Every year, the Agricultural Executive Council hosts clubs in the MU Quad during their biggest event, Ag Day. This year, the officer team decided to extend the event into 4 days, holding different events Monday through Thursday.
Monday night, the Ag Exec Council hosted Dr. William Moar, a company representative and entomology scientist from Monsanto. He spoke to council members and local FFA Chapters about Genetically Modified Organisms and food safety. He discussed some myths associated with GMOs, and the benefits behind science in the agricultural industry.
Tuesday was the ‘Ag Day in the Quad’ event. During this event, we had over 25 clubs representing clubs within the College of Agricultural Sciences and the College of Forestry. For the most part, the event was held underneath the new plaza in between the MU and the Student Experience Center, sheltering most of the clubs from the rain. The Young Cattlemen’s Committee was selling tri-tip sandwiches, and ended up selling out around 1:00 PM. The turn out was far beyond expected. During the event, the Ag Exec advisors, Tommy and Josh, judged the booths and ranked them as follows: 1st Place, International Agriculture Club; 2nd Place, Poultry Science Club; and 3rd Place, Horticulture Club. The most Interactive Club award went to Collegiate FFA.
Wednesday evening, the Ag Exec Council hosted the first annual Agricultural Issues Discussion Meet, which was facilitated by the Farm Bureau’s Young Farmers and Ranchers. Students who had applied to compete in the event were set up on a stage in the MU Lounge, and prompted with questions regarding agriculture in today’s era. The first place winner of the discussion was Andrew Miles, and the second place winner was Gregory Christiansen.
Lastly, Thursday night was facilitated by Betsy Hartley as she lead a workshop on how to write a grant proposal. With ER Jackman funding interviews coming up, Betsy provided tips to clubs and provided them with materials for a successful interview and grant proposal. Although we had a smaller audience, over 20 clubs were represented at the event.
Ag Days is an event that the Agricultural Executive Council looks forward to putting on every year. With such high success rates this year, the council looks forward to maintaining the extended event days next year as well.
