College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources

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College of Agriculture Building, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Conn. College of Agriculture Building, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Conn (82426).jpg
College of Agriculture Building, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Conn.

The University of Connecticut's College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources (CAHNR) is the oldest of UConn's fourteen colleges, and teaches a wide range of subjects. It is the oldest agricultural school in Connecticut, originally established with two purposes, conducting agriculture research and teaching practical skills to modernize farming. [1] [2] The college describes its mission as working "toward a global sustainable future." [3] To that end, besides conducting research and teaching, the college's faculty also work together with Connecticut communities on projects related to food systems, agriculture, human health, nutrition and physical activity, and environmental science.

Contents

Today the college has academic departments in areas such as the sciences of animals, plants, and nutrition; pathobiology and veterinary science; landscape architecture; resource economics, and others fields. [4]

As of 2020 there were 22,522 graduates of the CAHNR. [5] Undergraduates earn Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degrees, with the exception of Environmental Studies (EVST), which leads to a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.). Students at the Ratcliffe Hicks School of Agriculture (RHSA) grants Associate of Applied Sciences (A.A.S.) degrees in Plant Science, Animal Science, and Urban Forestry and Arboriculture. [4] [5] Students from both RHSA and CAHNR take their courses together although the programs are different schools of the university. [4] [5]

History

Horsebarn Hill, UConn campus, Storrs, Conn. University of Connecticut (UConn) main campus, Storrs, Connecticut LCCN2012630537.tif
Horsebarn Hill, UConn campus, Storrs, Conn.
Jacobson Barn, acquired by the Storrs Agricultural College in 1911, on Horsebarn Hill, Storrs, Conn. StorrsCT JacobsonBarn.jpg
Jacobson Barn, acquired by the Storrs Agricultural College in 1911, on Horsebarn Hill, Storrs, Conn.

The Morrill Land-Grant Act, passed by Congress in 1862, provided each state with federal land grants. [6] The profits from the sale of these lands were used to establish an agricultural college in each state. [6] In addition, brothers Charles and Augustus Storrs of Mansfield, Connecticut, donated 170 acres of farmland, $6,000, and several barns to create the agricultural school. [2] The brothers were born into a family of farmers and Augustus eventually purchased the family-owned farm to develop into one of his own. The brothers’ passion for agriculture and husbandry led to the establishment of what became the University of Connecticut. [7] In 1881, the Storrs Agricultural School was established solely for the purpose of teaching and researching agriculture and related topics. In 1893, the name was changed to Connecticut Agricultural College and became Connecticut's land-grant university after a battle with Yale University over which school would be granted the public funding for agricultural education. [8] The college was renamed a few more times until permanently becoming the University of Connecticut in 1939. [1]

Women first attended classes at the college in 1891, and were allowed to enroll as students in 1893. The first woman forestry major in the United States graduated from the University of Connecticut. [9]

In 1956, Frances Osborne Kellogg, an industrialist, dairy farmer and conservationist, made a bequest to the University of Connecticut that was later used to fund construction of the Kellogg Dairy Center on Horsebarn Hill Road in Storrs in 1991. [10] The Kellogg Dairy Center is a free-stall facility accommodating over 100 milking animals (Holstein and Jersey cows). The building has a Voluntary Milking System (VMS; robotic milking system) and robotic feeders, so cows decide when they want to be milked. There is also a milking parlor with a classroom, laboratory, animal surgery facility, and an area for the public to observe the milking. [11]

Research programs

UConn's agricultural program has been at the forefront of research in a number of scientific areas. UConn scientists sent experimental tomato plants in the Space Shuttle to study plant growth in zero gravity in 1988. Faculty at the school developed the first high-efficiency poultry feed, “Connecticut Ration.” Animal science professor Jerry Yang was the first to clone a calf from non-reproductive cells, a major, if controversial, achievement in stem cell research. [12]

