Since Dean Bill RanDle announceD the local FooD & health initiative in 2013, School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences faculty and staff have been constantly refining new objectives and defin-ing how signature programs and a proud history would fit in and evolve. Many of the SAES’s major accomplishments in the 2013–14 academic year are in synch with key objectives in the Local Food & Health Initiative. A quick look back at where we’ve just been is an insightful start for mapping out where the SAES is now headed. Dr. John O’Sullivan became the SAES’s inaugural professor of sustainable agriculture and local food systems shortly before the Local Food & Health Initiative was unveiled, and parallel devel-opments led to many leadership roles in Extension, teaching and research furthering sustainable agriculture and linking consum-ers to local farms. In the spring of 2014, O’Sullivan was awarded a Fulbright Scholar grant to con-duct research into Uruguay’s food production and delivery systems. O’Sullivan’s Fulbright award is another parallel development: a recognition of the entire SAES’s successful work to promote sus-tainable agriculture. Student achievements from 2013-14 include noteworthy accomplishments by:• Simone Hairston, a dietetics

major, who was among 20 juniors and seniors from uni-versities across the country who won a USDA essay contest in February. Winners received national recognition during USDA’s 2014 Agricultural Outlook Forum address-ing “The Changing Face of

Agriculture.” Hairston is also an Undergraduate Research Scholar — a landmark SAES program that enters its fourth year in 2014–15.

• An animal sciences major and USDA 1890 Scholar, Shakera Fudge, who was among 75 students chosen by the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities for its first class of HBCU All-Stars for their outstanding accomplishments in academics and civic engagement.

• The SAES chapter of Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences (MANRRS), which won the 2014 national quiz bowl (the second year in a row for the chapter). The A&T team van-quished competition from Ohio State, Southern University, the University of Wisconsin and Oregon State en route to the national title.

SAES faculty submitted 61 research proposals in 2013–14 and 42 of them were awarded funding. Much of this forthcoming research will address challenges facing more sustainable agricultural pro-duction methods and localized food-supply infrastructures. Also during 2013–14, a well-established SAES research project was spotlighted by CBS and other national news sources as a patented, post-harvest technology for hypoallergenic peanuts was licensed to an industry partner. Dr. Jianmei Yu of the SAES’s Food and Nutritional Sciences Program will serve as chief sci-ence officer for a company estab-lished to develop and market the process developed by SAES food scientists to food manufacturers. The Cooperative Extension Program made a number of note-

worthy contributions to mak-ing small-scale agriculture more sustainable, and two Extension outreaches that received national attention are noteworthy for meeting needs of families and communities with limited financial resources at the same time that they added a localized dimension to the food supply infrastructure:• A collaborative effort in

Catawba County coordinated by a member of the Cooperative

Extension field staff, Der Xiong, received one of two Community Sustainability Program Excellence Awards presented by the International City/County Management Association for 2014. The Extension outreach is helping a group of Hmong immigrants adapt skills from an agrarian lifestyle they left behind in the Laotian highlands to the production and marketing nuances of small-scale agricul-ture in western North Carolina.

• A Goldsboro-based teen activist group, “Students Working for an Agriculture Revolutionary Movement (SWARM)” coor-

dinated by a member of A&T Cooperative Extension’s field staff, Shorlette Ammons, was featured in an HBO documen-tary on nutrition and obesity. “Kebreeya’s Salad Days,” which was part of HBO’s “The Weight of the Nation for Kids” series documented SWARM’s successful effort to lobby support for a salad bar in their high school cafeteria.

While Cooperative Extension received national publicity for addressing food-security issues

with social implications for a global population that will increase from 7.1 billion currently to 9.1 billion by 2050, the in-state spotlight served as a reminder of the preeminent role of A&T Extension’s legacy. Perry Graves, a member of The Cooperative Extension Program’s Strategic Planning Council and a former chair of that 24-member advisory group, was inducted this sum-mer into the North Carolina 4-H Hall of Fame during the State 4-H Congress in Raleigh. Graves has been a 4-H volunteer in Rockingham County for more than 19 years.

Preparing. Finding. Implementing solutions.

Der Xiong examines Asian greens in Chou Yang’s high tunnel in Catawba County.

on the moveNorth Carolina Agricultural and

Technical State University

School of Agriculture and

Environmental Sciences Newsletter

www.ag.ncat.edu

August 2014 • Vol. XIII, No. 4

2013–14 academic year a landmark in many ways

Farm bill funding to give SAES facilities major overhaul

B e n B o w H a l l

Three Benbow Hall labs have been longstanding objectives for improving resources for students in fashion design and merchandising. Renovation of one lab is complete and planning is in place for the others. Another major improvement at Benbow — a Food Preparation Laboratory — will be ready to add new educational technolo-gies to SAES dietetics and nutrition courses in the fall of 2014. Equipment for the Fashion Merchandising and Design Program’s Design Lab is largely the same equipment students will find awaiting them once they launch a career in one of the fashion industries. The new equipment in the design lab also includes tables and chairs selected with ergonomic considerations in mind. Room 201 is soon to be home to an improved and upgraded CAD Lab with computer hardware up to the demands of software that has become integral to preparation for careers in the apparel industry. The new CAD Lab offers SAES students some of Adobe’s high-end design software (Illustrator and Photoshop) that have

become de rigueur for students studying fashion design and merchandising. (The renovated CAD lab also will be home to a cutting edge piece of new equipment purchased with another source of grant funding: a 3-D body scanner similar to the scanners at airport security, which scans an individual and yields data that software can then convert to a starting point in computer assisted design for either highly accurate dimensions for an existing design or a starting point for some-thing totally new.) The third lab for fashion merchandising and design students that 1890 Facilities funding will revitalize is the Textiles Lab, where fabrics can be analyzed for tensile strength and resistance to burning and abrasives. The revamped Textiles Lab is also equipped to identify fibers and yarns, test them for colorfastness. A preliminary for relocating the three fashion design labs together on the west end of Benbow’s second floor was relocation of a computer lab — available to all A&T students — from the second floor to the first floor. Shifting the computer lab required improvements to the Benbow IT infrastructure that are also a benefit

of 1890 Facilities funding. What used to be simply Room 103 at Benbow is now a Food Preparation Laboratory. The new lab has four separate kitchen units, each with different facilities for demonstra-tions of culinary and sanitary proce-dures for food preparation. One of the four units is outfitted with a range and other appliances that are acces-sible to individuals in wheelchairs

or with other physical limitations. Appliances and other equipment differ from unit to unit, as do sources of power (electric or gas) to offer instructors and students a variety of equipment similar to what they may encounter in their post-graduation careers. What the four units all have in common are video cameras that will relay activities in the units to large-screen monitors in an adjoining classroom.

C . H . M o o r e a g r i C u lt u r a l r e s e a r C H s t a t i o n

An overhaul of the security system at the Agricultural Research Program’s administra-tive and support facilities will include additional lighting, security cameras and a keyless access system.

C a r V e r H a l l

A small classroom on the first floor of Carver will be renovated into a student lounge and study commons. Amenities will include a strong Wi-Fi signal and desktop computers for stu-dents who need quick access to the Internet but don’t have a laptop or mobile with them. The east wall of Room 111 will get windows offer-ing a view of a renovated patio that will extend the study and socializing opportunities into the great outdoors. Room 122 of Carver will be upgraded into a teaching lab that includes a SMART Board and other support for a technology-enhanced learn-ing environment: one that accommodates multi-media, interactive learning, and allows students to connect to a class remotely. Improvements for Room 122 will also include cabinets for much-needed storage space. Room 165 at Carver is slated for an upgrade that will make the classroom a fully equipped facility for utilizing its SMART Board and other instructional technologies. Instructors will be able to turn to the use of current media tech-nologies for connecting students to learning in another room, another building, or off campus. Nearly all the labs and renovated class-rooms in Carver will get new and vastly improved heating and air conditioning systems, updated windows, blinds and shutters, and electrical upgrades.

on the move

The background for a broad range of upgrades to SAES buildings, the

University Farm and other facilities that will roll into high gear in the fall

of 2014 dates back to the 1985 farm bill’s 1890 Facilities Grant Program.

A farm bill provision allows for 1890 Facilities Program funds to accrue and carry

over, and that provision has the SAES now positioned to move forward in dramatic

fashion after stockpiling 1890 Facilities funding from several farm bills.

The SAES’s facilities committee consulted with the School’s four department

chairs to develop a prioritized list of teaching, research and Extension projects.

Planners were careful to schedule construction so that it would not disrupt class

schedules.

Here’s a building-by-building preview of what’s in store in the next few months:

An electrician installs wiring for a monitoring system in the new Food Preparation Laboratory in Benbow Hall. The pan-tilt-zoom system, with touch panel control, will allow classroom observation of work underway in the lab with the touch of a button.

Among the Carver Hall labs targeted for specific improvements made possible by 1890 Facilities Program funding:• The Plant Biotechnology Lab on the first floor

will get added tools for micropropagation, genetic and nutraceuticals research, biosens-ing for radiation and toxic contaminants, and for rescue of endangered species and mass production of rare and unique plant species.

• Several pieces of new equipment are destined for Carver’s Analytical Services Lab — equip-ment integral for testing soils, water, plants, compost and other agricultural materials, not only for SAES researchers but also for researchers in other A&T schools and col-leges. There will be new equipment for High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) analysis and mass spectrophotometry.

• The Food Chemistry/Biochemistry and Product Development Lab and the Food Safety Microbiology Research Laboratory will both get new ceiling tiles and drainage systems that will accompany new flooring. Improvements in heating, air-conditioning and ventilation will contribute to microbiological analyses, spec-trophotometer projects and other food safety and functional foods research in Room 172, and analytical research for preservation meth-ods and food product development in Room 173. Both labs are also in line for upgrades in benches and other basic equipment, and enhancements for eye-washes and other safety precautions.

Renovations to the mushroom biotechnol-ogy lab will fuse Room 250 and an adjoining stor-age area into one lab. Two antiquated growth chambers will be removed from a second mush-

room biotechnolo-gy lab in the base-ment and replaced with bench space for DNA isolation and biotechnol-ogy research for mushrooms and truffles. The reno-vation work will also include the addition of natu-ral gas lines for

equipment, and a major upgrade to cold-storage facilities to accommodate a culture bank that has grown to more than 1,000 mushroom strains. Carver’s IT infrastructure will get an infu-sion of 25 desktop computers to replace outdated computers no longer supported by university IT. Carver also will be getting diesel powered electrical generators to serve as a backup power supply for research labs when storms or other disruptions cut power to the building from utility lines.

C o lt r a n e H a l l

A storage area on the first floor of Coltrane’s west wing will be retrofitted with climate con-trol necessities for Cooperative Extension’s computer servers. Coltrane is also going to get security lighting and cameras, and a keyless access system.

r e i d g r e e n H o u s e

The SAES’s on-campus greenhouse is 10 years old and renovations and upgrades for cooling cells, plant benches, electrical wiring, water supplies and other systems for basic operations are now necessary. Reid’s facilities will also get expansions and upgrades to accommodate stu-dents working toward degrees in the SAES’s new urban and community horticulture program.

s o C k w e l l H a l l

The Sockwell lecture hall will get renovations and upgrades for much of the instructional technologies.

The Biological Engineering Program has received funding for several energy projects from USDA and other sources in recent years that increased research space significantly. One of the new energy labs will get a fume hood — necessary for ensuring the safety of the students and staff, and a preliminary for fully utilizing the lab’s research potential.

u n i V e r s i t y F a r M

Although the University Farm is in line for a number of major improvements, the capstone on the docket for 2014-15 is a 10,000 plus square-foot, $4.5 million pavilion that will have teaching, dry and wet labs, conference rooms, office space, food preparation facilities, storage space and an exhibition hall. The Farm’s swine research unit will get some major repairs — including a new roof that will require additional structural support. Cooperative Extension will make modifica-tions to its “Good Ag Practices” demonstration site, add electrical power to its high tunnels and install an irrigation system for its horticultural demonstrations.

w e B B H a l l

The current Webb Hall learning center will be modernized into an Internet cafe where students can compare notes and brainstorm, or just relax and socialize between classes. Bookcases will be replaced with furnishings for an ambience more conducive to informal exchanges of information. The renovated stu-dent amenities at Webb will nonetheless have study carrels, Wi-Fi for mobile devices and laptops, and a computer lab with hardware and software to accommodate the growing percentage of commuter students in the SAES student body (a contingent that often needs to make the most of time on campus between classes). To accommodate the need for ultra-low temperatures for some of the research samples in Webb labs, a new air conditioning unit will be installed on the roof. Its primary support function will be the freezer storage area on the second floor.

on the move Preparing. Finding. Implementing solutions.

Additional information and details on SAES construction projects getting underway in the near future are available at a special web page on the SAES shared google drive: http://bit.ly/saesfacilities

Reid Greenhouse is in line for renovations and upgrades that will be of immediate benefit to SAES students working toward degrees in the new urban and community horticulture program.

________________ Nonprofit Org.________________

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Greensboro, NC________________

on the moveNorth Carolina A&T State University School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Newsletter — Produced by Agricultural Communications

Dr. Harold L. Martin Sr., ChancellorDr. Bill Randle, Dean, School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences; Administrator, The

Cooperative Extension Program; Director, Agricultural ResearchDr. Antoine Alston, Interim Associate Dean, Academic StudiesDr. Fletcher Barber Jr., Associate Administrator, The Cooperative Extension ProgramWillie T. Ellis Jr., Associate Dean, AdministrationDr. Shirley Hymon-Parker, Associate Dean, Agricultural Research

North Carolina A&T State University is a land-grant doctoral/research institution and AA/EEO employer.

Send change of address and correspondence to: on the move Newsletter Editor Agricultural Research Program CH Moore Agricultural Research Station Greensboro, NC 27411

or online: http://tinyurl.com/mmtpf5c

7,000 copies of this public document were printed on recycled paper at a cost of $1,459.60 or $0.21 per copy.

Distributed in furtherance of the acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914. Employment and program opportunities are open to all people regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability. North Carolina A&T State University, North Carolina State University, US Department of Agriculture and local governments cooperating.

www.ag.ncat.edu

on the move/flip side

Taylor Phillips (r), a rising senior at Rockingham Early College, explains her research into detecting proteins in milk to her sister, Olympia Strange. Phillips was one of 20 high school juniors and seniors invited to spend four weeks at A&T for the Agricultural Research Program’s 2014 Research Apprenticeship Program. The research apprentices worked on projects with SAES research scientists and discussed their findings with friends and family on July 18.

mark your calendars for the 2014–15 academic year:

• University-wide opening day program for A&T

faculty and staff:

• SAES academic year kickoff:

• First day of classes, fall semester:

• A&T Homecoming:

Aug. 15

Aug. 15

Aug. 18

Oct. 25