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011 From the Chancellor

This fall has been an exciting time for the institute. In September, we held the ribbon cutting at the new dairy unit at the East Tennessee AgResearch and Education Center. The Little River Animal and Environmental Unit is not only a state-of-the-art dairy, it is a laboratory for environmental research related to animal agriculture and water. Located in Walland, this facility has the capacity to handle 250 cows and will support research, teaching and Extension programs.

CASNR’s undergraduate enrollment has increased to 1,117 students, an increase of 9.62 percent over last year and an increase of 32.8 percent over the past five years. Undergraduate enrollment has not been this high in CASNR since 1995, and the avid interest in agriculture and natural environment careers is an indication of the strong job market and demand for our graduates. Not only are the numbers increasing, but also our diversity has increased, too, from 13.76 percent to 14.32 percent, which is a better reflection of talent recruited throughout the entire state of Tennessee.

The University of Tennessee Foundation held its Fall Volunteer Leadership Meeting for Development Council board members in October. The UTIA Development Council met as a part of this meeting, and I am pleased to report that we had strong participation. As of September 30, the Campaign for Tennessee had raised more than $1.2 billion in support of UT programs. UTIA has surpassed $104 million, which is almost double its original goal of $55 million. Thanks to Buddy Mitchell and the development staff for their hard work, as well as to you for your support during this campaign.

As we enter the holiday season, please take some time to reflect on the past year. We have so much to be thankful for.

Go Vols!

Happy Holidays!

What would you do if someone has a heart attack? Being prepared to respond quickly can make a difference between life and death. For every minute that a person in cardiac arrest goes without being successfully treated by defibrillation, the chance of survival decreases by 7 percent per minute in the first minutes and decreases by 10 percent per minute as time advances beyond about three minutes.

The agriculture campus has installed six automated external defibrillators (AEDs). The AED is a portable electronic device that automatically diagnoses potentially life threatening cardiac arrhythmias and is able to treat them through defibrillation, the application of electrical shock which stops the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to reestablish an effective rhythm.

In 2009, an AED saved the life of former UT basketball player Emmanuel Negedu, who collapsed while exercising in the Neyland-Thompson Sports Center. You can read about his experience at http://bit.ly/UTbasketball.

At a special institute reception in October, UT President Joe DiPietro welcomed Dr. Larry Arrington and presented him with

a chain of office signifying his leadership as chancellor of agriculture.

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Third Thursday Nov - Dec 20112

4-H: An Investment for the Futureby Steve Sutton, Director, Tennessee 4-H Youth Development

Many times when people think of 4-H, the county fair, a livestock show or some other contest or event comes to mind. While these may be a part of our educational program, 4-H is so much more. These events are merely the vehicle, the “carrot on a stick,” we use to stimulate young people to gain knowledge, develop life skills and form positive attitudes that will prepare them to become capable, responsible and compassionate adults.

4-H offers young people fun, safe and inclusive learning environments to meet their need for belonging. In Tennessee, we do this through 4-H clubs, after-school programs, special interest, school enrichment programs and camping. 4-H provides youth with the opportunity to explore a variety of topics and to master knowledge and skills through project work. County Extension agents and the volunteers they recruit and train guide 4-H programs. Regional, state and national events are offered to reinforce what is learned in local 4-H clubs and communities and to expand 4-H members’ knowledge and skills to a more advanced level.

UT Extension’s 4-H program, the largest youth development organization in the state, reaches more than 300,000 youth statewide. 4-H touches youth from suburban, urban and rural areas: 61 percent live in small towns and rural areas, 28 percent in cities and suburbs, 9 percent on farms and 2 percent in central cities. 4-H also serves volunteers, parents, teachers, community leaders and other adults who work with youth. More than 5,800 volunteers serve Tennessee 4-H annually by donating their time and talents. There are also 857 4-H youth volunteers, who are teens who share their skills with younger 4-H members and with other youth in their communities.

