CAFNR

Nov. 3, 2021

A Big Plan for a Small Berry

Andrew Thomas has big plans for a small berry. Thomas, research assistant professor in the Division of Plant Science and Technology in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources at the University of Missouri, has received a Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the project Moving American Elderberry into Mainstream Production and Processing. The award is for $5,345,255 over a four-year period. Elderberry is a native plant found all over the Midwest and eastern United States. Thomas, who has conducted elderberry research for 24 years at CAFNR’s Southwest Research, Extension and Education…
photo of the entrance of Animal Sciences Research Center

Nov. 2, 2021

Building Staying Power

Mobile meat processing training centers will address labor shortages within meat processing industry.
Mandy Bish in the field

Oct. 29, 2021

Q&A with Mandy Bish

Bish is a Weed Science Extension Specialist and Integrated Pest Management Coordinator with the Agriculture and Environment Extension Program.
As part of the CAFNR Experience, undergraduate students in the College have the opportunity to gain real-world skills through hands-on learning. Those experiences are especially true in the Team and Organizational Leadership course (AG_ED_LD 2260) within the agricultural education degree program. Along with important team-building exercises, students enrolled in the course participate in an important service learning component.

Oct. 26, 2021

Succeeding in a Team Setting

As part of the CAFNR Experience, undergraduate students in the College have the opportunity to gain real-world skills through hands-on learning. Those experiences are especially true in the Team and Organizational Leadership course (AG_ED_LD 2260) within the agricultural education degree program. Along with team-building exercises, students enrolled in the course participate in an important service learning component. Service learning is a key part of the RISE Initiative, part of the CAFNR Strategic Plan, and is defined by campus as experience-based learning that promotes lifelong commitment to social responsibility and public service. “Employers obviously understand the value of having employees…
Zach Duncan’s time in CAFNR was highlighted by numerous hands-on learning opportunities, including the Loewenberg Beef Cattle Management Internship during his junior year. That position was focused on cattle herd management, where Duncan and four other CAFNR students handled the day-to-day operations of a Salers herd donated by Bruce Loewenberg. Duncan also had a summer internship in 2017 at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center.Photo courtesy of Zach Duncan.

Oct. 26, 2021

Preparing for the Next Step

Zach Duncan's time in CAFNR helped equip him for graduate school.
Mallory at Mo State Fair

Oct. 22, 2021

Q&A with Mallory Rahe

Rahe is an agriculture business and policy education director.

Oct. 21, 2021

Exploring Careers in Agriculture

For years, the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (CAFNR) has opened the doors to the Agricultural Research Centers to high school students from across the state. This is an opportunity for research centers to showcase its research, programs, and academic opportunities. The Career Exploration Days feature several CAFNR faculty and staff as well as MU Extension specialists as guest speakers. “The focus of these days is to educate high school students about career opportunities in agriculture, food and natural resources,” said Shibu Jose, CAFNR’s associate dean of research. “The various speakers represent different career opportunities…
20190917_CAFNRHeadshots_9980_calim_017_AhmedBalboula_AnimalScience

Oct. 19, 2021

Ahmed Balboula Receives Outstanding Investigator Award

Ahmed Balboula, assistant professor in animal sciences, is working to understand how chromosome segregation is regulated in female gametes (oocytes). During the early stages of pregnancy, chromosome mis-segregation can result in aneuploidy (abnormal number of chromosomes in a cell), the leading genetic cause of miscarriages and congenital abnormalities. His work has implications for both animal and human health. Balboula recently received R35 grant (Outstanding Investigator Award) through the National Institute of General Medicine (NIGMS, NIH) totaling $1.9 million for a five-year period. Funding is for a project titled Mechanisms Underpinning Meiotic Spindle Formation and Behavior. Balboula is a reproductive…
Jerry Hitzhusen, an associate professor emeritus in the School of Natural Resources, is a national and international advocate for disabled athletes and was committed to recreation therapy for veterans and advocacy for minority aging populations. Hitzhusen was recently inducted into the Missouri Recreation and Parks Hall of Fame.

Oct. 18, 2021

A Commitment to Those in Need

Editor’s Note: Jerry Hitzhusen passed away in January 2022. As Jerry Hitzhusen worked on his family’s farm growing up, he would oftentimes walk through the cornfields and wonder what lay beyond the borders of his northern Iowa home. Hitzhusen ended up spending his entire career not only travelling well past those borders – he also supported those in need the whole way. Hitzhusen’s career spanned five decades, and his specialties in the University of Missouri College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (CAFNR) focused on therapeutic recreation, leisure and mental illness, leisure and aging, and continuing education in therapeutic recreation.
Recently, three CAFNR professors, in the area of plant biology, were honored with Extraordinary Professor appointments in the Department of Biotechnology at UWC – Bob Sharp, Curators’ Distinguished Professor in the Division of Plant Sciences and director of the Interdisciplinary Plant Group (IPG); David Mendoza-Cózatl, associate professor in the Division of Plant Sciences; and Scott Peck, professor in the Department of Biochemistry.

Oct. 15, 2021

Interdisciplinary Plant Group Celebrates their 40th Anniversary with Seminars

The Interdisciplinary Plant Group (IPG) is celebrating their 40th Anniversary this year. The IPG is a campus-wide community of University of Missouri (MU) faculty, students, postdoctoral fellows and professionals who are pursuing novel, creative and transformative ideas in the field of plant biology. To celebrate the 40th anniversary, a series of seminars will be presented throughout the months of October and November. The series will feature a prominent IPG alum from each of the four decades of the program. Two additional seminars will highlight recent IPG alumni. The series will showcase the various career paths IPG alumni have pursued.