VOLUME 2023, ISSUE 5 03/29/2023 |
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I want to remind you of our fourth Open House that will be on April 1st. Open House is the opening of our college to visitors, where not only students and potential students are welcomed but the general public and children as well, to learn more about our College of ACES and what we have to offer. You are cordially invited to participate in the ACES activities and demonstrations given by our dedicated faculty and students. Learn how our research and outreach and extension activities impact New Mexico. Also, you can have an opportunity to give us your valuable feedback and ask questions about the college and NMSU. Please come by!! See you on Saturday April 1st |
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Rolando A. Flores Galarza Dean & Chief Administrative Officer |
ACES OPEN HOUSE April 1, 2023 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. You’re invited! We will be opening our doors to the public for the annual College of ACES Open House. This free, fun and family-friendly event will be held Saturday, April 1st, from 9 a.m. to noon on the main campus. There will be over 70 activities which showcase our teaching, research, Extension and service activities. We will be providing animal exhibits, hands-on activities, lab and museum tours, learning games, plant diagnostic services, student research poster competitions and much more! Guests should start at the welcome tent located at 940 College Drive, where they can pick up a reusable shopping bag and a self-guided exploration map. The map includes a space to collect stamps from the places visited. Guests can choose a small promotional item for every ten stamps collected (while supplies last). We look forward to having the public come and experience first-hand the great work being done by our faculty, staff and students. For more information and a short video about the event, click on the following link: https://aces-about.nmsu.edu/open-house.html Thank you to our generous sponsors: |
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| Congratulations to Dr. Glenn C. Duff on being recognized as the recipient of the 2023 American Society of Animal Science Fellow Award for Administration from the American Society of Animal Science. This is a huge accomplishment. Dr. Duff is a Professor/Superintendent at the Clayton Livestock Research Center. The award will be celebrated during the 2023 ASAS-CSAS-WSASAS Annual Meeting in Albuquerque, New Mexico, July 16-20,2023. |
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The New Mexico 4-H FCS School of Real Life Skillz was held March 11-12 in Albuquerque for novice and junior age (8- to 13-year-old) 4-H members. Youth explored a variety of projects related to Family and Consumer Sciences, participated in hands-on activities, improved skills and understanding, and connected with youth from around the state. One hundred and twenty-one participants selected one of seven project areas to explore during the two-day camp. Project areas included sewing, photography, baking, jewelry making, STEM, ceramics, and outdoor cooking. Subject matter was taught by Extension agents or a specialist. Hands-on activities included sewing pillowcases and tote bags; baking and decorating cakes; building robots and launching rockets; designing bracelets, necklaces, and earrings; using a pottery wheel and other methods to create ceramic pieces; photographing, printing, and mounting pictures; and cooking outdoors using several techniques. Youth also participated in community service by making appreciation gifts for nurses and by assembling snack bags for participants in the Bataan Memorial Death March. Twenty-four senior age youth (13-18 years old) served as junior instructors guiding and encouraging younger participants as they learned new skills and completed their projects. For more information, contact Interim Extension Department Head Laura Bittner at lbittner@nmsu.edu. |
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The New Mexico 4-H Shooting Sports Leader Certification Training was held in Alamogordo, NM at the Otero County Fairgrounds on February 25-26, 2023. This important training is held to prepare adult volunteers who will be teaching and guiding 4-H youth involved in shooting sports projects. One hundred thirteen adults participated in the training, each of whom was certified in one shooting sports discipline. The seven disciplines include Rifle, Shotgun, Pistol, Hunting, Archery, Muzzleloader, and Coordinator. Participants completed 11 hours of hands-on training and 4 hours of online training. The training focused on positive youth development, safety techniques, managing a shooting sports program and the resources that are available to assist volunteers in implementing their programs. The shooting sports program is the largest 4-H program in New Mexico. It promotes responsible behavior, decision making, and teamwork, and provides a sense of belonging. For more information, contact Interim Extension Department Head Laura Bittner at lbittner@nmsu.edu. |
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Welcome to the Sam Steel Council’s corner of this newsletter. As an alum of the College of ACES, you are automatically a member of the Sam Steel Society. The Society is governed by the Sam Steel Council. The goals of the Council are to maintain the Society, assist the College in their efforts to increase student recruitment and retention, identify opportunities for student internships and careers, and to eventually turn those students into College of ACES graduates – the next generation of Sam Steel Society members. We’re pleased to provide you an update on the 2023 Ag Fest AfterFest event we hosted in Santa Fe at the Inn at Loretto on Feb. 16. It was great to see about 40-50 College of ACES alumni and supporters that evening. If you attended the AfterFest celebration, you most likely received an email from SamSteelSociety@gmail.com thanking you for stopping by. We were truly glad to have you. Now that Covid restrictions are behind us (fingers crossed!), it’s our goal to continue hosting the AfterFest annually. Please plan to join us next year! Stay tuned sometime this fall for more information about the date and location for 2024’s AfterFest event. In addition to the AfterFest celebration, throughout the year we host, or are present at, several events for College of ACES alumni and supporters. We kick off the year with the Fall Welcoming Celebration for College of ACES freshmen and new transfer students. At Homecoming, alumni return for the parade, Alumni Breakfast, tailgating, and various other activities. We also participate in NMDA’s Ag Day each fall and the ACES Open House each spring. Finally, each May and December we host a graduation celebration for new graduates and their families. Our intention is to share, via email, College of ACES events around the state, with the hope you’ll put them on your calendar and plan to attend. Somehow it just seems appropriate that a College of ACES alumni organization focuses on "growing" things — considering that what we have in common is a passion for agriculture, regardless of our specific focus. If you’d like to be added to the Sam Steel Council’s growing list of email recipients, please send an email to samsteelsociety@gmail.com and we’ll add your contact information to our distribution list. Please feel free to reach out to the Council members through the Gmail account if there is anything you’d like to share with us. Until next time . . . . . . . . . . . |