4-H uses best practices to interest young people in learning. These include experiential learning (learning by doing), youth adult partnerships, fun curriculum materials, educational-centered activities and events, service learning and collaborations with other youth-serving agencies and organizations. In 2010, Extension staff across the state made more than 279,900 educational contacts with youth in the area of workforce preparation to help them acquire new skills and work toward specific goals. In a survey of more than 13,000 program participants, 63 percent reported they know where they want to end up and how to get there.

Quality and quantity do matter in community-based youth programs. The more often youth are involved in youth development programs like 4-H, the more they and their communities benefit. Tennessee 4-H’ers are enthusiastic about community service and service learning. Last year, more than 23,500 4-H youth gave 57,846 hours of service to their communities at a value of $1,235,590.

Although university-based faculty and staff provide support for 4-H statewide, it takes county-based staff working with trained volunteers to deliver the 4-H program. 4-H professional staff members are critical to providing a county 4-H youth development program. Their program supports volunteers and provides youth with the benefits that research and more than 100 years of success have shown that 4-H provides. 4-H is critical to the development of our young people and their communities.

Steve Sutton

Posters are being circulated by email and put up in buildings to show where the emergency devices are located on the agriculture campus.

The devices are housed in white boxes mounted on the walls at the following locations:

• Plant Biotechnology Building, first floor near the vending area and elevator

• Morgan Hall, first floor at the center of the building

• Center for Renewable Carbon (formerly known as Forest Products Building), entry foyer

• College of Veterinary Medicine, three locations: first floor A-Corridor outside Anatomy Lab; Small Animal first floor Omnicell outside Treatment Room 1; second floor at the elevator near Hospital Operations

UT Police also carry AEDs in their vehicles.

For more information about the AEDs or to learn about using them, visit http://safety.ag.utk.edu or contact the UTIA Safety Office at 865-974-1153.

What would you do if someone has a heart attack? Continued

agriculture.tennessee.edu 3

An Event for the Entire Family!Warm yourself by the fire as you enjoy the sights and sounds of the season at the Holiday Express at the UT Gardens in Knoxville! Ten garden-scale model trains, thousands of lights and a miniature landscape featuring rivers, waterfalls and more than 100 buildings decorated for the holidays will delight visitors young and old.

The fun starts December 2 and continues every weekend throughout the New Year, with special hours on weekdays between December 25 and New Year’s Day. Visit http://utgardens.tennessee.edu or call 865-974-8265 for more information.

UT Center for Renewable Carbon Named Lead for $15 Million USDA GrantCenter to coordinate woody biomass production and utilization studies

The Center for Renewable Carbon, a program of the Institute of Agriculture, has been named by the USDA as a recipient of one of five coordinated agricultural research projects to support the development of sustainable regional bioenergy production systems.

The $15 million award, made through a highly competitive process, creates the Southeast Partnership for Integrated Biomass Supply Systems (IBSS). Tim Rials, director of the CRC, will coordinate the efforts of a team of scientists from UT and several collaborating institutions throughout the Southeast.

“This award is a perfect example of why the Center for Renewable Carbon was created,” said UT President Joe DiPietro. “It pulls together a number of people, internal and external to the university, to collaborate on multiple, important goals toward the objective of commercializing cellulosic renewable biofuels. Having this kind of grant will allow us further progress toward achieving that objective, sooner rather than later.”

The team will develop sustainable feedstock production systems for dedicated energy crops, specifically switchgrass and woody biomass. The crops will provide an affordable and reliable supply of biomass with characteristics optimal for conversion to advanced “drop in” biofuels. The IBSS Partnership will also incorporate innovative outreach methods to increase public awareness of key aspects of bioenergy, including information generated from new environmental measures designed to equip landowners and community interest groups with metrics for effective decision-making regarding the new biofuels industry.

More details at http://bit.ly/utcrc. –Patricia McDaniels

Research Horticulturist Jason Reeves points out interesting varieties of

pumpkins, gourds and winter squash to visitors at the fourth annual Pumpkin

Field Day. Participants learned about pest control in the pumpkin patch, received marketing tips, attended fall-themed cooking classes led by UT Extension

Family and Consumer Science agents and toured the grounds and the 5,000-piece

UT Pumpkin Display at the West Tennessee AgResearch and Education

Center in Jackson.

