Cultivate Spring 2025

FROM THE DEAN

Spring is in the air.

There is a distinct sense of new beginnings in the college as our graduates prepare to enter the world this June, poised and ready to address the challenges they have been training for. In July, Brian Horgan will join the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences as dean, bringing expertise in plant sciences and resource sustainability following a career at Michigan State University and the University of Minnesota.

We are making steady progress on our two new centers for learning: the George Wurzel Plant Sciences Building and the Charles and Claire Jacobson Animal Health Center, both of which will open in early 2026 and offer opportunities to students that promote discovery, with a continued focus on climate-smart research.

We are also celebrating the recent improvements made at the Howard C. Brown Horticultural Greenhouse Complex and the dedication of the Bryant Low Soil Analysis Lab - both of which will provide our students with Learn by Doing opportunities for decades to come. All of these projects are a result of the gracious philanthropic support of donors who know the value of hands-on learning.

In this issue you'll read about students who are researching ways to improve efficiencies in the cider industry and learning what it takes to produce a marketable product like olive oil from the orchard to store shelves. You'll also read about the advances being made using geospatial technology to better prepare and mitigate natural disasters such as wildfires and flooding.

I am grateful for the opportunity to serve as interim dean until Dean Horgan joins the college this summer and will continue to move forward all of the great work that is being done in the college.

In gratitude, 

JEREMY JAMES
Interim Dean

College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences