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At A Glance
San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo Swine Skillathon
Chemistry Alum Visits American Chemical Society
Dr. Rogers: Ask the Professor
Inaugural Teaching Certification Pinning Ceremony
Dr. Ghosh: Presentations in India
6th Annual No-Till Texas Soil Symposium
Simmons Pet Foods on Campus
Southern Agricultural Economics Association
Buffs at Home
Buffs on the Move
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Dates To Remember
March 8: Midterms
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San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo
Swine Skillathon
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Each year a group of undergraduates and graduate students are selected to help develop the Skill Stations for the Swine Skillathon competition at the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo.
This year, led by McKinley Begert, M.S. Agriculture, these students spent many hours planning and preparing to put on this contest.
There were 96 4-H and FFA participants
and the high placing senior received a $10,000 scholarship.
There are three divisions (Junior, Intermediate, and Senior), four Skill Station categories (Carcass/Meats, Anatomy & Physiology, Health, and Management), and an interview portion.
WT Agricultural Sciences has supervised the competition for several years.
Dr. Loni Lucherk, Dr. Gordon W. Davis Chair in Meat Judging
and Assistant Professor of Animal Science, Dr. Kevin Williams, Richard and Mary West Traylor Professor and Associate Professor of Agricultural Education, and Dr. Trent Schwartz, Assistant Professor of Meat Science, officiated the Swine Skillathon.
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Chemistry Alum Visits American Chemical Society | Ottis Scrivner delivers lecture to American Chemical Society. | |
Ottis Scrivner, B.S. Chemistry '15, Process Engineer at Pantex,
recently spoke to the American Chemical Society about H2S production in cells
and how it has a role in inflammation and reduction of ischemia reperfusion injuries.
Ottis shared that his favorite part of his career is interacting with many different experts
across the nuclear security enterprise, which includes scientists and engineers
at Los Alamos National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratory.
His advice to current undergraduate students would be to seek out social and academic clubs, as those social networks will help when pursuing graduate school or starting a career!
Ottis Scrivner, Process Engineer at Pantex, served in the U.S. Army for four years
as a Combat Medic. After the military, Ottis received his Associate's degree in Chemistry
from Amarillo College, and continued his education at WT graduating Summa Cum Laude with a B.S. in Chemistry in 2015. Ottis is the founder
of the WTAMU American Chemical Society Student Chapter!
He went on to earn his Ph.D. in Chemistry from Baylor University in 2022,
then spent one year in Atlanta, Georgia at Emory University as a Postdoctoral Fellow.
Ottis now serves as the Process Engineer at the Pantex Plant in Amarillo.
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Dr. Rogers: Ask the Professor | |
Dr. Jim Rogers, Professor of Environmental Science, was recently featured on WT's
Ask the Professor, a section of The Prairie News that features questions,
asked by students, answered by professors!
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Inaugural Teaching Certification
Pinning Ceremony
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As a new tradition, future teachers were formally welcomed into their profession at a pinning ceremony hosted by WT's Educator Preparation Program on February 6th.
Among 57 students recognized were several students from the Department of Agricultural Sciences including, Taylin Atwood, Jr., Zoey Casey, Jr., Emilea Cole, Sr.,
Cassidy Dotson, Jr., Brylea Ervin, Jr., Jasmine Farfan, Jr., Makayla Madrid, Sr.,
Grace Mortenson, Jr., Ashlyn Smith, Jr., Steleigh Stegall, Jr.,
all students planning to be certified to teach in. Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources.
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"The pinning ceremony is a milestone that helps me reflect on why I started
in the first place, and that is to impact future students.
This experience certainly helps me continue in my studies with focus and determination."
-Grace Mortensen, Jr. Agriculture Education
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Dr. Ghosh: Presentations in India | |
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Dr. Nabarun Ghosh, Professor of Biology, recently visited the Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Centenary Post Graduate College in Rahara, Kolkata, India,
to give a lecture on
"Current aspects of Biotechnology
covering the story
of COVID Vaccination and Medicine."
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Dr. Ghosh also visited the Biotechnology Laboratory at Birla Industrial
and Technological Museum to give a lecture on "Global Warming, Particle Pollution,
Diseases and Sustainability of the Biosphere."
Dr. Ghosh also presented
a hands-on activity on
"Assessing Chlorophyll
- the Biomolecule Controlling
the Sustainability of Higher Life Forms."
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6th Annual No-Till Texas Soil Health Symposium | |
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On February 13 and 14, WT hosted the 6th Annual
No-Till Texas Soil Symposium in the Piehl-Schaffer Pavilion,
where Dr. Craig Bednarz, Stan and Gerry Sigman Professor of Water Resources,
Associate Professor and Director of the Semi-Arid Agricultural Systems Institute,
and Dr. Tim Steffens, Associate Professor of Rangeland and Resource Management,
were featured as guest speakers!