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UT Pumpkin Field Day.

Grants & Contracts J uly–September 2011

July

UT AgResearch hopes that this information on UTIA grants and contracts fosters awareness and interdisciplinary collabora-tion among our scientists. Thanks to the resourcefulness and competitiveness of our faculty, the institute received awards totaling $15,787,800 in grants, contracts and cooperative agreements from external agencies for the third quarter of 2011. At a time when most states are operating with constrained budgets, our ability to attract dollars for research and extension from outside sources has become especially crucial. To the principal and co-principal investigators listed below, congratulations. To everyone, we appreciate your support and efforts in seeking external funding.

David Brian Biomedical & Diagnostic Sciences

348,671 National Institutes of Health

David Buehler Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 23,000 American Bird Conservancy

Christopher Clark; Dayton Lambert Agricultural and Resource Economics

32,686 UT Battelle

Barbara Clarke Family and Consumer Sciences 30,000 Tennessee Department of Health

Mei-Zhen Cui Biomedical & Diagnostic Sciences

361,159 National Institutes of Health

Burton English; James Larson, Dayton Lambert, Angela McClure

Agricultural and Resource Economics, Plant Sciences

50,010 Tennessee Valley Authority

Robert Freeland Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

3,500 Geosyntec Consultants

Matthew Gray; Heath Hagy Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 95,861 U.S. Department of the Interior-Fish and Wildlife Service

Shawn Hawkins; John Buchanan Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

9,588 Texas AgriLife Extension Service

Philip Jardine Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

1,185,16029,764

UT Army Corps of Engineers-SERDPOhio State University

Lead UTK; Andrea Ludwig, Daniel Yoder

Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

14,479 U.S. Geological Survey

Lead UTK; Donald Hodges Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 23,038 U.S. Geological Survey

Jeff Mitchell Animal Science 69,000 TN Dairy Herd Improvement Association

Barry Rouse Pathobiology 20,963 National Institutes of Health

Hildegard Schuller Pathobiology 19,086 National Institutes of Health

Neal Stewart Plant Sciences 106,9253,000

Ceres Inc.American Hemerocallis Society

Donald Tyler West TN AgResearch and Education Center

108,104 USDA ARS

John Wilkerson Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

20,000 Cotton Inc.

Larry Wilson Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 98,400* Evergreen

Xuemin Xu Pathobiology 179,580 National Institutes of Health

Xuemin Xu; Donald McGavin Pathobiology 17,649 National Institutes of Health

PI; Co-PI Department Award Agency

*Combines multiple grants

PI; Co-PI Department Award AgencyKeith Belli Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 30,000 USDA Forest ServiceAnn Berry Family and Consumer Sciences 2,000 National Endowment for Financial

EducationFeng Chen Plant Sciences 14,000 UT BattelleSherry Cox Biomedical and Diagnostic

Sciences30,324 Merial Limited

Doris D'Souza Food Science and Technology 36,072 Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc.Matthew Devereaux Family and Consumer Sciences 230,175 Tennessee Dept of EducationPatricia Donald; Craig Canaday Entomology and Plant Pathology 181,900 Smithbucklin Corp.Amy Fulcher Plant Sciences 8,000 University of FloridaJerome Grant; Greg Wiggins, Mark Windham, Paris Lambdin

Entomology and Plant Pathology 33,572 USDA Forest Service

Shawn Hawkins; Andrea Ludwig, John Buchanan

Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

10,330 Texas AgriLife Extension Service

Martha Keel Family and Consumer Sciences 25,500 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Patrick Keyser; Craig Harper Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 138,714 Commonwealth of KentuckyDebra Miller; Matthew Gray Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 6,441 U.S. Geological SurveyKevin Moulton Entomology and Plant Pathology 47,869 Ohio State UniversityRoland Roberts Agricultural and Resource

Economics21,910 Blount Community Church

Scott Schlarbaum Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 45,000 USDA Forest ServiceLawrence Steckel Plant Sciences 3,000 Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc.Robert Trigiano Entomology and Plant Pathology 12,000 Paramount Farming CompanyDena Wise Family and Consumer Sciences 332,035 FINRA Investor Education