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AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION (AES) |
The Agricultural Experiment Station (AES) is the principal research unit of ACES. The AES system consists of scientists from NMSU’s main campus in the College of ACES and twelve agricultural science and research centers throughout the state. Research programs focus on four identified critical issues for New Mexico that will also have a global impact. These programs are (1) Food & Fiber Production and Marketing, (2) Water Use and Conservation, (3) Family Development and Health of New Mexicans, and (4) Environmental Stewardship, all of which are based on the foundation of education and training of qualified professionals in the field of agriculture. These critical issues help guide research initiatives for federal capacity funded research through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA). NIFA capacity projects can include Hatch, Hatch multistate, McIntire-Stennis, Animal Health and Renewable Resources Extension programs. Each of these programs has specific distinctions for a research focus. The AES has 48 projects ongoing in various areas of research. Here is one more example of ongoing NIFA Hatch projects that directly impact the New Mexico agricultural industry. For more information, contact AES Program Operations Director Claire Montoya at ccortner@nmsu.edu. |
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| AES Researcher Highlight: Derek Bailey, Department of Animal and Range Sciences Traditionally, ranchers have visually observed livestock well-being and grazing impacts, but this is time-consuming and often impractical because of rugged terrain and the extensive nature of rangeland pastures. NMSU research shows ranchers how commercially available real-time tracking and monitoring systems perform in rangeland conditions. Technological advancements are needed to make real-time tracking a viable option in rugged terrain. Real-time tracking and on-animal sensors have great potential to remotely monitor livestock well-being on rangelands. However, more research is needed to develop and validate algorithms and software (including Artificial Intelligence approaches) to detect illness and well-being concerns. This research is providing "proof of concept" examples of remotely monitoring the well-being of livestock with on-animal sensors. To learn more about opportunities to apply precision livestock management on rangelands, read more from Dr. Bailey and his colleagues in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems. |
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COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE (CES) |
Pecan Weevil Trap Palooza The pecan weevil is a growing threat to the New Mexico pecan industry. Currently there are four counties in New Mexico under the NMDA Pecan Weevil Quarantine Regulations. The pecan weevil, according to NMDA, is largely found in urban backyard pecan trees and has not currently established itself in production orchards. In order to keep the weevil from spreading to production orchards, it is imperative that infected locations are found and treated. NMDA has a free treatment for homeowners, and they advertise free pecan weevil traps for monitoring purposes. Working with NMDA to procure the traps, Chaves County hosted a trap give-away event called the “Pecan Weevil Trap Palooza.” The 105 traps provided by NMDA were gone in 27 minutes, with over 133 community members coming to procure a trap. Forty eight new monitoring locations were established; two have since been confirmed to have pecan weevil by the NMDA inspector, and are now scheduled for treatment. For more information, contact Drew Garnett, Chaves County Extension Agriculture Agent at dgarnett@nmsu.edu. |
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Carbon Credits Carbon Credits are a new and emerging system of potential income for agricultural producers. Companies that produce large amounts of carbon through their operational procedures need a partner that can capture carbon from the atmosphere, and that is where the farmer comes into the picture. In order to encourage farmers to participate with companies and help them reduce their carbon footprint, there has to be some type of monetary incentive. Numerous companies are participating with this new program, and brokers are turning this into a business. The contracts between farmers and companies can be quite daunting and challenging to understand. Roosevelt and Curry County Extension hosted a program with the intent to provide producers with information to better understand what carbon credits are, how they accumulate, how producers get paid from selling them, and the economics of the program. Participants left the meeting with a greater understanding of how carbon credits work and how they might or might not work in their specific operation. For more information, contact Mason Grau, Curry County Extension Ag Agent at mgrau@nmsu.edu or Patrick Kircher, Roosevelt County Extension Ag Agent at pkircher@nmsu.edu. |
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The Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Ecology welcomes Dr. Theresa Laverty as a new Assistant Professor of Terrestrial Vertebrate Ecology. For the last nine years, Dr. Laverty’s research has focused on the social and ecological dimensions of mammal ecology, with a particular emphasis on bat conservation. Dr Laverty has conducted extensive work in the southwestern US, including in New Mexico. Her work has also taken her to the deserts of Namibia and the forests of Madagascar, where she has focused on topics like the effects of water quality and large mammal activity on insectivorous bat communities. Dr. Laverty will be teaching Mammalogy and the Natural History of Vertebrates next spring, and looks forward to working with her graduate students on mammals—big and small—in the Southwest this summer. You can learn more about the work done in the Laverty Lab at The Laverty Lab. |
NEW MEXICO FUTURE FARMERS OF AMERICA (FFA) |
NMFFA Career Development Events New Mexico FFA members have been hard at work this spring competing in Career Development Events across the state. These contests are focused on different aspects of agriculture and require knowledge and skills pertaining to those areas. invitational CDEs and judging contests are held throughout the state and put on by schools, individual volunteers, and community members. Teams can qualify to compete at the State Contest through these invitational events. The NMFFA State CDEs will be held March 29th through the 31st in Las Cruces on the NMSU campus. These students have been working hard all year long to make it to the state competition! If you are interested in assisting with the state contest you can find more information on the NMFFA website, click here, or scan the QR code to find the volunteer link.
