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: 1^st Place, International Agriculture Club; 2^nd Place, Poultry Science Club; and 3^rd 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.

Earlier in the month of April, 41 students and 3 advisors loaded up into a tour bus to experience South Western Oregon Agriculture. Otherwise referred to as the “SWAG Tour”, students got to explore farms, ranches, businesses, and the beach.

The tour started in Corvallis on Friday morning, and then headed towards Winston, Oregon for the Wildlife Safari. From there, the group headed towards Jackson County for a refreshing lunch with Northwest Farm Credit Services. After our pit stop, the SWAG Tour continued to Central Point, where the group explored a family owned and operated cattle ranch. From there, the SWAG Tour satisfied their sweet tooth at Lillie Belle Farms Artisan Chocolates (with free samples!).

Later that afternoon, the group stopped at Del Rio Vineyards. After getting a tour of the vineyards, fermentation room, and storage cellars, the evening was concluded with a tri-tip dinner provided by Crater FFA. During dinner, the Crater FFA Advisors spoke to the students about the importance of connections. Connections are not only important to an Agricultural Educator, but also to industry leaders.

Saturday morning was started bright an early with a trip up to Willow Witt Ranch in Ashland, Oregon. Even though the weather didn’t cooperate as nicely as hoped for, the snow didn’t stop the tour bus. The group then headed back down the hill for another vineyard in Grants Pass, where students of age could taste the wine. The SAWG tour then continued across state lines to Smith River, CA, where the group got to learn about the production of Easter Lilly bulbs at Dahlstrom and Watt Bulb Farm. The SWAG Tour participants then settled in for the night in Brookings, and awaited the adventures of the final day of the tour.

Sunday morning was kicked off with a splash, as the group headed down for a stroll on the beach. After everyone had their beach fix, the group headed to a local blueberry farm that is known for their ‘U-Pick’ program. Students enjoyed being able to purchase frozen blueberries and then go out to the field to see the blueberry plants. From there, the SWAG Tour headed to Face Rock Creamery. Many cheese samples later, the tour was ended at Bandon Dunes Golf Course, where the group learned about turf and recreation management.

After spending 3 days on a tour bus and being able to see many different parts of the agricultural industry, students filled out a short survey to evaluate the trip. The Agricultural Executive Council found that 91% of the attendees felt better prepared for a job after college. The Agricultural Executive Council’s main goal was to better prepare students for entering the workforce after graduation, and providing an opportunity like the SWAG Industry Tour is one of the most successful events every year.

2014-2015 Officer Team poses behind the Hatfield Marine Science Center sign during the Winter Officer Retreat.

The Agricultural Executive Council’s Officer Team kicked off Winter Term by taking a weekend to Hatfield Marine Science Center to have their Winter Officer Retreat. During this retreat, the officer team devoted the day to Constitution revisions, Winter Term planning, and officer bonding. While goals were made in the morning, the afternoon was spent ‘sea-horsing’ around in the science center, and the day finished off with adventures on the beach and downtown.

A few weeks later, we hosted our annual Ethics Panel, with panelists Dr. Rob Gaebel, Katie Fast, and Karen Samek. During this panel, our guests were prompted with questions about pressing issues in the Agricultural Industry. These panelists did an excellent job showcasing professional skills while answering ethical questions and interacting with opposing views. Council members reported that they thoroughly enjoyed having such experienced and well-presented speakers interacting inclusively with the council members.

Later in the term, the officer team hosted the annual College of Agricultural Sciences Country Western Dance. Hosted by the Country Western Dance Club and catered by the Meat Science Club, guests were asked to donate canned food as an entrance fee for this event. With all the canned food donated, the Agricultural Executive Council was able to donate around 500 cans of food to the OSU Food Bank. Oldfield Animal Teaching Facility was rockin’ with all of the dancing, while clubs within the council had the opportunity to enter a centerpiece into our centerpiece contest. 1^st place went to Food and Fermentation Science Club, 2^nd place went to Horticulture Club, and 3^rd place went to Agricultural Education Club.

