NC State Feed
Milling
Education Initiative Update August
2004
The further development of an academic program is
underway
with the appointment of a committee of interested faculty from the
Departments
of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Animal Science, and Poultry
Science. This committee has also identified and contacted individuals
from the
feed milling industry that will advise the committee as to what
coursework
might be needed to best develop a “concentration.” A concentration is a
step up
from the present minor but not quite a stand alone major. There is
interest on
the part of several faculty members in making adjustments in their
existing
courses in order to cover the required subject matter needed to support
a
program in feed milling. There are a number of interested students as
evidenced
by the initial interest in our feed milling minor. CFIA scholarship
funds are
being used to attract students into the minor at the present time and
to build
interest in this program.
A training program for the prospective staff of
the Feed
Mill Educational Unit has begun so that these individuals can be
involved in
the installation and start-up of the equipment that is presently being
purchased with $800,000 of bond referendum funding that remained after
construction
of the mill building was completed. However, there is a need for
approximately
$1 million more in private funding to complete the first phase of the
Feed Mill
Educational Unit and begin production of feed and support of the
on-campus
instructional program. Completion of the first phase will also allow us
to
begin significant extension teaching and research activities.
In order to raise
the remaining $1 million to complete the
first phase of the Feed Mill Educational Unit a capital campaign has
been
announced.
Dan Warren of the J. A. Warren
Company and Lois Britt of
Murphy-Brown, LLC have agreed to serve as co-chairs of the campaign. At
the request of these two individuals and the College of Agriculture and
Life
Sciences administration, the NC Agricultural Foundation has agreed to
provide
$250,000 as a challenge gift to match $750,000 of private support. This
is a
significant step and signals a willingness to use “Nickels For Know
How” funds
in a new and innovative manner to directly support an industry that
provides a
portion of those funds. We are now leaving the silent phase of the
capital
campaign with over $300,000 in pledges, gifts, and gifts-in-kind
received. We
are hopeful that we can announce another major gift in the near future.
A general
mailing to the CFIA membership is to come in the near future as we seek
to
collect the funds and pledges necessary to complete this exciting
project. The
NC Agricultural Foundation has agreed to borrow the funds necessary to
complete
the first phase of the project as soon as sufficient pledges are
received. This
will save a great deal of time and allow NC State University to better
serve
the feed milling industry.
We are pleased to
announce these Major Donors to the Feed
Mill Educational Initiative Capital Campaign:
Corporate Donors
Platinum
Syngenta Biotechnology, Inc.
Gold
Novus International
NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NIR equipment)
Silver
Bill Stegmeier and RMS Roller-Grinder (Roller Mill)
Friends
Gold Kist
Mountaire Poultry
Southern States Cooperative
Individual Donors
Platinum
John T. Brake
Gold
Silver
C. Mike Williams
Friends
A number of companies have given us very favorable
pricing
on their equipment. We will be adding the names of these companies to
the list
above as all of the details of the purchasing become final. You
may click here to print out a pledge form for your contribution to the
Feed Mill Educational Initiative Campaign.
Feed
Mill Educational Initiative
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