Website: http://www.nmffa.org Facebook: New Mexico FFA Instagram: @newmexicoffa |
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NEW MEXICO YOUTH RANCH MANAGEMENT CAMP |
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New Mexico State University will host the New Mexico Youth Ranch Management Camp, June 11-16, at the CS Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico. The camp is open to all youth, ages 15-19, who want to learn more about ranch management. The application deadline is May 5. Applicants who are accepted will be notified May 12. The camp will invite 30 participants; three of those will be out-of-state applicants. Scholarship opportunities will also be available to applicants who are invited. The registration fee of $300 or payment arrangement is due on or before June 2. Media Contact, Student Writer Elizabeth McCall. Visit https://nmyrm.nmsu.edu/index.html for more information or to apply. |
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Indian Resources Development (IRD) is a statewide program, in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at New Mexico State University. IRD offers educational and professional development opportunities for Native American students in high school and college; and supports tribal nations in New Mexico in advancing their economic development goals in agriculture, natural resources, engineering, energy, business, workforce development, and education. Indian Resources Development has released their Spring 2023 Newsletter. To view the newsletter click on the image announcement below. |
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4-Hers Work with Design Team to Create Game on Gene Editing and Bioengineering Innovative Media Research and Extension designers and faculty just returned from Connecticut, where they led a design summit with 4-Hers. The youth have spent 6 months learning about gene editing, CRISPR technology (specifically CAS-9) and other concepts related to bioengineering. Based on that work, the 4-Hers created six game pitches, and shared insights as to what they felt other youth should know. Professionals game designers, developers, animators and artists in the Learning Games Lab will work through the summer to create a game based on those pitches, helping other middle school learners understand how gene editing can move agricultural innovation forward. |
Connecticut 4-Hers share their game design pitches and concept art based on their work learning about bioengineering. |
10 Year Anniversary of the Bobby Lee Lawrence Academy of Wine in Honor of Marion Lawrence On March 2, the School of HRTM hosted a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Bobby Lee Lawrence Academy of Wine (BLLAW) and the lives of those responsible for its creation. Dr. Jean Hertzman welcomed the dignitaries and community members in attendance. Former HRTM Director, Dr. Janet Green, discussed the road to building BLLAW and Marion and Bobby Lee’s commitment to wine and professional education. She recognized the contributions of designer Connie Hines, Chancellor Emeritus Garrey Carruthers, Professor Kelley Coffeen, project manager Jose Loera and others who played key roles in its inception. Aaron Marquez gave the toast celebrating Marion’s impacts. Dean Rolando Flores closed out the presentations. The appetizer, dessert, and wine reception were planned and executed by Chef Danielle Young’s HRTM 443 Meetings, Conventions and Special Events students. For more information on the Bobby Lee Lawrence Academy of Wine, click on the following link https://bllaw.nmsu.edu/. |
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Our department of Innovative Media Research & Extension produced a great video demonstrating our college. You can access the video by clicking on the following link: ACES About Home (nmsu.edu) |
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ADVANCES ON THE NEW AG BUILDINGS |
To view a live progress of the construction, click on the following link: WebCam | New Mexico State University - BE BOLD. Shape the Future. (nmsu.edu) The following images were taken on 03/27/2023. Food Science, Security, and Safety Facility |
Biomedical Research Center |
Animal Nutrition and Feed Manufacturing Facility |
COLLEGE OF ACES MAGAZINE – FALL 2022 ISSUE |
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The College of Agriculture, Consumer and Environmental Sciences is an engine for economic and community development in New Mexico, improving the lives of New Mexicans through academic, research, and Extension programs. |
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