Report for Council on Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching (CARET) 2024
Working Together for Iowans
At Iowa State University, Agriculture Experiment Station (AES) research and Extension and Outreach are the capacity programs that enable us to lead the way to produce food, solve issues linked to agriculture and enhance quality of life. These critical programs connect Iowans to researchers at Iowa State and faculty and staff throughout the land-grant system. From discovery through deployment, research and extension efforts leverage crucial federal support to maintain and improve our nation’s competitiveness, develop the future workforce and advance food security and cybersecurity.
Staying Competitive Through Innovative Problem-Solving
The Digital Ag Innovation Team generates innovations to make agriculture more productive, efficient and profitable by linking research and extension experts with private-sector collaborators. The team has developed a series of Planter University workshops and YouTube videos for farmers and crop industry retailers. The hands-on trainings, delivered by ISU Extension and Outreach, have provided an estimated ROI of $7.4 million in savings to more than 415 farmers and agribusinesses. Free Planter University videos have had 30,000 views.
The Artificial Intelligence Institute in Resilient Agriculture (AIIRA), with support from the National Science Foundation and USDA, and with researchers supported by AES, is combining expertise from agriculture and engineering for projects such as equipping robots and drones with artificial intelligence to guide precision planting, sensing optimal fertilizer levels and quickly identifying beneficial versus harmful insects in the field.
Developing the State’s Future Workforce
CALS offers 27 undergraduate majors and 35 graduate programs that offer opportunities for students to hone skills in their disciplines, and in leadership, communications, innovation and research. Extensive Study Abroad and Study USA programs also open horizons to apply knowledge and gain cultural competencies.
The college hosts the nation’s largest career fair and employers compete for our graduates. Placement of CALS graduates within their first year after graduation has been 97% or higher for 25 consecutive years.
The state-of-the-art Iowa State University Kent Feed Mill and Grain Science Complex opened in 2023. This privately funded facility models the most up-to-date technologies and best practices in feed mill and grain science operations, including in processing and use, storage and handling, safety and environmental standards, and animal health. The new complex provides hands-on learning experiences for students across several majors and opens future opportunities for research and extension programs.
Another new pathway to careers of the future, the Biological and Biomanufacturing Systems Technology degree option at Iowa State was introduced in 2023. A mix of technology and management, it prepares students with solid knowledge of industrial biology and chemistry applications for careers in areas such as feed production, brewing and distilling.
Advancing Food Security and Cybersecurity
CALS scientists promote food security by leading foundational research into genetics, crop breeding and livestock improvements that foster animal and human health. Researchers in agronomy are investigating genetic mechanisms that have great potential to accelerate creation of inbred lines in corn – and eventually other crops.
Another CALS team discovered a strain of beneficial microbes that can boost poultry health and is using it to develop a probiotic treatment to fight bacterial infections in poultry and humans.
Iowa State is leading an effort to create a national network of universities, stakeholders and industry partners to address growing cybersecurity challenges for agriculture. An example of this work is a series of cybersecurity workshops aimed at strengthening digital protections for farm businesses and families. The workshops were offered in 2023 through Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and the Iowa State Center for Cybersecurity Innovation and Outreach (CyIO). ISU Extension and Outreach and other partners are also training Cybersecurity Ambassadors through 4-H programs, schools, area education agencies and other entities to promote basic cybersecurity practices.
More about CALS
The Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station (AES) -- the research division of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences – helps Iowa remain a world leader in food production and addresses societal issues linked to agriculture, economic development, life sciences, the environment, public policy, families and communities. CALS is a leader in applying science and bringing it to commercialization, ranking seventh in the nation in the number of faculty with a patent (Academic Analytics, 2023).
- CALS ranks third in the nation for faculty with research grants -- and for the total amount of federal research grant funding -- out of 77 agricultural colleges (Academic Analytics, 2023).
- CALS ranks in the top 10 among 422 institutions worldwide with agriculture and forestry programs (QS World University Rankings, 2023).
- AES has attracted about $60 million annually in external funding in each of the last five years.
- CALS provides $4 million in scholarships annually to its students.
- The college leads campus in four-year undergraduate retention rates.
- CALS students interested in entrepreneurship can become involved in the Start Something College of Agriculture and Life Sciences program. Iowa State was awarded Entrepreneurial University of the Year for the Americas in an international competition in June 2023.
- Public/private investments support state-of-the-art student learning spaces such as the new Alliant Energy Solar Farm at Iowa State University, the Off-Highway Vehicle Chassis Dynamometer Laboratory, the Stanley L. Balloun Turkey Teaching and Research Facility and 15 research farms throughout the state.
More about ISU Extension and Outreach
99-COUNTY CAMPUS: With a presence in each of Iowa’s 99 counties, ISU Extension and Outreach connects Iowans to researchers at Iowa State and throughout the land-grant university system. Extension professionals deliver education, facilitate collaboration and spark action through four program areas: Agriculture and Natural Resources, Community and Economic Development, Human Sciences and 4-H Youth Development. ISU Extension and Outreach engages Iowans on farms and on Main Street, at home and in school, from urban neighborhoods to rural communities in every Iowa county.
The Agriculture and Natural Resources Extension network includes campus-based state specialists and field specialists throughout the state. These extension professionals specialize in agricultural engineering, commercial horticulture, food safety, farm management, agronomy, natural resources, small farms, enterprise development, food systems, beef, swine and dairy. Programs and activities in 2023 included:
- 161,257 contacts at 5,758 meetings, workshops, field days and virtual events;
- 1,132,673 views of archived ANR presentations and online programs;
- 32,099 face-to-face, phone and email contacts;
- 2,284 news media contacts;
- 5,667,707 social media interactions;
- 163,247 podcast downloads; and
- 5,973,821 website visitors.
Review the latest impact report for the ISU Extension and Outreach's Agriculture and Natural Resources program.