Reflecting upon the many recent energizing events in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, it’s no surprise that the past year has passed so quickly. For starters, on a sunny June 4, we enjoyed the exhilarating dedication of UVM’s brand new teaching and research facility, Jeffords Hall – a spacious home to CALS departments of plant biology and plant and soil science. Today, three floors of classrooms, offices, meeting spaces and teaching labs buzz with the work of the life sciences. Outside, even in winter, the gardens are alive with promise. Jeffords Hall has transformed the eastern boundary of campus into a hub of activity. It is a gateway to numerous programs of study at UVM and a substantial investment in the university’s future as a premier small research university.
This fall, we set yet another record for college enrollment – over 1,100 undergraduates. The increase is distributed across all of CALS’ departments, speaking to the universal relevance and high quality of all of our academic programs.
To serve this burgeoning student population during tough economic times and to mark CALS centennial in 2011, I initiated a campaign to raise $1 million in endowed scholarships. See these related two stories that speak to how scholarships can transform students’ lives during their CALS career and ever after.
Moving on to the topic of research, even though outside funding is increasingly competitive at the national level, our faculty reached an all-time high for grants and contracts – about $8.1 million at year’s end.
This substantial achievement parallels the University of Vermont’s plan to identify what it has dubbed “spires of excellence” among its existing and emerging research concentrations that occur across all of UVM’s schools and colleges. I’m pleased to report that “food systems” was identified as one of these spires – targeted to become a UVM center for learning and discovery. Our College is perfectly positioned for this marvelous opportunity to work with allied faculty.
In the past few years UVM already led the emerging food systems field with:
- The 2003 CALS-led Aiken Lecture themed, “Who Chooses the Food You Eat?”
- Its launch in 2006 of a three-university collaboration called the Food Systems Leadership Institute, a partnership of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges (now known as the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities.
- CALS Food System Research Collaborative of nearly 20 organizations gathered on campus in 2008.
- On Nov. 1, nearly 250 faculty, staff, leaders and stakeholders met at UVM’s Food Systems Symposium to discuss research opportunities and areas of funding slated for this important area of study.
- In November, CALS’ Jane Kolodinsky was named chair UVM’s food systems steering committee.
Finally, we launched statewide, the Dairy Center of Excellence on Sept. 23, announcing that we are partnering with Vermont farms to do a portion of our research on site. This initiative caught the attention of the national press, because it is a compelling model that expands the research opportunities of CALS faculty, and it puts researchers in closer contact with potential beneficiaries of that research. Through the Dairy Center of Excellence we will work with local farms, using science to solve practical problems.
Meanwhile, we are in the early planning stages to design the next generation facilities needed for teaching and small-scale research at the Miller Complex known as UVM Farms. Moving to the Dairy Center of Excellence model not only expands the amount of research possible on Vermont Farms, it also allows us to expand our teaching activities at the UVM Farms. Stay tuned as plans unfold.
Overall, it’s been an amazing year and we are moving forward with plenty of enthusiasm and positive momentum. As always, I welcome your comments in this conversation and support for CALS. Please contact me.