April is always the busiest month on a college campus, and I have been enjoying all the activity this year! First and foremost, I appreciate the chance to celebrate our outstanding faculty, staff and students in CAFNR. Thanks so much to those of you who nominated colleagues for awards for our annual Celebration of Excellence awards ceremony, and those who attended! You can see all of the award winners on our CAFNR website. I also thank MU President Mun Choi for speaking at our Spring Faculty/Staff Meeting earlier this month – a lot of great news was shared that day about our college and students. In addition, I appreciate Dr. Tom Spencer being part of the annual Mizzou Showcase at the Kansas City Agribusiness Council’s April luncheon. It was invigorating to hear about the plans for research on campus and how our college fits in. Also this month, I have: - Continued interviews with candidates for core and MizzouForward faculty positions
- Attended the Land of the Osages Research Center Advisory Board Meeting
- Started Division Director performance reviews
- Participated in IFT meetings
- Attended the Missouri Cooperative Unit Biennial Meeting
- Participated in the Mizzou Spring General Faculty Meeting
- Attended the Principe Italia Ribbon Cutting event in Columbia
- Visited with attendees at the CAFNR New Employee Welcome
- Met with Provost Latha Ramchand
- Attended the 2023 Womack Missouri Ag Outlook Conference
- Met with Chris Chinn in Jefferson City
- Participated in a budget meeting with Vice Chancellor Rhonda Gibler
- Visited with Gary Wheeler from our CAFNR Foundation
- Attended the Council of Deans meetings
- Participated in the MU Remembers Ceremony
- Spoke at both the Alpha Gamma Rho Founders Day Celebration and the Alpha Gamma Sigma 100th Founders Day Celebration
- Gave the CAFNR Administrative Leadership Council Mid-Year Update
- Participated in the Advancing Research Focus Group
- Spoke at the Advancement Gift Planning Webinar
- Welcomed students to the 95th Annual Missouri FFA Convention
- Attended the President’s Distinguished Lecture, featuring The Honorable Sethuraman Panchanathan, Director of NSF
Today I am excited to attend the first in-person MOAES Statewide Committee meeting. Still to come this month, I will participate in Faculty Excellence Week activities, including the Faculty Recognition Ceremony; continue Division Director performance reviews; participate in the CAFNR and Extension Luncheon; and attend the Golden Quill Alumni Excellence Award Event and Jefferson Club Annual Dinner. Please join CAFNR Staff Advisory Council for the “Hit it out of the Park” Social, 12-1:30 p.m., Friday, May 12, in the Courtyard between ABNR and the Ag Building. You can snag a classic ballpark treat for lunch, partake in yard games and crafts, and be part of grand-slam giveaways. Attendees can also pick up their tickets for the Mizzou-Indiana State baseball game! Finally, I was honored to be elected as the 2024 President of the Institute of Food Technologists by my peers earlier this month. Also, I was grateful to receive an Honorary State FFA Degree at state convention last week. I am always impressed with the students I meet and their advisors. I am delighted to accept these honors on behalf of our great college and university. CAFNR Proud, Christopher R. Daubert, Ph.D.
CAFNR Vice Chancellor & Dean |