In This Issue

  • A Message from the Dean
  • News from the College of Ag
  • Announcements and Awards
  • Events
  • Publications and Funding Opportunities

A Message from the Dean

Happy Thanksgiving colleagues and friends!

This time of year is a great opportunity to tell you what an honor and privilege it is to work with you all. You make our college the most successful it can be, and your efforts are making a difference for our students, the people of Montana, and beyond every day.

We had a great week of celebrating the agriculture foundation of MSU and its impact across the state earlier this month. We introduced a new tradition to Celebrate Ag Weekend, a horse painting event in partnership with MSU’s Native American Studies program and American Indian Council. Many thanks to Angelina Toineeta, a first-year student in Agricultural Education, for the great idea and her efforts in organizing the event.

Another exciting new addition to Celebrate Ag was our very first tailgate, where our students (thank you Alpha Gamma Rho and Sigma Alpha!) set up fun activities for everyone who stopped by. A big thanks to our college crew, led by Laura Wilson in her first Celebrate Ag, for making the weekend a great success. And thank you to all who joined us!  

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends. Thank you to all our amazing people who make this college an inspiring and rewarding place to work.

Sincerely,

Sreekala Bajwa

News from the College of Ag

More faculty in the news:

Announcements and Awards

Announcements

  • If you are an administrator on any College of Agriculture social media account (Facebook, Instagram, X, etc.) please review the MSU social media policy. All university accounts must be registered with the MSU social media office.
  • Indian Education for All of Us: From Jennifer Lachowiec, College of Agriculture Academic Diversity Partner

    Did you know that the Montana Constitution states “The state recognizes the distinct and unique cultural heritage of American Indians and is committed in its educational goals to the preservation of their cultural integrity"?

    In 1999, the Montana Legislature passed a state law "predicated on the belief that all school personnel should have an understanding and awareness of Indian tribes to help them relate effectively with Indian students and parents, that educational agencies provide means by which school personnel will gain an understanding of and appreciation for the American Indian people.”

    At MSU, this means faculty and staff complete Indian Education for All online training. Starting in 2023, all incoming faculty and staff complete this training during their orientation. If you started at MSU before then, you can complete the training at your convenience at https://msubozeman-mt.vectorlmsedu.com/training/home. The College of Agriculture is targeting 100% completion by all faculty and staff by May 2024. Help us achieve this goal and spread the word!
  • We want to hear from YOU: Please take the time to fill out this short survey and share it with producers and constituents so we can do the best possible job of shaping future investments according to the needs of our stakeholders.
  • The Western SARE Graduate Student grant program is open until Dec. 7. This grant program is for full-time graduate students to address identified needs in sustainable agriculture. Projects must integrate rigorous research and education aiming to advance the three components of sustainable agriculture- environmental, economic, and social- and have direct applicability to agricultural production. Learn more about the program here.
  • A new high-throughput, multi-parameter Flow Cytometer is now available in the Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology's Cellular Analysis Core Facility. This shared instrument was funded through a USDA equipment award to Dr. Diane Bimczok. Please contact Andy Sebrell at thomas.sebrell@montana.edu or 994-2878 for more information.
  • A new postbaccalaureate research education program, PREP-MT, is recruiting undergraduates from underrepresented minorities who are interested in obtaining graduate degrees in the life sciences. The one-year program will provide a fully paid mentored research experience, opportunities to take additional classes, and research career development training. Please contact PREP-MT@montana.edu or visit the program website for more information.

Awards

  • Marsha A. Goetting, Extension Family Economics Specialist and professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Economics, has been appointed to the Montana Supreme Court Commission of Continuing Legal Education for a term expiring in 2026.

Events in the COA

Upcoming Events

  • Interviews for a Cropping Systems Agronomist at Northern Agricultural Research Center will be held December 11-12 for Mr. Carson Roberts and December 18-19 for Dr. Swetabh Patel. The interview seminars will be held at the research center on December 11 and December 18, and on campus in Bozeman December 13 and December 19. All seminars will begin at 9:00 a.m. and will also be available via WebEx for those who cannot attend in person. Faculty, staff, and stakeholder input is welcome and encouraged.

Recent Events

  • MSU welcomed hundreds of Montana FFA student to campus for the annual John Deere Ag Expo! Beef from the MSU Steer-A-Year program was served at the expo banquet. Calves from this year's donations were also used in the livestock judging contest.
  • MSU Farrier School Program Director Diego Almeida and Assistant Professor Amanda Bradbery presented their preliminary findings for “The Impact of Heel Wedges on Gait Kinematics and Hoof Morphology in Horses” to a packed room at the American Farrier's Association Annual Convention held Nov. 6-10 in Reno, Nevada.
  • The Montana Livestock and Nutrition Conference, organized by Megan Van Emon, MSU Extension beef cattle specialist, drew more than 100 people this year. Twenty students shared their research or proposals to attendees.
  • The Wool Lab advisory committee met on Nov. 17. As part of the daylong meeting, attendees met in the historic wool lab building and toured the future site of the new Wool Lab building.
  • Thank you to everyone who joined us for Celebrate Ag 2023! The event was a huge success and we already can't wait for next year.

Publications and Funding Opportunities

You can find a full list of recent publications from MSU's Library and Office of Sponsored Programs here.

