Since I wrote my last In Focus note, our academic community has changed the way we do almost everything. While this has been disruptive, our faculty, staff and students are stepping up to the challenge.  With the inability to host in-person classes, meetings and workshops, our College embraced new ways to deliver curriculum, information, programming and services.  It is amazing to see what has happened and I will highlight a few examples below.  

Reaching New Audiences  

Hosting events online has attracted new – and larger – audiences for Extension across the state.  

The 4-H Youth Development team hosted an animal science web series engaging hundreds of youth each Tuesday from April through June. A virtual Extension asparagus workshop had 150 people attending through Zoom.  

On a global scale, the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) moved its conference online and almost doubled the number of attendees and countries participating this year.  

Each of our 92 counties is holding a virtual 4-H fair, as well as an in-person 4-H fair if the county decides it is safe to do so. This is the first year for the virtual fair option and it gives us an opportunity to connect youth to 4-H in new ways.  

Working with Health and Human Sciences Extension educators, the Office of Multicultural Programs hosted a virtual conversation for the College, titled Race Matters, with 130 faculty and staff participating and a waiting list of others who were interested.  

And many of our departments, as well as Extension, are connecting with their audiences through their social media accounts, including Forestry & Natural Resources which has been hosting an “Ask the Experts” Facebook Live series.  

Giving Back  

County Extension educators often serve as the hub for community action and that has certainly been the case this spring. With rising unemployment and schools closed, many of our educators have helped organize food drives, as well as the distribution of milk through the federal Coronavirus Food Assistance Program.  

A group of graduates from the class of 2020 developed a virtual campaign to fund a class gift that will support scholarships for future College of Agriculture students.   Connecting with Students  

With students not coming back to campus after Spring Break, faculty worked hard to adapt courses to go online and many student organizations took to Zoom to stay engaged.  

This summer, students are being welcomed to campus with online visits. Dr. Wilson and the Office of Academic Programs recently hosted a virtual visit for incoming freshmen and their parents in advance of virtual STAR events.  

Moving Research Forward  

While much research at Purdue slowed, the College was able to keep 160 labs open during the pandemic due to their essential research and the need to get fields planted this spring.  

Our investments in automation have paid off as well. For example, the Controlled Environment Phenotyping Facility (CEPF) occupancy in the growth chamber was 81% for the month of May with critical research efforts continuing for maize, rice and brassica. Due to automation, we were able to capture 24,752 RGB images and performed 7,616 hyperspectral scans of plants during this time.  

We are grateful for the investment from Ag Alumni Seed allowing us to purchase a second growth chamber. The Board of Trustees approved the renaming of the CEPF to the Ag Alumni Seed Phenotyping Facility.  

So, I will end with…Who would have thought?  

Who would have thought that we would turn lemons into lemonade? We are agriculture. We are designed for change and we rose to the occasion.  

With the Protect Purdue plan in place, we anticipate the next year to be dynamic and robust. We all will have the opportunity to find new ways to enhance the reach and effectiveness of the College of Agriculture.

All the best,

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