From the desk of President Ron Cerri:

For the last two years the University has been threatening to close the College of Agriculture. The Nevada Cattlemen’s Association and other agricultural organizations have attended numerous meetings with the President of the University and the Provost trying to work out a plan to save the College of Agriculture. After attending these meetings our representatives have come away thinking that a compromise and solution had been agreed to that would allow the college to continue with at least a skeleton agriculture program that could be built upon during better times, only to find out later that the administration changed its mind yet again. It seems the university is determined to eliminate the agriculture program from their curriculum, as well as making extensive cuts to the Cooperative Extension Service.

With this in mind, I recently attended a meeting at UNR’s College of Agriculture, Biotechnology and Natural Resources. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Gund Ranch and the research happening there and to identify future research projects.

I wondered going into this meeting what good it was going to do to identify future projects when the University hierarchy is on record as saying that it is going to eliminate the College of Agriculture. What we heard from Dr. Ron Pardini, Interim Dean and Director for CABNR, is that the University is exploring using a regional approach in offering agricultural classes, at least within the range program. UNR would work with other colleges, possibly in Oregon, Utah or Idaho, to offer a range degree. The courses would be offered to students online with each college probably offering a one or two week course in the field featuring hands on experience for these students in their respective areas.

The administration is saying that the current range program will be moved to the Environmental Sciences Department. Could it be the only reason the university is moving this department rather than closing it altogether is to keep their Land Grant University status and the grants and funding that accompany this designation? The problem with this plan of action is that the program is slated to be moved to the Environmental Sciences Department but the faculty is not. This will mean the elimination of at least three professors that have been a great asset to agriculture and their students: Dr. Berry Perryman, Dr. Tamzen Stringham and Dr. David Thain. Dr. Stringham is doing extensive research on controlling Pinion Juniper encroachment. Dr. Perryman has published papers and is recognized for his research on cheat grass and how to manage and control it, when to graze it, etc. Dr. Thain is a past Nevada State Veterinarian, past head of the Brand Department and a professor in the Animal Sciences Department at CABNR. All three professors have spent their careers working on problems in the west, particularly in the Great Basin. The loss of these three professors would be a tragedy not only to the agriculture industry, but to all the citizens of the state of Nevada. When the economy of the State of Nevada turns around, will we be able to find people as passionate and as dedicated to the agriculture industry to take Drs. Perryman, Stringham and Thain’s place and to continue their research? Nevada’s deserts are unique and the professors that will be replacing them will not have the experiences and knowledge these three have acquired about the land as well as the people of the Great Basin and particularly Nevada. Knowledge is one thing; actual experience is something else.

The university wants to sell off the agriculture properties, because without a College of Agriculture there is no need to keep the agricultural ground. The S Bar S Ranch was sold and a couple hundred acres of the Main Station have also been sold to the City of Reno. It sounds like the university is considering selling more of the Main Station and also the property located on Valley Road. From an agriculture standpoint this seems more like a rape and pillage of agricultural assets to make up for current budget shortfalls. Whoever donated the property on Valley Road was smart enough to make sure that if this ground was ever sold, the money would go to the heirs of the donors rather than to the university. Even if at some point in time they consider reinstituting a College of Agriculture, our rural legislators realize that once these properties are disposed of, the money and assets needed to accomplish this will be gone. Having a College of Agriculture without the land and livestock is like trying to teach someone to ride a horse without the horse. Recognizing this, some of our rural legislators have proposed legislation (AB 357) which would require the university to set the money received from the sale of these properties aside to be used strictly for agriculture education. As I write this, AB 357 is stalled in the House Ways and Means Committee, so the outcome is still unknown. Liberal tax and spend southern legislators know this bill is important to the more conservative northern legislators, so AB 357 is one of many bills being used as a bargaining chip regarding the budget. However, I would like to urge everyone to contact their legislators to voice their support for this bill.

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