Installation address includes accolades for SAES

Dr. Stanley Battle was officially installed as the 11th chancellor of N.C. A&T State University on Friday, April 25, and video of Battle’s installation address is now online. Especially if you were unable to attend the installation ceremonies, the installation address is worth an online replay. In the address, Battle singles out the research work of Dr. Mohamed Ahmedna that led to a patented process for inactivating allergens in peanuts, and Battle also cited Provagen—a biotechnology firm spun off from research work by Dr. John Allen—as a success story the University should emulate. Another noteworthy remark in Battle’s installation address was his assessment that A&T has, “One of the finest agriculture schools in the country.”

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No clover flavoring added

Blue Bell Creameries is honoring the 100th anniversary of 4-H with a special flavor, Centennial Cupcake Ice Cream, that’s now on sale in North Carolina and 16 other states in the South and Midwest. A&T Extension specialists have verified reports of product availability at two local retail outlets: the Wal-Mart stores off Elm-Eugene, and at 3738 N. Battleground Ave.

Georgia Cooperative Extension describes the flavor of the commemorative ice cream as one that will appeal to cake batter and yellow cake lovers, and Texas Cooperative Extension is commending the carton design, which “features four children in 4-H T-shirts and the organization's widely recognized four-leaf emblem.” Blue Bell is donating a portion of the profits from sales of Centennial Cupcake Ice Cream to 4-H educational programs.

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Candidates for Extension animal sciences specialist to give seminar presentations

The two candidates applying to join The Cooperative Extension Program at A&T in the position of animal sciences specialist will be coming to Coltrane Hall to make seminar presentations—open to all SAES faculty, staff and students.

Dr. Niki Whitley will be making a seminar presentation on Friday, May 9, beginning at 9:15 a.m. in the Godfrey Multipurpose Room at Coltrane Hall. Dr. Pedram Rezamand will be making a seminar presentation on Thursday, May 15, that will likewise begin at 9:15 a.m. The seminar topic for both candidates will be “Pasture-Based Livestock Systems – A Success Model for Small Farmers.”

Whitley currently has a split appointment at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, with responsibilities as an Extension livestock specialist, and also teaching and research responsibilities.  Rezamand is currently a post-doctoral research associate at the University of Idaho’s Department of Animal and Veterinary Science.

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Summer looms

SAES faculty and staff making summer plans that involve bringing groups of visitors to campus for seminars and other programs that will include handouts can begin advance preparation for starting the program with a well-organized, professional kickoff by picking up a supply of SAES-branded presentation folders at Webb Hall.

Something else SAES faculty and staff should keep in mind if they’re making plans for summer programs that will be bringing visitors to campus is the interactive campus map on the SAES website.
If you go to the map, give your building a click, and use the “to here” option to open a field for inserting your visitor’s starting point, you’ll have a personalized map and turn-by-turn directions to e-mail along to your guest.

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Toolkit gets facelift

N.C. Cooperative Extension's Toolkit for publicity support templates for County Extension Centers has received a booster shot. Revised newsletter templates have been added to the website that also has templates for new releases, event fliers and brochures (Spanish as well as English).

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Mid-May farm management and marketing workshops

Dr. Keith Baldwin of The Cooperative Extension Program at A&T will be one of the workshop leaders for a program for farmers at the Macon County Extension Center on Wednesday, May 14 that will cover  business planning, marketing, and food safety. Joining Baldwin for the workshop, which will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., will be Peter Marks and Kate Slattery of the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project.

Baldwin also will be leading a workshop in “Good Agricultural Practices (GAP)” for farmers market and roadside stand managers on Thursday, May 15 at the Center for Environmental Farming Systems (near Goldsboro). The program will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the registration fee is $20.

The GAP workshop is part of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems’ “Seasons of Sustainable Agriculture” series, and there is some funding available for travel costs for Cooperative Extension agents attending “Seasons of Sustainable Agriculture” workshops. The application form is available on the CEFS website. 

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Two days of comprehensive grow-how

The Biological Engineering Program has an outstanding opportunity for 18 farmers. A two-day farm improvement workshop will be offered June 3 and 4—covering all the basics from soil quality and farm business plans to tillage practices and animal waste management—and there will be no registration fees for the 18 farmers selected. Funds are also available to reimburse participants for travel costs, and for overnight lodging for participants whose commute to Greensboro is more than 30 miles.

Posted at 04:41 PM | Comments (0)

Extension accepting applications for field staff positions

The Cooperative Extension Program at A&T is now accepting applications for three openings on the Extension field staff. There is a May 8 application deadline for an opening for an Extension agent to work in community and rural development in Nash County. Applicants should have at least a bachelor’s degree (a master’s is preferred) in Extension education, or sociology or a related behavioral science.

Two other field staff openings have May 23 application deadlines. One opening is for a small farms management agent, who will be working with farmers in Hertford, Northampton, and Bertie counties. A bachelor's degree in agricultural education and Extension or a related area is required, and a master's degree preferred.  The second opening with a May 23 deadline for applications is a position in Robeson County. for an agriculture and natural resources technician. A high school is diploma required, and an associate’s degree preferred.

