Wine Auction Tops $235,000 for Second Year
For the second year, the gala “A Celebration of Washington Wines” auction and dinner brought in a total of $235,000 to benefit the Washington State University Viticulture and Enology Program. Nearly 200 people attended the seventh annual gala held Jan. 26 at the Chateau Ste. Michelle Winery in Woodinville, Wash.
Over its seven-year history, the annual event has grossed more than $1 million to benefit the WSU program that trains aspiring wine makers and grape growers through certificate programs and a four-year horticulture degree.
Bidding was fast and enthusiastic at the 2007 “A Celebration of Washington Wines.”
“This year’s proceeds will continue to build the endowment fund for the world-renowned chair in viticulture and enology that we are currently recruiting,” said Dan Bernardo, dean of the WSU College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences. “Thanks to both those who attended and those who donated to the auction for helping WSU to create a ‘perfect pairing’ of a world-class viticulture and enology program in partnership with Washington’s world-class wine industry.”
Gates Foundation Award to Help Latino Childcare Providers
A nearly $1 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will allow major expansion of a WSU Extension project aimed at increasing literacy among Latino child care providers, which in turn will improve the care of hundreds of children in the area.
The Gates Foundation has awarded $967,000 to WSU Extension for the Literacy and Educational Pathways for Latino Child Care Providers project, an outgrowth of the Spanish Literacy Project. The project was initiated and operated by a community coalition led by a team of WSU Extension educators in Franklin County. The grant runs from January 2008 through March 2011.
“The primary goal of the Pathways project is to improve the educational advancement of Latino child care providers and thus increase the quality of care for the children in their licensed family child care environments,” said Kay Hendrickson, WSU Franklin County Extension director.
Hendrickson, along with the community coalition, started a pilot Spanish Literacy project in March 2007 with seed money from Women Helping Women Tri-Cities Fund and Bank of America. That pilot began with 28 family home child care providers, who care for nearly 150 children ages 11 years and younger. The child care providers meet every Monday, Wednesday, and every other Friday evening after work to learn how to write sentences, do basic math, and read stories in Spanish.
Bringing Home the Apple (Genome) Cup:
WSU, UW Spearhead Project to Sequence Rosaceae DNA
Scientists at Washington State University and the University of Washington are spearheading a public, international effort to map and unlock the secrets of the apple genome to develop better tree fruit faster.
“The Washington apple is an icon of quality around the globe,” said Dan Bernardo, dean of the WSU College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences. “This is a natural home for the advanced science necessary to map the tree fruit genome and actively study how it functions.”
WSU scientists Amit Dhingra, Dorrie Main, and Ananth Kalyanaraman, along with UW researcher Roger Bumgarner, already are working to finalize a consortium of partners from Italy and France to New Zealand and South Africa.
“This initiative will establish Washington as the worldwide hub for Rosaceae functional genomics and is attracting internationally renowned scientists, quality graduate and undergraduate students to Rosaceae research at WSU,” Dhingra said.
The Rosaceae family includes Washington’s largest crop—apples—as well as cherries, peaches, strawberries, raspberries, roses, and nuts. In terms of economic volume, Rosaceae is the third most important family in the U.S. and other temperate regions of the world. Its aggregate wholesale value in the U.S. is more than $8 billion, representing 8.5 percent of total crop production value in the U.S. in 2006.
GPS Training Positions 4-H'ers for the Future
Through 4-H and local schools, WSU Ferry County Extension educator Emily Burt actively encourages youth and families to become good environmental stewards by equipping them with the latest technological tools.
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Emily Burt, right, and 4-H'ers. |
Burt teaches introductory GPS (global positioning system) classes for 4-H groups and local schools as well as adults in the county. She has worked with more than 100 young people and adults to provide them with in-depth training in GPS and skills to make critical land-management decisions.
Students ages 11 to 16 are mapping community assets, locating critical landmarks, and identifying areas in the forest where diseases occur. That information helps forest owners make better decisions about timber harvest and forest health.
Her goal is to involve children more in the community and to enhance the local economy.
“We also want to get kids outside,” she said.
With the GPS skills Burt taught them, one Ferry County 4-H group is mapping and geocaching local attractions and historical sites in order to share some of their favorite spots with other kids and promote tourism. Their partners are the Ferry County commissioners, the chamber of commerce, and the historical society.
WSU’s Plant BioSciences Building Named for Renowned Wheat Researcher
Washington State University’s Plant Biosciences Building is now officially the Orville A. Vogel Plant Biosciences Building, named for a wheat breeder who made a tremendous impact on wheat production in the Pacific Northwest and around the globe.
“His discoveries had a profound impact in addressing world hunger and stimulating unprec-edented economic growth in developing countries,” said WSU President Elson S. Floyd before an audience of Vogel’s former colleagues, friends, farmers, and current faculty at the naming ceremony in fall 2007.
Vogel, a USDA-Agricultural Research Service scientist and WSU faculty member from 1931 to 1973, led a team of researchers that developed Gaines, the first commercially successful semi-dwarf wheat. Released in 1961, the high-yielding, soft white winter wheat soon dominated production in the region. Yields of 100 bushels per acre became common. In 1990, semi-dwarf wheat varieties developed by Vogel were credited with adding $50 million annually to Washington’s economy through increased yields.