FoundationDaniel Yoder; John Buchanan, Andrea Ludwig

Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

150,000 TN Department of Environment and Conservation

Keith Belli Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 71,380 U.S. Geological SurveyDavid Buehler Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 8,000 UT BattelleJoseph Clark Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 212,702

142,492

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and FisheriesArmy-Engineer Research and Development Center

Mark Fly Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 249,70083,000

Tennessee Department of HealthUSDA Forest Service

Jerome Grant; Paris Lambdin, Greg Wiggins, Ashley Lamb, James Parkman

Entomology and Plant Pathology 498,392 USDA Forest Service

Grants & Contracts J uly–September 2011

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PI; Co-PI Department Award AgencyMatt Gray; Heath Hagy Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 62,105 U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceMatt Gray; Katherine Edwards, Heath Hagy, William Sutton, Douglas Osborne, Gabriel Upchurch

Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 15,488 USDA NRCS

Kimberly Gwinn; Joanne Logan, Caula Beyl

Entomology and Plant Pathology, Biosystems Engineering and Soil Sciences, CASNR Administration

267,379 USDA NIFA

Robert Holland Center for Profitable Agriculture 20,000 Tennessee Department of AgriculturePatrick Keyser Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 421,999

175,000National Fish & Wildlife FoundationTennessee Wildlife Resources Agency

Paris Lambdin; Jerome Grant Entomology and Plant Pathology 24,682 USDA Forest ServiceLead UTK; Eric Drumm Biosystems Engineering and Soil

Science98,912 TN Department of Transportation

Elizabeth Long Entomology and Plant Pathology 83,792* USDA APHISDonald McKenzie Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 2,500 Dept. of Natural Resources, Division

of Fish and Wildlife-IndianaNaima Moustaid-Moussa; Nalin Siriwardhana, Wenting Xin

Animal Science 9,000 Physicians' Medical Education and Research Foundation

Stephen Oliver; Gina Pighetti, Raul Almeida, Oudessa Kerro Dego, Douglas Luther, Maria Prado

Animal Science 500,000 USDA NIFA

Jeffrey Phillips; Shelley Newman Small Animal Clinical Sciences 39,592 Merial LimitedTimothy Rials; Joseph Bozell, Burton English, Samuel Jackson, Nicole Labbe, Neal Stewart, Donald Tyler, Timothy Young, Ken Goddard, Jonathan Walton, Mark Windham

Center for Renewable Carbon, Agricultural and Resource Economics, Plant Sciences, Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, Eastern Region Extension, Entomology and Plant Pathology

5,850,000 USDA NIFA

Carl Sams; Dean Kopsell Plant Sciences 118,795 Cornell UniversityScott Schlarbaum Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries 17,000 USDA Forest ServiceHildegard Schuller Biomedical and Diagnostic

Sciences280,800 National Institutes of Health

John Skinner Entomology and Plant Pathology 29,00025,000

Pennsylvania State UniversityUSDA ARS

Lawrence Steckel Plant Sciences 8,000 MonsantoNeal Stewart; Charles Kwit Plant Sciences 400,000 USDA NIFASharon Thompson; Ray Burden Center for Agriculture and

Food Security and Preparedness; Extension Administration

1,299,955 Food and Drug Administration

Grants & Contracts J uly–September 2011

*Combines multiple grants

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Grants & Contracts J uly–September 2011

PI; Co-PI Department Award AgencySharon Thompson Center for Agricultural and Food

Security and Preparedness13,256 Fresh Express

Robert Trigiano; Mark Windham Entomology and Plant Pathology 448,840 USDA ARSAnnette Wszelaki Plant Sciences 2,000 University of FloridaFrank Yin; Christopher Main, James Larson, Hugh Savoy, Donald Tyler, Michael Buschermohle

Plant Sciences, Agriculture and Resource Economics, Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

65,087 USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

Daniel Yoder Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science

14,995 USDA ARS

Svetlana Zivanovic Food Science and Technology 20,492 Office of Naval Research

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New UT Initiative to Improve Safety of Nation’s Food Supply

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The UT Center for Agriculture and Food Security and Preparedness (CAFSP) will build upon well-established national training development and delivery mechanisms to address the high priority needs of the National Integrated Food Safety System. The CAFSP and its partners will develop and deliver high quality training to food safety officials at the local, state and national levels.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is projected to fund the initiative at $6.6 million across five years. The goal is to achieve consistent, quality food inspection throughout all 50 states and U.S. territories.

