College News

MISRA NAMED DIRECTOR OF USDA'S NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE

Manjit Misra will assume his new role with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture on May 8, 2023, with a swearing-in ceremony in Washington, D.C. Misra has been a faculty member in Iowa State’s agricultural and biosystems engineering department for 45 years and has served as director of the university’s Seed Science Center for 32 years. More

AGRICULTURAL COMMUNICATION MAJOR RECEIVES APPROVAL

The Iowa Board of Regents approved a new undergraduate major – Bachelor of Science in agricultural communication – on April 20. The major will offer core coursework in foundational agricultural communication. Students will have the flexibility to choose pathways in agriculture and various communication courses. More

WIEDENHOEFT TO LEAD AGRONOMY DEPARTMENT

Mary Wiedenhoeft has been named the interim chair of Iowa State's Department of Agronomy, effective May 16, 2023. She will take over for current department chair Kendall Lamkey, who has accepted the role of associate dean for facilities and operations for CALS. Wiedenhoeft has been with the department since 1999. More

RESEARCHING ESSENTIAL OILS' POTENTIAL AS BIO-FUNGICIDE

Graduate student Alexandra Starkey's research involves experimenting with bio-fungicides to prevent disease in soybean fields. Her bio-fungicide of choice: essential oils. Funding for her research is coming from the CALS Innovation in Agriculture Young Scholar Award, which she was recently awarded. More

IOWA STATE: A HOME AWAY FROM HOME

Despite being more than 1,000 miles away from home and joining Iowa State’s campus amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Joe Van Essendelft quickly found a home away from home in Ames. “I came here not knowing anyone, and I’m leaving here feeling like I’m part of a family,” Van Essendelft said, looking ahead to graduation in May. More

ISU EXTENSION AND OUTREACH RESOURCES, EVENTS

• Yard and Garden: Planting trees in spring
• Spring lawn maintenance keys for success
• Soil Management and Land Valuation Conference is May 17
• Boots in the Barn series to be offered to women involved in cattle production
• Midwest Compost School to be held June 20-22

These are just a few of the many new and updated resources and upcoming events from ISU Extension and Outreach - Agriculture and Natural Resources. See more.

Alumni News

GLENN PRESENTS HERTZ LECTURE AT IOWA STATE

Tim Glenn ('88 animal science), executive vice president of the seed business unit at Corteva Agriscience, presented the 2023 Carl and Marjory Hertz Lecture on Emerging Issues in Agriculture on April 11, at Iowa State University. Glenn shared his journey in the agricultural industry, which has taken him across several continents and multinational companies, ultimately leading to his current position with Corteva. Watch lecture recording

ZHOU RECEIVES NATIONAL AWARD FOR RESEARCH

Huaijun Zhou ('02 PhD animal breeding and genetics, animal science, '03 MS bioinformatics and computational biology) recently was named the recipient of the National Academy of Sciences Prize in Food and Agriculture Sciences. The honor is in recognition of his research related to farm animal genome and genetic enhancement of poultry health and production efficiencies in farm animals. More

RIENEKE USING HORTICULTURE DEGREE TO START FLORAL BUSINESS NEAR HOMETOWN

Grace Reineke ('22 horticulture) is preparing for the opening of her business, Mill Creek Flower Farm, near her hometown of Dunlap, Iowa. Following her passion for horticulture and using the training and knowledge she gained as a student at Iowa State, Reineke plans to grow approximately 45 different species of flowers for bouquet subscriptions, special order arrangements and wedding design. More

Young Alums of the Month

Reid and Reese Drenth ('19 ag business), twin brothers from Decorah, Iowa, both accepted positions as merchandisers following graduation from Iowa State - Reid at Archer Daniels Midland and Reese at Landus. They say each day is different and brings a new challenge. More

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