|
|
New faculty members at NCTA ready to take college to next levelNebraska While many new and incoming college students have dreaded the end of summer, five new faculty members at the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture are excited about what the school year holds in store. Joining the staff of NCTA starting in the 2007-2008 school year are Jeremy Sievers, athletic director; Jami Salas, English instructor/writing specialist; Dr. Alan Zuk, horticulture department chairperson; Dr. Brad Ramsdale, agronomy professor; and Renee Minary, animal science instructor.
Jeremy Sievers Jeremy Sievers will assume the reins as NCTA Athletic Director, taking over for Del VanderWerff, who served as a coach for 31 years. Originally from Wayne, Neb., Sievers holds masters degrees from Eastern Illinois University and Wayne State College. Prior to joining NCTA, he worked for both Lindsey Wilson College in Columbia, KY, and Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Ill. Sievers is very straight-forward when he talks about why he came to NCTA. "I was extremely excited about the opportunity to grow the athletic department, as well as have it work within Dr. Sleight's vision," Sievers shares. Sievers also has some aggressive goals for NCTA athletics. "I'd like to see us start an Aggie Booster Club and a Hall of Fame," Sievers states. "It will also be important to continue the high quality of our current athletic and intramural programs, which are a key recruiting element for students."
Jami Salas Jami Salas, who grew up in the Bartley, Neb., area, was always interested in higher education. "It was a goal of mine," she shares. Salas graduated from the University of Nebraska at Kearney with a degree in Language Arts and put that to work teaching in Elwood for two years. During that time, she earned her masters degree from Fort Hays State University. When a position became available at NCTA, she jumped at the chance. "It's wonderful to realize a career goal of mine so close to home," she adds. "I've already fallen in love with the pretty campus." Salas worked hard on preparing basic reading and writing courses over the summer months. "My objective, as well as NCTA's, is help students have higher success in other courses by reinforcing their basic skills in reading and writing," she states.
Alan Zuk Dr. Alan Zuk, from Kansas City, Kan., joined the NCTA staff last spring as the Horticulture Department Chairperson. Prior to his role at NCTA, he spent ten years managing the turf grass research farm at Kansas State University. Zuk is incredibly excited by everything NCTA has to offer to Horticulture students. "The primary thing that brought me to NCTA was the ability to focus 100 percent on teaching," Zuk says. "In addition, it's the only institution in western Nebraska to have a horticulture program, which is a huge benefit." Zuk has some big goals to accomplish with the horticulture program, but he knows that there is tremendous potential. He shares, "Our focus in upcoming years will be on rebuilding the horticulture program on campus, not just through recruitment of traditional students, but also through distance education programs." One of the programs Zuk will focus on is the I-80 Horticulture program NCTA recently launched. Plans are underway to offer some short courses in October, with the hopes of moving it towards a certificate program for working adults.
Brad Ramsdale Bolstering the agronomy area of NCTA's Agriculture Production Systems department is Dr. Brad Ramsdale. A Kansas native, he has extensive background in weed science and crop production. Over the last four years, he held a teaching and research position with Fresno State University. Ramsdale pointed out some things that make NCTA unique. "What impressed me at first about NCTA was its exclusive focus on agriculture, as well as its low student-to-teacher ratio," he shares. "There is a huge need in the ag production area, as many companies are having a difficult time finding well-trained people." Some of the ways Ramsdale hopes to help fill that need include increasing student involvement on the campus farm as a learning lab, and through promotion of the NCTA/All Points Scholars program. "The All Points program is on target because it allows students to spend the full cropping season as a learning experience," he adds. "When those students get ready to graduate, they'll be able to transition right into the workforce with critical knowledge." Ramsdale looks forward to building the program at NCTA, as well as reestablishing industry contacts with West Central Research and Extension and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Renee Minary Another key addition to the Agriculture Production Systems area is Renee Minary. A rural McCook, Nebraska, native, Minary recently completed her masters' degree in Animal Science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. While working on her masters' degree, Minary spent much of her time developing online education modules, as well as serving as a teaching assistant for several distance education courses. "Working with a variety of online tools has given me some strategies that I hope to use with NCTA students to make them more marketable," she shares. Minary realizes that the relationship between NCTA, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and the College of Agriculture Sciences and Natural Resources is critical. "We need to continue developing a networking system that will allow students to build a solid foundation in production agriculture, whether they begin working upon graduation from NCTA, or move into a four year degree program," Minary states. "These relationships will allow us access to industry wide contacts, which equates to financial support for NCTA and future employers for its students." The Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture, in cooperation with its sister institution, the West Central Research and Extension Center, have a long tradition of serving the Nebraska agriculture industry. NCTA is dedicated to providing its students with a dynamic education in agriculture and an understanding of important economic factors that are important to rural Nebraska's future. For more information about NCTA, please call 1-800-3CURTIS or visit NCTA's website at http://www.ncta.unl.edu.
Date: 10/4/07
Copyright/Privacy
Copyright 1995-2011. High Plains Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Any republishing of these pages, including electronic reproduction of the editorial archives or classified advertising, is strictly prohibited. If you have questions or comments you can reach us at High Plains Journal 1500 E. Wyatt Earp Blvd., P.O. Box 760, Dodge City, KS 67801 or call 1-800-452-7171. Email: webmaster@hpj.com |
|