The work builds upon the center’s core competencies in developing food safety and defense training courses for a national audience. The Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies have funded this previous work. The new training program will build on previously developed curriculum and will develop new courses that will focus on high priority areas related to national food protection. This program will support implementation of the 2011 FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, which mandates consistent food protection training.

The CAFSP, which is housed in the College of Veterinary Medicine, will train food safety officials who are responsible for inspecting 80 percent of the nation’s food supply. They monitor food safety at processing facilities, grocery stores and restaurants. They also are expected to act when communities experience natural disasters. Picture hurricanes, flooding, lengthy power failures and accidental or intentional disasters affecting the food supply. All can impact the safety of food available to consumers.

Learn more at http://bit.ly/UTCAFSP.

Highlighting a family specialty, UT Extension Dean Tim Cross grilled lamb for participants at the UT Farmers Market. The market, which featured local produce, music, food, crafts and children’s activities, ran weekly from May through October. It attracted many diverse ven-dors, employees, students and community members to the UT Gardens.

Chancellor Arrington greets UT 4-H and Extension supporter Bob Brinkman at a recent Leaders and Legacies reception. The annual event honors donors whose benevolence supports the institute, its people and programs.

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101 Morgan HallKnoxville, TN 37996-4505

UTIA News is published monthly by the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture. Send comments and suggestions to Margot Emery, memery@tennessee.edu. The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of

its education and employment programs and services. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, or

covered veteran status. Visit the Institute of Agriculture on the Internet at http://agriculture.tennessee.edu | E11-1101-00-001-12

HGTV Partners with UT GardensHome and Garden Television and Scripps Networks Interactive's in Knoxville recently committed $25,000 to establish the HGTV UT Gardens Internship Fund. Their support provides support for public horticulture students working in the UT Gardens. As part of the agreement, HGTV offered to provide a student the chance to landscape the grounds at the front entrance to the Scripps Networks Interactive’ home studios on Sherrill Boulevard in West Knoxville. The partnership gives students the opportunity to create state-of-the-art, sustainable garden spaces in two of the most premier learning laboratories in East Tennessee.

This year’s intern is Shianne Kaina, a junior in public horticulture from Byron, Michigan. She has been splitting time working in the UT Gardens and at the HGTV home studios gaining real-world experience to complete a project for the nation’s largest network dedicated to home and gardening. Kaina also plans to do some gardening writing for HGTV.

To hear about Shianne's experience in her own words, go to http://tinyurl.com/4yhsjh9.

The HGTV UT partnership is a first step in providing more student opportunities in designing landscape and gardening plans for HGTV and the UT Gardens and participating first-hand in their implementation.

“UT has one of only three public horticulture programs in the country, and this partnership will help shape the future leaders of this exciting field,” says UT Gardens Director Sue Hamilton. –Tom Looney

2011 Epsilon Sigma Phi Service Award winnersPlease join Extension in congratulating the following individuals receiving this year's Epsilon Sigma Phi service awards. They, along with the 2010 and 2009 winners, were recognized at the ESP state meeting and leadership forum in October at Lakeside Resort in Smithville.

• Specialist Region: Mid Career: John Toman; Meritorious Service: Ann Berry

• Western Region: Early Career: Tracy Hagan; Mid Career: Booker Leigh; Meritorious Service: Richard Powell

• Central Region: Early Career: Johnny Barnes; Mid Career: Emily Osterhaus; Meritorious Service: Brenda Andy

• Eastern Region: Mid Career: Neal Denton; Meritorious Service: David Yates

Congratulations to each of these individuals.