The $39 million building named for Vogel houses faculty from four departments in CAHNRS and the plant transformation core laboratory of the Center for Integrated Biotechnology. The building is the first in a planned complex of connected research and education buildings east of Martin Stadium. It contains 31 research laboratories and four teaching laboratories.
Dean Dan Bernardo of the College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences, left, and WSU President Elson S. Floyd, right, pose for a picture with Dick and Pat Vogel and a replica of a plaque for the Orville A. Vogel Plant Biosciences Building. Dick, who is O.A. Vogel’s son, and his wife Pat, attended the dedication ceremony for the Vogel Plant Biosciences Building on Sept. 15, 2007.
Read more about Vogel and the “genes that sparked the Green Revolution” on the USDA-ARS history site at http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/timeline/green.htm
Building Biodiesel in Brazil
Working on the foundation for a new bio-diesel plant, doing feasibility studies, and learning Portuguese is exactly the kind of internship Washington State University senior Adele Durfey was looking for. She found it in Brazil, after thumbing through a John Deere publication.
“When I first got here, I didn’t know what to expect, but I’ve learned so many useful skills since I’ve been here,” said Durfey, who graduated in May with degrees in international business and agricultural technology and management, and who is now living in Brazil.
Durfey works for Global Ag Investments, which is located in Luis Eduardo Magalhaes, Bahia, Brazil. The company facilitates investment opportunities for partners interested in diversifying risks through agricultural investments, according to the company’s Web site.
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Durfey, center, and classmates gather for a photo during a presentation to LEM College. |
“Currently, the company owns and rents approximately 30,000 acres in the area and is building a 30-million-gallon, multi-million-dollar bio-diesel plant in the near future,” Durfey said.
“I’m helping to clean up the Web site for potential investors in the bio-diesel plant to look at first,” Durfey said. “They can check out the company and then contact us via the site if they have questions.”
In addition to her work on the Web site, Durfey conducted a feasibility study on popcorn. Global Ag Investments wanted to know if it would be feasible to grow popcorn, package it, and then sell it locally.
“I had to find all this information for that, like equipment costs, labor costs, and things like that,” Durfey said. “It was difficult because I don’t speak much Portuguese.”
Durfey is learning the language quickly though.
“I’m starting to understand conversations more,” Durfey said. “When people ask me a question I understand what their question is, but it’s still hard to get the words out to respond.”
Election Year Sparks New Lessons for 4-H Know Your Government Participants
They came with campaign buttons, yard signs, and enough energy and enthusiasm to impress the most seasoned politicos. The nearly 300 attendees at the annual WSU Extension 4-H Know Your Government (KYG) Conference took politics into their own hands as they lobbied, gave speeches, and asked 4-H teens for their vote to elect the next KYG governor.
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The final candidates were (l to r) Caleb Klein from Edwall, Thorpe’s Gabby Eddings, and Alex Bistrevsky from Spokane Valley. Klein was elected KYG governor. |
Twenty-one teen delegates vied for the position and came to Olympia prepared to discuss issues including transportation, energy, immigration, and health care. During the four-day event youth created a platform that took stands on those topics as well as education, the economy, the environment, and safety.
“Many adults think young people don’t care about politics, but we’re paving the way,” said Michael Seidel, 18, a delegate from Deer Park who has been to the conference three times.
The candidates were narrowed to three with Caleb Klein from Edwall, Thorpe’s Gabby Eddings, and Alex Bistrevsky from Spokane Valley taking the top spots. After more speeches and an extensive question-and-answer session the final vote was cast with Klein receiving the nod.
The 4-H KYG Conference serves to strengthen the connection between youth and our political and governmental processes through education, experience, application, and inspiration. Since it began in 1977, more than 7,000 teens have participated in the conference statewide.
300 Teens "Rise to the Challenge" with 4-H Teen Conference
More than 300 teens, twice last year’s attendance, came to Pullman at the end of June to attend the 2008 state 4-H Teen Conference.
The teens built robots, learned how the state crime lab examines evidence, found geocaches with GPS technology, and much more during three days on campus.
“We asked kids what they wanted to learn at the conference,” said Jan Klein, state 4-H leadership coordinator. “Their responses were how to get ahead in the future and how to make decisions about college and careers. They also said they wanted to have a whole lot of fun with kids across the state.”
Robots built by teens battle in Sumobot competition.
On the serious side, they learned the lowdown on college life, stress management, and how to deal with people in their lives who may have addictions.
The conference concluded following a college information fair on the Terrell Mall. Campus departments provided information about college and majors at a series of displays.
Taping an interview for the Rising to the Challenge News Network. Watch the Rising to the Challenge News Network broadcasts on You Tube: Part 1 - the morning news team or Part 2 - the afternoon news team.
CAHNRS Kernels
Short but sweet stories from CAHNRS and WSU Extension.
Gates Foundation Award to Help Latino Childcare Providers
Bringing Home the Apple (Genome) Cup
GPS Training Positions 4-H'ers for the Future
WSU’s Plant BioSciences Building Named for Renowned Wheat Researcher
Election Year Sparks New Lessons for 4-H Know Your Government Participants
300 Teens "Rise to the Challenge" with 4-H Teen Conference
Form Follows Fashion: Fashion Show 2008
Display Garden Made in the Shade: The Horticulture and Landscape Architecture Garden Completes Phase 1 Construction