chiew-Ling Chia of Klang Sel, Malaysia.
IOWA STATE ALUM AND AG ECONOMICS ‘PIONEER’ DIES
D. Gale Johnson, called a pioneer in agricultural economics in his New York Times obituary, died April 13 at the age of 86. The Vinton native died of pneumonia related to Lou Gehrig's disease. The Times’ obituary noted: “Professor Johnson's career in agricultural economics began in the 1940's, when that area was producing groundbreaking work. Several of his insights presaged other notions that are now hallmarks of macroeconomics and labor economics.” Johnson earned bachelor’s and doctorate degrees in agricultural economics in 1938 and 1945 and was given the Distinguished Achievement Citation Award in 1995 by the Iowa State Alumni Association. He spent most of his career teaching at the University of Chicago. (See “External Voices.”)
FINAL UNDERSTANDING CHINA WORKSHOPS COMING UP
The final two workshops in the Understanding China series will be Wednesday, April 23, and April 28. On Wednesday, Lorna Butler, Henry A. Wallace Endowed Chair for Sustainable Agriculture, will lead a panel discussion on the sustainability of Chinese agriculture. It will examine whether China's agricultural system — in response to increasing incomes, urbanization and trade reform — will encounter similar environmental and rural problems that the United States has experienced. The session is set from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in 150/154 Scheman. The final workshop will be a panel discussion of successful strategies for working with agricultural researchers in China led by David Acker, assistant dean of national and global programs. This workshop will focus on developing, funding and managing joint projects in China. It is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. in 150/154 Scheman.
IOWA STATE EXTENSION CELEBRATES 100 YEARS
People across Iowa and the nation have Perry Holden to thank for today's Cooperative Extension Service. In 1902, Holden came to Iowa State College in Ames to give a short course on corn. Learn more about Holden and the year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of ISU Extension in "Agriculture in Action."
PRODUCERS INVITED TO LEARN ABOUT COUNTRY OF ORIGIN LABELING
The Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) program currently is a voluntary USDA program for use by retailers who wish to notify their customers of the country of origin of beef (including veal), lamb, pork, fish, perishable agricultural commodities and peanuts. COOL will become mandatory on Sept. 30, 2004. Livestock producers can learn about COOL at a satellite program June 10 from 10 a.m. to noon, sponsored by the Iowa Pork Industry Center, Iowa Beef Center and ISU Extension. Details: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/newsrel/2003/apr03/apr0315.html
DEADLINES AND REMINDERS
April 22-30: Insect origami exhibit, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Conservatory Complex, Reiman Gardens
April 22: Science in Agriculture Day
April 24: Overweight Issues in Childhood videoconference, http://www.ucs.iastate.edu/403/nutrition.htm
April 27: American Society of Agriculture Engineers student chapter labor auction, 12:30 p.m., courtyard behind Davidson Hall, contacts: Jeni Krebill at 233-9179 or Mark Mommsen at 268-4827
April 28: Think Tank on Animal Agriculture dinner and meeting, 6 p.m., Campanile Room, Memorial Union. RSVP by April 25 to jrober@iastate.edu
May 12: Iowa State registration deadline, Plant Sciences Institute Symposium on Transposition, Recombination and Application to Plant Genomics to be held June 5-8
June 24-26: 4-H Youth Conference, more: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/newsrel/2003/apr03/apr0308.html
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COMMUNICATIONS KIOSK
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OH NO, NOT ANOTHER POWERPOINT
We've all been there, sitting though computer presentations with endless screens of text. Corbin Ball, a professional speaker and consultant, offers hints on how to avoid "Death by PowerPoint:”
- Limit the number of words on each slide: a maximum of 15
- Use bold, simple and large fonts: try Veranda or Ariel
- Use transitions wisely; too many are distracting
- Avoid stock templates or busy backgrounds
- Use a remote to advance the screen; it helps you focus on the audience
- Use pictures and graphs
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INFOGRAZING
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FIRST ASSOCIATE VICE PROVOST FOR EXTENSION CANDIDATE VISITS
Michael Ouart will be on campus Tuesday and Wednesday, April 22 and 23, interviewing for the associate vice provost for extension position. Since 1997, Ouart has been assistant director and state program leader of agriculture and natural resources at Mississippi State University Extension Service His open forum will be from 11 to 12 p.m. Tuesday, April 22, in Room 248, Memorial Union and his satellite seminar will be from 2 to 3 p.m., which may be viewed at the Vet Med ICN room and in the Oak Room, Memorial Union. Ouart's vitae is available online. Other finalists are: Jane Schuchardt, national program leader with the USDA’s Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service, and Linda Mason, associate professor, Department of Entomology at Purdue University.
NEW BIOTECH COMMITTEE TO ADVISE USDA
The USDA’s new Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture will soon begin its work. The committee will examine the long-term impacts of biotechnology on the U.S. food and agriculture system and provide guidance to the USDA on issues related to the application of biotechnology in agriculture. Its 18 members from 14 states, the District of Columbia and Mexico represent the biotechnology industry, the seed industry, farmers, environmental and consumer organizations, academia and international plant research centers, the food industry, product shippers and traders. Patricia Layton of Clemson University will serve as committee chair.
URBAN WILDLIFE CONFERENCE SET FOR MAY 5-7
The National Arbor Day Foundation is presenting its second national conference on Urban Wildlife Management May 5 to 7 at Arbor Day Farm's Lied Lodge and Conference Center in Nebraska City, Neb. The conference features more than 30 presenters in sessions dealing with wildlife corridors and human corridors, urban wildlife management case studies, urban deer management, education and attitudes, communication issues in urban wildlife and involving the public and building community support. A special rate is available to undergraduate, graduate and Ph.D students. There are also scholarship opportunities.
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EXTERNAL VOICES
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JOHNSON’S THOUGHTS ON CAREER CHOICE
"Some good work has been done, but I have to say, it's a lot easier than being a farmer."
- D. Gale Johnson, speaking about his chosen field of agricultural economics, quoted in his New York Times obituary (http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/17/obituaries/17JOHN.html?tntemail0). See an item about his death in “College News.”
Next issue: April 28 Deadline: April 25
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AG ONLINE
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EDITORS
Ed Adcock, edadcock@iastate.edu, and Brian Meyer, bmeyer@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 Monday. To subscribe, send your name, e-mail address and the message "Ag Online subscribe" to edadcock@iastate.edu. To unsubscribe, send "Ag Online unsubscribe."
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