For the past four years, Randy Woodson has had a bird’s eye view of the changes taking place in American agriculture.

As dean of the College of Agriculture at Purdue University, he has participated – and even taken part – in some of the technological changes that have revolutionized the agriculture industry and changes the lives of most of the consumers in the United States and around the world.

As he steps down from that position to take on the role of Provost of the University, I had the chance to visit with him about the changes that have taken place and, more importantly, the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead for agriculture and land grant universities.

Some of his observations may surprise you.

One surprising change over the past four years is that over one third of the faculty at the College of Agriculture has changed.
Woodson explained that during this time there were a significant number of retirements, “It is a sign of the graying of our agricultural faculty.” This represents a changing of the guard so to speak. Not only are many of these younger professors bringing a new approach to the education of the next generation, they are also bringing a new approach to the research that drives advancement in the field. This at a time when the technology, the tools, and the focus of agriculture is radically changing as bioenergy and biotechnology carve a new direction.

As for that next generation of agriculture students, Woodson has seen some startling changes here, too. Today, more and more of the students enrolled at the College of Agriculture at Purdue are what Woodson called “non-traditional” students.

These are young people who come from urban areas and are seeking careers in food science, environmental areas, and veterinary science. These young people are not going back to the farm because they did not come from one. They are not aware or appreciative of the heritage or traditions of agriculture, yet the work that they are doing will have a major impact on the future of farming.

Woodson’s replacement will have to hit the ground running, according to the outgoing dean. Technological advances are moving so fast and the forces driving those advances changing so quickly, it will be hard to keep up. Woodson explained most folks outside of agriculture do not understand how much technology impacts agriculture. The variety and value of our food supply and the environmentally responsible methods used to produce it are all made possible by research, innovation, and technological investment. This new generation of students, professors and leaders will need to understand this in order for us to meet the food and energy demands of a modern world.

Woodson said the new dean will have one other unique challenge: that of communicating the reality of agriculture to a non-farm public.

“People’s perception of agriculture is not exactly what reality is,” said Woodson. In order for deans to maintain public support and government funding, they will have to become effective communicators to a non-farm and non-academic public. 

I hope the powers at Purdue will choose a new dean wisely. They need to pick someone who has the vision and drive to lead the new generation of students and teachers into a bright and uncertain future for American agriculture.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Gary Truitt may write to him in care of this publication.