Congratulations to Dr. Dennis Buckmaster on being appointed as a Dean's Fellow for Digital Agriculture. According to Interim Dean Karen Plaut, "His appointment took effect on September 1.

As a Dean’s Fellow, Dr. Buckmaster’s duties will include conducting an assessment/inventory and an analysis of digital agriculture at Purdue, leading to a vision and strategy for next steps in research, teaching and Extension and the cross-cutting international mission that will enable us to become world class in this important area.  He will engage faculty and staff across the College as well as the University for their input and perspective. He will report regularly to the College leadership team on his efforts and progress.

The success of this initiative relies on all of us working with Dr. Buckmaster to prepare a plan that positively impacts all areas of our land grant mission.  Thank you for your help and support of Dr. Buckmaster in this important college-wide initiative."

Faculty Searches

We have two openings for faculty - one in Machine Systems, and one in Digital Agriculture. Watch the website for more information as the searches proceed!

GSA Seminar Series

Dr. Karen Plaut, Interim Dean of the College of Agriculture, will discuss her role as interim Dean and the collaboration between academic work in the College of Agriculture and the State of Indiana. Please join the ABEGSA from noon to 1 pm in ABE 301 on Monday, September 18.

Welcome!

This fall, we welcome a new cohort of graduate students - some are from our undergraduate ranks, but many are from other institutions. Take a minute to say "hello" when you see them!

• Grace Baldwin will be working with Dr. Stwalley
• Robert Binkley will be working with Dr. Ladisch
• Zhengpu Chen will be working with Dr. Ambrose
• Alyssa Christoffer will be working with Dr. Okos
• Aaron Etienne will be working with Dr. Saraswat
• Zackariah Horn will be working with Dr. Stwalley
• Sneha Jha will be working with Dr. Saraswat
• Nathan Keller will be working with Dr. Ivantysynova
• Stephen Kines will be working with Dr. Cherkauer
• James Marschand will be working with Dr. Lumkes
• Jonathan Mills will be working with Dr. McMillan
• Jonathan Overton will be working with Dr. Solomon
• Diana Ramirez will be working with Dr. Ileleji
• Tanzeel Rehman will be working with Dr. Jin
• Karthik Salish will be working with Dr. Ambrose
• Zhihang Song will be working with Dr. Jin
• Venkata Sai Gargeye Vunnava will be working with Dr. Singh

This past weekend four faculty, one staff, and one graduate student joined forces to brew their entry for the inaugural AIChE Beer Brewing Competition (https://www.aiche.org/community/awards/aiche-beer-brewing-competition). Brew day went very well and we are looking forward to tasting our entry. Tell Dr. Engelberth, Dr. Mosier, Dr. Okos, Dr. Solomon, Nate, and Studie that you want to try it, too!

Capstone project teams have formed for the coming school year with an amazing variety of selected projects. Industrial projects from ADM, Caterpillar CNH, John Deere, and Sugar Creek Malt will be in the mix, along with work for the Purdue Agricultural Extension Service, the National Resources Conservation Service (NCRS), and the Village of Hope. Faculty collaboration within all project activities remains strong, with ABE professors serving as various project sponsors and technical mentors. This year’s public presentations will be on:

November 27, 2017  4 pm  - Management Plan

February 26, 2018  4 pm   - Technical Design Review

April 19, 2018  1 pm  - Final Project Poster Presentation

Outside reviewers make all the difference in the world in giving ABE students a real-world working perspective on their efforts. This is a significant competitive advantage for our students in the marketplace. Please make plans to join us for another exciting year of reviewing our seniors’ creativity. Feel free to contact Bob Stwalley  (rms3@purdue.edu) or Carol Weaver  (cmweaver@purdue.edu) if you have any questions.

Student Soybean Innovation Competition Call-Out

Thursday, September 21^st

LYNN 1136 @ 5:30 pm

Pizza and Soda Provided

Find out how YOU could win $20,000, $10,000 or $5,000!