The college's research programs are supervised by the Storrs Agricultural Experiment Station and follow federal and state mandates. Faculty and students research how food, natural resources, and human and animal health are interconnected. Today, there are more than 750 UConn Extension public engagement programs at eight centers across the state with over 100,000 participants in their programs. [13] Extension public engagement programs provide a wide range of topics related to the CAHNR strategic priorities: Ensuring a vibrant and sustainable agricultural industry and food supply, enhancing health and well-being locally, nationally, and globally, advancing adaptation and resilience in a changing climate, and designing sustainable landscapes across urban-rural interfaces. [14] The programs obtain over 100 educators and many volunteers. The programs work to build more sustainable communities through educational initiatives. Additionally, there are 36 student clubs and activities that fall under the CAHNR interests. [14]

Notable alumni

In 2020, alumnus Dr. Steven Were Omamo, who graduated with a Masters of Science in 1988, led the World Food Programme to a Nobel Peace Prize in 2020. [15] [16]

Departments and areas of study

Undergraduate students take courses for a variety of majors and minors in agriculture, health, and natural resources through the college's eight academic departments. [4]

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. 1 2 "UConn and the Evolution of a Public University". Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project. 2020-09-28. Retrieved 2022-01-19.
  2. 1 2 waltwould (2019-09-28). "September 28: The Seed That Became UConn Planted at Mansfield". Today in Connecticut History. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  3. ↑ Dunnigan, Brian (2020-01-24). "About the College | College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources" . Retrieved 2022-01-19.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Buck, Marianne (2014-06-05). "College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources | Undergraduate Catalog" . Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  5. 1 2 3 Bonsack, Kara (2021-02-04). "Overview | Environmental Studies" . Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  6. 1 2 "U.S. Senate: The Civil War: The Senate's Story". www.senate.gov. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  7. ↑ "The Storrs Homestead – Mansfield Historical Society" . Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  8. ↑ "The Storrs Agricultural School". The New York Times. 15 April 1887. p. 1.
  9. ↑ "UConn Forest". University of Connecticut College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources. Retrieved 2022-05-19.
  10. ↑ Jones, Jean Crum (2011). "The Story of Frances Osborne Kellogg: Education Patron, Conservationist, Farmer" (PDF). Connecticut Woodlands: The Magazine of the Connecticut Forest & Park Association. 75 (4): 22–23.
  11. ↑ University of Connecticut (n.d.). "Frances E. Osborne Kellogg Dairy Ctr". maps.uconn.edu. Retrieved 2020-09-10.
  12. ↑ Hathaway, William. "At Uconn, A Star Is Born. As His Fame Grows, So Does Moral And Political Opposition To Stem Cell Research. Meanwhile, A Tumor Grows". Hartford Courant. Retrieved 2022-01-31.
  13. ↑ "Home | College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources". cahnr.uconn.edu. 2019-12-06. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  14. 1 2 Stearns, Stacey (2020-04-28). "UConn Extension by the Numbers | Extension News" . Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  15. ↑ Markey, Kevin. "Farms = Food = Life". UConn Magazine. Retrieved 2022-05-19.
  16. ↑ Thurner, Geoff (June 2021). "Noble Work, Nobel Prize". Fresno State Magazine.
  17. ↑ Fallahi, Mahdi (2018-01-17). "Home | Department of Agricultural & Resource Economics". are.uconn.edu. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  18. ↑ "Home | Department of Natural Resources and the Environment". nre.uconn.edu. 2021-07-28. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  19. ↑ "Plant Science and Landscape Architecture › CANR › UConn". plantscience.uconn.edu. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  20. ↑ "Animal Science". animalscience.uconn.edu. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  21. ↑ Stearns, Stacey (2021-01-31). "Welcome | Department of Pathobiology and Veterinary Science" . Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  22. ↑ "Home | Department of Allied Health Sciences". alliedhealth.uconn.edu. 2018-01-30. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  23. ↑ Bonsack, Kara (2013-07-15). "Home | Department of Kinesiology". kins.uconn.edu. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  24. ↑ cahnrnusc (2020-09-28). "Home | Department of Nutritional Sciences". nusc.uconn.edu. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
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