No-Till Texas is an organization promoting soil health and regenerative farming practices
in the Texas Panhandle and South Plains. The goal at No-Till Texas is to make farmers
and ranchers more profitable through improvements in soil health.
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Simmons Pet Foods On Campus | |
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Leah Lambrakis, Vice President of Research and Development, Nutrition & Scientific Affairs, and Amanda Hes, Project Leader of Pet Research and Development,
B.S. Animal Science '08,
from Simmons Pet Foods recently visited BIOL 3321*Companion Animal Science II .
They talked about the complexity and scientific detail that goes into each aspect
of pet food through a lecture entitled "What's in Your Pet's Food Bowl."
Simmons Pet Food is the leading North American private-label
and contract manufacturer of wet pet food
and produces over 2,000 formulations of pet food for a variety of different companies!
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L to R: Leah Lambrakis, Dr. Sarah-Louise Newcomer, Dr. Russell and Natrelle Long Professor and Director of the Companion Animal Program,
Amanda Hes, and Willow Kate, AKC Labrador Retriever.
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Southern Agricultural Economics Association | |
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Dr. Lal Almas, Regents Professor of Agricultural Business and Economics,
Dr. Chelsea Arnold, Assistant Professor of Agricultural Business and Economics,
Dr. Bridget Guerrero, Associate Professor of Agricultural Business and Economics,
and Dr. Mallory Vestal, Plug Piehl Professor of Agriculture, Associate Professor
of Agricultural Business and Economics and SAEA Executive Committee Director,
all recently attended the Southern Agricultural Economics Association's (SAEA)
Annual Conference in Atlanta, Georgia! AGBE Drs. Almas, Guerrero, Vestal,
and Paige Holbrooks, M.S. Agriculture,
were selected to present poster proposals during the event.
Dr. Arnold represented WT by accompanying Wt's Quiz Bowl team to the conference.
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Kyleigh King, Jr. Agricultural Business
and Economics
Emma Bohnen, Jr. Agricultural Business
and Economics
Eli Weisensee, Sr. Agribusiness
Trenton Hammerand, Sr. Agricultural Business and Economics
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Lane Remmich, Sr. Agricultural Business
and Economics
Tyson Schneider, Sr. Agricultural Business
and Economics
Jayci Mekelburg, Sr. Agribusiness
Abigail Watson, Jr. Plant, Soil,
and Environmental Science
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Paige Holbrooks with Drs. Guerrero and Vestal. | |
The quiz bowl team with Dr. Arnold. | |
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Guests who visited the
Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences
in February!
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Amarillo College
Transfer Day
Canyon Chamber
of Commerce
Caviness South Plains Meat Judging
Banquet and Awards
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Extension Education: Lunch and Learn
Polish Agribusiness Professionals
4-H Entomology
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Students, faculty and staff represented the
Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences
traveling in February!
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California
San Diego
Georgia
Atlanta
Kansas
Hutchinson
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Texas
Caprock Canyons State Park
Ft. Worth
Highland Park
Lake Meredith
Lubbock
San Antonio
San Marcos
Kolkata, India
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New Mexico
Albuquerque
Las Cruces
Portales
Oklahoma
Purcell
Oregon
Portland
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A Moment with Mrs. Bachman | |
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So why is February short-changed on number of days in the month?
It’s a long and involved story involving the Romans, Greeks, Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, superstition, the sciences and influences of the lunar and solar system.
Suffice it to say that without the influence of many different cultures
and the need to fit the physical constraints of the universe to be repeatable,
we would not have the calendar we use today.
So why is February shortest?
February was the last month added to the calendar
and serves as the month to make the whole calendar consistent.
In my view, February is the most important because without leap-year,
the calendar would not be in balance with the seasons.
As we work through complex problem solving,
we need to have diverse teams of people with diverse minds and outside-the-box ideas!
We also need to remember that shorter or different might make the biggest contribution.
We all need to keep an open mind and learn from others.
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The WT Agriculture Development Association provides support for the Agricultural Department faculty, staff and students. Membership is open to all alumni, ex-students and supporters of the Department of Agricultural Sciences. | |
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The WT Alumni Association provides support for the Natural Sciences faculty, staff and students. Membership is open to all alumni, ex-students
and supporters of the Departments of
Chemistry and Physics and Life, Earth,
and Environmental Sciences.
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To Contact:
806-651-2585
buffbrief@wtamu.edu
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