It takes a village. While our faculty, staff and students undergird what we do, there is another group that makes a huge impact on Purdue Agriculture: our citizen advocates and other volunteers whose loyalty and support help our college remain one of the top colleges in the nation and world.

Every year in March, two citizen groups travel to Washington, DC to meet with Indiana’s Congressional delegation and advocate for the capacity and competitive funds we receive in the federal budget. Our CARET (Council on Agriculture, Research, Extension, and Teaching) members are part of a national group of volunteers from land grant universities across the country. The CARET representatives talk to legislators about the impact of research and extension funding in every state in the country. They also help members of Congress and their legislative aides understand the importance of food and agriculture as well as natural resources to the state and the country. Capacity funds help pay for the faculty and staff who enable us to react when state emergencies happen and engage in research and Extension that is important for Indiana. Capacity funds help us compete for competitive funds, which are used to address specific issues of national importance. Capacity funds must be matched one-to-one with state dollars.

In addition to the CARET group, PCARET (Purdue Council for Agricultural Research, Extension and Teaching) is a larger citizen advocacy group whose members come from all around Indiana and take time away from their jobs and families to tell our lawmakers their stories of how our research and Extension impact their lives and the lives of those in their communities. PCARET members come from all different walks of life. They are engineers, pharmacists, hairdressers, bankers, farm bureau employees, investigative reporters, and more. Some even came from that school a couple of hours down the road—we’re always happy to come across those who come from IU but are dedicated supporters of Purdue!

The PCARET group—more than 575  members—meets both formally and informally with Indiana state legislators to tell about their personal experiences or the impact Purdue has on their family and neighbors. This advocacy is critical for the matching state dollars and helps us secure support for our county activities.  A subset of PCARET is on the State Committee and they travel to Washington, DC each year to learn about federal advocacy and visit with our Congressional delegation. PCARET is the envy of many other states, since we are currently the only land grant university with this large citizen advocate group. This is the PCARET delegation that visited Washington, DC this year: 

There are many other groups who give their time and talent to represent Purdue all around the state. Master Gardeners, 4-H volunteers, Extension board volunteers, Ag Alumni Association members, Pioneer Village volunteers—all represent and help us in so many ways. We’re also grateful to our Dean’s Advisory Council members who lend their perspective and expertise to help us set the direction for our college, as well as the friends of our college from many companies who come into the classroom and interact with our students, often helping them build connections that will benefit them for years to come.  

All of these individuals act as catalysts to what Purdue Agriculture can achieve, and their impact is astounding. In 2018, 2,762 Master Gardener volunteers gave  173,597 hours to our college, valued at over $4M. To all of our volunteers who have been so gracious as to give part of that precious commodity known as TIME, I say thank you.  I am humbled by your efforts on behalf of the College. You truly embody the meaning of a global land grant institution – What you do makes an impact and makes Purdue Agriculture a special place to be.

All the best,

Purdue ditches plastic for paper straws

Purdue Dining & Catering is making the switch from plastic to paper straws in Purdue’s residential and retail outlets. The transition from plastic to paper straws was complete as of March 18. Dining & Catering officials estimate 650,000 plastic straws were used in campus dining and retail locations last year.

Proposals requested for Data Science Education Ecosystem

The offices of the Provost and the Executive Vice President for Research and Partnerships announce the spring 2019 Integrative Data Science Education Ecosystem request for proposals. The Data Science Education Ecosystem is a part of the University-wide Integrative Data Science Initiative.

Search launched for Purdue executive VP for Research

President Mitch Daniels announced on March 20 the launch of a national search for the university’s next executive vice president for research and partnerships and senior research officer. The search will be led by Jay Akridge, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and diversity.

Student startups win at Burton D. Morgan Business Model Competition

Eight Purdue University student startups earned a total of $83,500 in cash prizes and another $30,000 in in-kind donations during the 32nd annual Burton D. Morgan Business Model Competition.