Posted at 04:39 PM | Comments (0)

Word the spreads

A spreadsheet savvy member of the Ag. Communications and Technology staff has converted the new monthly leave form for SPA employees to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, and is generously making his handiwork available to colleagues. SPA employees who are familiar with Excel are invited to let the software do the addition for them at the end of the month by downloading a copy of the template.

Another Excel spread sheet making the rounds is the University’s “Property disposition (surplus) form.” Donna Holland of The Cooperative Extension Program at A&T sent the form out to the staff at Coltrane along with a reminder that it’s an excellent time for spring cleaning, and faculty and staff with obsolete, beyond repair or unneeded furniture or equipment will be wise to get the useless and unwanted off the official inventories and out of the way.  Teaching and research faculty would likewise do well to heed Holland’s advice and update their equipment inventories before summer programs get under way. (If state or federal property for which you are responsible is moved from where it’s supposed to be without your knowledge, you are nonetheless personally responsible for the furniture or equipment, and “broken anyway,” and “obsolete” will not be acceptable explanations if it comes up missing).

Posted at 04:38 PM | Comments (0)

First flotilla of Cap. Grant students soon to set sail

Dr. Anthony Yeboah and John Paul Owens of the Department of Agribusiness, Applied Economics and Agriscience Education are project co-directors for a Capacity Building Grant announced last fall that will begin to bear fruit this coming summer, as eight SAES students will receive funding support for study abroad:
• Three students majoring in landscape architecture, Lindley Love, Philip Moten and Richard James, will be traveling to Italy and Greece.
• Two students majoring in child development, Kylista Darden and Ryan Tarver, will be traveling to Costa Rica.
• Martinique Lewis and Natasha Saunders, fashion merchandising majors, will be traveling to the United Kingdom. 
• Zanethia Choice, of the Department of Agribusiness, Applied Economics and Agriscience Education, will be traveling to Australia.

When they return to A&T for fall semester all the students will present seminars on their global experience, and the projects and courses they completed while abroad.

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Hort Society taps SAES scientist for award selection committee

Dr. Guochen Yang, an SAES plant biotechnologist, has been invited to serve a three-year term on the American Society for Horticultural Sciences’ (ASHS) selection committee for its Graduate Educator Award. Yang is winding up a three-year term on another ASHS award selection committee, which reviews candidates for the organization’s international Horticulturist Award

The ASHS is the largest organization in the world working to advance research and education in horticulture and related areas. The ASHS’s 105th annual conference will be in Orlando July 21-24. More than a thousand scientists and students are expected, and more than 900 scientific presentations are on the docket. Registration fees are now $450 for ASHS members and $610 for non-members. For graduate students, the fees are $150 for members and $225 for non-members. For undergraduates, the fee is $115.

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Funding source comes equipped with project inspiration

The Southern Region of USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program will be accepting pre-proposals for on-farm research and education grants built around sustainable agriculture until June 1. That date is also the deadline for pre-proposals for graduate student projects, and June 4 is the pre-proposal deadline for professional development programs that focus on sustainable agriculture.

USDA’s SARE website has a searchable database that can serve as an idea generator for nonprofit agricultural support groups, grad students and Extension units wondering if a research or education project they have in mind is something SARE might consider for funding. For example, if you use the search engine to check up on projects SARE has funded in North Carolina, you’ll find the topic list includes conservation tillage and cover cropping, heating systems for greenhouses,  heirloom tomatoes, pastured pork, wine industry by-products, marketing farm commodities directly to consumers and several other longstanding niches for SAES Extension and research.

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What happened in VEGA made public

The Volunteers for Economic Growth Alliance (VEGA) has selected Dr. Omon Isikhuemhen of the SAES as one of the recipients for the organization’s Service Impact Award, which recognizes volunteers for work that had an especially significant impact on the economic growth of the countries in which they provided guidance and assistance. VEGA brought Dr. Omon and other award winners to Washington on April 30 to receive their awards as part of a public awareness event that coincided with National Volunteer Week, April 27 to May 3 in 2008. 

As the world’s largest consortium of volunteer organizations providing technical expertise in developing nations, VEGA has established four primary areas for its expertise base and one of them is “Agribusiness Development.”

Posted at 04:34 PM | Comments (0)

Energizing high school students

The Biological Engineering Program has extended the application deadline to May 31 for a summer program that will be providing high school students exposure to research into such cutting-edge energy issues as renewable energy production and flexible fuel vehicle design. Students accepted for one of the week-long programs (8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., June 23 - 27, or July 21 to 25) will also get an overview of how various types of energy are generated, and a survey of the impact energy conservation and related environmental issues have on their day-to-day lives. Underwriting from the Ford Foundation makes it possible for students accepted to attend without tuition or other fees. High school students who have completed grades 9 through 11 by the end of spring semester are eligible, provided they have completed at least one algebra course.

Posted at 04:33 PM | Comments (0)