[Vision2020] The UI Friday Letter for February 15, 2008

[Tom Hansen]

Copied and pasted below is the UI Friday Letter for February 15, 2008 -

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University of Idaho
Office of the President
Moscow, Idaho 83844-3151
Phone: 208-885-6365
Fax: 208-885-6558

The Friday Letter
A Newsletter for University of Idaho Alumni and Friends
February 15, 2008

Dear Friends,

This week at the annual Larry Branen Ag Summit in Boise, I was able to 
meet with representatives of Idaho agriculture to discuss the future of 
agriculture in the state. Agriculture is vital to Idaho: almost 70,000 
residents earn their living directly from agriculture, and Idaho farmers 
brought in an estimated $5.6 billion in cash receipts in 2007 - that's a 
25 percent increase over 2006. And it's a diverse industry; in addition to 
livestock, approximately 140 different crops are grown in the state.  

But, agriculture is in transition. Farmers are dealing with issues such as 
economic pressures from a global economy, advances in technology, climate 
change, fuel costs and the growing demand for alternative fuels, and 
escalating demands for Idaho's water resources. The College of 
Agricultural and Life Sciences, along with its Extension programs, are 
addressing many of these issues - and it's all part of our land-grant 
mission of linking teaching, research and outreach to the critical needs 
of the agricultural community. 

Land-grant universities were chartered beginning in the 1860s to conduct 
research that directly helped the nation's agricultural industry, then 
mostly family farms. Abraham Lincoln called them "people's universities." 
Now, land-grant universities are in transition as they adapt traditional 
agricultural and Extension programs into a broader framework. At the 
University of Idaho, we are bringing the expertise of the entire 
University together in interdisciplinary efforts to address issues 
important to agriculture, and to all of Idaho. One of the goals of our 
Strategic Action Plan calls for strengthening our partnerships with public 
and private sector groups to further extend our academic, research and 
outreach endeavors to the people of the state. Representatives from the 
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences and Extension are helping in 
that effort to build a seamless, interconnected system of people, programs 
and facilities across the state to lead the way in responding to a rapidly 
changing world. 

At the summit, five Governor's Awards for Excellence in Agriculture were 
presented, and two of the recipients represent the University of Idaho. 
Mary Lee Wood, retired Extension educator, was honored for her work to 
expand Idaho's 4-H program, and Professor Esmaeil Fallahi received the 
technical innovation award for promoting new crops and water conservation 
efforts.

Looking ahead to next week, I hope you have jazz on your calendar as we 
host the 41st annual University of Idaho Lionel Hampton International Jazz 
Festival. And congratulations to internationally renowned bassist and 
festival artistic director, John Clayton, who received a Grammy Award last 
Sunday for his instrumental arrangement on Queen Latifah's "Trav'lin' 
Light" recording. You can personally congratulate John - and enjoy a slice 
of Hamp's birthday cake - if you're in the Moscow area on Tuesday evening, 
Feb. 19, as John hosts a special "Community Kick-off" to the festival. It 
begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Palouse Mall, 1550 W. Pullman Rd. You can 
access several festival features and sites via our home page, which is 
especially rich these days thanks to all that is happening at our vibrant 
University, as well as our recent Web redesign: www.uidaho.edu. I hope to 
see many of you next week!

Tim White	
President

Here's the latest news from the University of Idaho:

The Idaho Business Review has honored five alumnae as 2008 Idaho Women of 
the Year.

Recipients include:

* Judy Aitken '72, answer center manager, PERSI

* Katherine Hansen '90, executive director, Community Partnerships of Idaho

* Paula Landholm Kluksdal '97, partner, Hawley Troxell Ennis & Hawley

* Lorene Oates '85, event director-sponsor services, St. Luke's Women's 
FitnessCelebration

* Lisa Steele '86, director, Neighborhood Housing Services

Idaho students and emeriti faculty earned some of the nation's hottest 
awards in fire ecology from the Association for Fire Ecology. Leon 
Neuenschwander, professor emeritus of forest resources, received the 
Association for Fire Ecology Harold Biswell Lifetime Achievement Award in 
Fire Ecology and Management. Neuenschwander worked across the forests, 
woodlands and grasslands of Idaho and the West to provide provocative and 
innovative ideas for addressing challenging fire ecology and management 
issues. Josh Switzer received the Outstanding Undergraduate Student 
Nationwide Award. Switzer, from Pocatello, will graduate with a major in 
forest resources ecosystem management and a minor in fire ecology, 
management and technology. Chris Powell, from Ellensburg, Wash., received 
the Outstanding Graduate Student Nationwide Award. He currently is pursing 
a master's degree, focused on using LIDAR to characterize fuels in the 
mixed conifer forests and diverse topography of Idaho.

The University of Idaho's 55th annual Utility Executive Course will take 
place June 9-26 in Moscow. It is the country's only industry-specific 
educational course with a focus on developing utility leaders. The course 
will look at challenges, opportunities and the general business 
environment, and provides training for executives to enhance their 
industry knowledge, leadership abilities and professional effectiveness. 
For more information or to register, visit www.uiuec.org or call (208) 885-
6265.


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Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

Came a tribe from the north brave and bold . . .

"Here We Have Idaho"
http://www.tomandrodna.com/HWHI.mp3

"I-D-A-H-O Idaho Idaho Go Go Go"
http://www.tomandrodna.com/Vandals.mp3


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