  • Recent COA/MAES publications include:
    • Francavilla , F., Sarcina, F., Schepetkin, I.A., Kirpotina, L.N., Contino, M., Schirizzi, A., De Leonardis, G., Khlebnikov, A.I., D'alessandro, R., Quinn, M.T., Lacivita, E., and Leopoldo, M. (2023) Development of Potent Isoflavone-based Formyl Peptide Receptor 1 (FPR1) Antagonists and their Effects in Gastric Cancer Cell Models.  J. Med. Chem. 
    • Schepetkin, I.A., Danilets, M.G., Ligacheva, A.A., Trofimova, E.S., Selivanova, N.S., Sherstoboev, E.Y., Krivoshchekov, S.V., Gulina, E.I., Brazovskii, K.S., Kirpotina, L.N., Quinn, M.T., & Belousov, M.V. (2023). Immunomodulatory Activity of Polysaccharides Isolated from Saussurea salicifolia and Saussurea froloviiLedeb.  Molecules.
    • Dosoky, N.S., Kirpotina, L.N., Schepetkin, I.A., Khlebnikov, A.I., Lisonbee, B.L., Black, J.L., Woolf, H., Thurgood, T.L., Graf, B.L., Satyal, P., and Quinn, M.T. (2023) Volatile Composition, Antimicrobial Activity, and In Vitro Innate Immunomodulatory Activity of Echinacea purpurea(L.) Moench Essential Oils. 
    • James M George, Jessica Leatherwood, Carolyn Arnold, Kati G Glass, Brittany L Paris, Matthew B Conrad, Rafael Martinez, Fernando Vergara Hernandez, Brian D Nielsen, Aimee Colbath, Thomas H Welsh, Amanda N Bradbery. Extra-Label Bisphosphonate Effects on Intra-Articular Inflammation in Juvenile Horses Challenged with Intra-Articular Lipopolysaccharide. Journal of Animal Science.
    • Makayla A Ogg, Rodrigo S Marques, Sidney Stratton, Julia Dafoe, Darrin L Boss, Carla Sanford, Sarah McCoski. Supranutritional Mineral Supplementation During Pregnancy Alters Placental Blood Flow and Calf Mineral Concentrations. Journal of Animal Science.
    • Amanda Caroliny Marques de Queiroz, Rodrigo S Marques, Aline Naime Rodrigues, Keuven Nascimento dos Santos, Igor Machado Ferreira, Mateus José Inácio de Abreu, Fernando Rossi Camilo, Laura Franco Prados, Flávio Dutra de Resende, Gustavo Rezende Siqueira. Effects of Calcium Salts of Soybean Oil Supplementation to Nellore Heifers During Second and Third Trimesters of Gestation and Offspring Sex on Milk Production and Performance of the Offspring. Journal of Animal Science.
    • Vinicius Alves Cruz, Rodrigo S Marques, Keenan Kvamme, Makayla A Ogg, Iorrano A A Cidrini, Keuven S Nascimento, Sarah McCoski, Christian Posbergh, Amanda Bradberry, Vinicius N Gouvea, Eduardo Colombo, Reinaldo F Cooke. Maternal Supplementation with Different Sources of Trace Minerals and Its Effects on the Offspring. Journal of Animal Science.
    • Jeremiah Peterson, Janessa A Kluth, Thomas Hamilton, Taylre Sitz, Jackie Pondolfino, Sam Wyffels, Megan L Van Emon, Jed Eberly, Timothy DelCurto. The Influence of Supplemental Protein Level on the Intake, Digestion, and Metabolism of Beef Cattle Consuming Low-Quality, High-Fiber Roughages. Journal of Animal Science.
    • Taylre Sitz, Timothy DelCurto, Hannah DelCurto-Wyffels, Megan L Van Emon, Sam Wyffels, Jeremiah Peterson, Thomas Hamilton, Kelli J Retallick, Esther Tarpoff, Andre Garcia, Kurt Kangas. Characterizing Foot and Leg Scores for Montana Registered Angus Cattle. Journal of Animal Science.
    • Thomas Hamilton, Sam Wyffels, Makae Nack, Janessa A Kluth, Jeremiah Peterson, Timothy DelCurto, T J Carlisle. The Influence of Supplemental Protein Levels on Beef Cattle Grazing Winter Foothill Rangelands: Cow and Subsequent Calf Performance. Journal of Animal Science.
  • For current and upcoming funding opportunities, check out the MSU Office of Research and Economic Development database here.
  • Recent COA/MAES grants include:
    • Hayes Goosey, Daniel Atwater, Sam Wyffels. "The Response of Dung Beetles, Soil Health, and Dung Pat Degradation Rates to Herd Parasite Management." Pheasants Forever.
    • Jed Eberly. "Characterizing the Microbial Contribution to Integrated Fertility Management in Organic Dryland Cropping Systems," USDA NIFA.
    • Jared Beaver, Brent Roeder. "Wild-domestic sheep comingling," Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.
    • Tim DelCurto, Megan VanEmon, Sam Wyffels. "Degradation Dynamics of Cargill 150-d Sustained Release Mineral Boluses with/without a Fly Bolus and Conducted in both Winter Grazing and Subsequent Spring/Summer Grazing Environments." Cargill Inc Nutrena Feed.