Monthly council meetings this term went very smoothly as well. With guest speakers from Northwest Farm Credit Services, Experiential Learning Coordinator Dr. Katie Gaebel, and Leadership Academy Director Kellie Strawn, council members learned about upcoming College of Agricultural Sciences events and opportunities as well as scholarship information. Many clubs presented their club spotlights to share what clubs have been up to.

Currently, the council is gearing up for the Southwest Agriculture Industry Tour; otherwise know as the SWAG Tour. Running from April 24-26, students will be experiencing many different aspects of the Agricultural Industry, as well as speaking with industry leaders. Following not long after, Ag Days will kick off in the first week of May. Clubs will be able to showcase their activities and recruit members in the quad, students will be able to participate in a debate, and public speakers from Monsanto will be joining us for this event along with many other agenda items. Feel free to come check out Ag Days, and get your picture taken with a tractor or maybe even a baby cow!

A couple of officers blamed it all on their roots when they showed up in boots… at the beach!

An overhead view of the CAS Dance.

A front view of the line of dance at the CAS Dance!

A group shot of the Ethics Panel attendees.

A shot of the council during a monthly meeting.

This past Fall Term was quite a busy one for the Agricultural Executive Council. We kicked off the year with a long-weekend trip to Kah-Nee-Tah Resort for our officer retreat. While the guys in the group might have loved sleeping in a Tee-Pee for a weekend, the gals had other thoughts! We revised our Constitution, planned events for the year, came up with individual and team goals, as well as got to know each other and bonded as a team.

When we came back, we rolled right into the College of Agricultural Sciences Fall Kick-Off Gelato Social for incoming students. Here students learned about the many clubs our College has to offer, as well as enjoyed some creamy gelato from a local gelato shop. We truly learned that Oregon’s weather could be quite moody… Not an hour into the event and we got rained out! As a team we are excited for the new covered plaza to be built by Strand Agriculture Hall so that future years won’t get any rain on their parade!

Throughout the Football Season, the Ag Exec officers supported the College of Agricultural Sciences at the Celebrating Agriculture Game, our Alumni Tailgater, and the Potato Bowl. Beaver Pride is something that comes naturally to all of us, and celebrating tradition and agricultural top off the excitement of a home game. While hanging out and connecting with donors and alumni, the Ag Exec Officers are always willing to be part of the game day rush. GO BEAVS!

Members of the officer team were invited to the College of Agricultural Sciences Dean’s Dinner, held at the end of October. During the dinner, students were placed among tables to interact with faculty and alumni. We enjoyed hearing stories about anything from farming operations, to veterinary science studies, to landscape architecture. These kinds of stories and interactions are what make being a student of the College that much more interesting.

To wrap up the term for the Agricultural Executive Council, we hosted our annual Etiquette Dinner. We open the event to any student involved with an Ag Exec club. Our speakers for the evening were Jessica Budge of Oregon Agriculture in the Classroom, and Jake Cramer from S&T Fraternity Management. During the catered dinner, Jessica and Jake gave a presentation of how to professionally eat, mingle, and carry a conversation during a formal dinner or cocktail reception, or in our case a ‘mock-tail’ reception. The evening’s events wouldn’t have been possible without Jessica and Jake as well as a generous donation from Wilbur Ellis. The Agricultural Executive Council is looking forward to bringing more professional development events to the students of the College of Agricultural Sciences, as career preparation opportunities is one of the goals for the Ag Exec Officer Team this year.

Keep a look out for new College of Agricultural Sciences t-shirts, Spring Industry Tour, and Ag Days… Coming soon!

As the summer is coming to a warm beginning, our newly elected officer team has already begun to plan events and get things lined up for next year. Please welcome the 2014-2015 Agricultural Executive Council as follows:

President: Dustin Welters

Vice President: Gregory Taog Christensen

Director of Correspondence: Mandi Carlson

Director of Finance: Rand Campbell

Director of Public Relations: Joey Meyer

Director of Ag Day: Austin Miller

Director of New Fields: Bailey Jenks

We are all very excited to serve the College of Agricultural Sciences, and cannot wait to see what this next year has in store!