What do you do in your current role with the University of Missouri?
I am proud to be referred to as “the land-grant dean” in Missouri! Our three-part mission of teaching, research and extension means we are serving, educating, helping every person in our state by tackling challenges they are facing. As the Vice Chancellor for Agriculture and the Dean of the College of Agriculture, Food & Natural Resources I oversee six academic divisions that award 14 undergraduate and 18 graduate degrees, 13 research programs of distinction, and four programs and faculty under Ag and Environment Extension. In my role, I also help bridge CAFNR’s people and programs to our numerous partners and stakeholders across Missouri, including alumni, parents, industry, farmers, ranchers, and legislators.
How long have you worked in this position?
I am coming up on my 8th anniversary at Mizzou, Aug. 1! I joined the university from North Carolina State University, where I worked for 21 years. The final 7 years at NC State, I served as head of the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences.
What is your favorite part about the work you do?
I really enjoy seeing students learn and grow, whether in the classroom, the lab, the field, on a study abroad trip, in a CAFNR club, or at an MU Extension workshop. The opportunities we provide can be truly life-changing. Those stories inspire me. I am quick to remind the reader that our students are not just those young people studying for a degree in Columbia, Mo. With our strong commitment to the Extension mission, we consider every Missourian to be a student, at least a potential student!
How are you helping MU A&E Extension reach our #2xAg2030 goal?
One of our “Grand Ideas” in CAFNR – which means how we’ll tackle the next challenges of our state, country and world – is the Show-Me-State Food, Beverage and Forest Products Manufacturing Initiative. A taskforce appointed by the governor has worked to create opportunities for adding additional value to Missouri ag commodities – like finishing cattle in-state, helping small specialty product businesses with development and food safety, and training the future workforce in meat processing, in addition to collaboration and economic development across the state. The work of each of our A&E Extension program areas feeds directly into this initiative and directly adds value to Missouri agriculture!
What is something your CAFNR and MU Extension teammates may not know about you?
I grew up in a musical family, and my parents were both educators. My father was my high school band director and our church organist, and he instilled in me a love of music and performance. I started marching with the high schoolers as a seventh grader, when Dad realized he needed an extra trombone on the field! I got to play in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Rose Parade and marched in Ireland while still in high school, and went on to perform with the Penn State Blue Band as an undergraduate student studying agricultural engineering.
What is your hometown, place of high school graduation, and degrees/universities?
My hometown is Fredericksburg Pennsylvania — affectionately known throughout south central Pennsylvania as the chicken processing capital of the world! I graduated from Northern Lebanon High School, and my wife attended the rival Lebanon High School – though she says it wasn’t much of a rivalry! I received my bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering from Pennsylvania State University, and my Ph.D. from Michigan State University in both agricultural engineering and food science. I then accepted a post-doctoral position at NC State University, before officially joining the faculty.