Spring 2009

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Letter from the Dean

ISU administrators applaud the unveiling of the Carver sculpture outside the Seed Science building on ISU campus. Pictured are (from left) Betsy Hoffman, executive vice president and provost; Manjit Misra director of the Seed Science Center and the Biosafety Institute for Genetically Modified Agricultural Products; Jack Payne, vice president for extension and outreach; Paxton Williams, ISU alumnus and executive director of the George Washington Carver Birthplace District Association who performs a one-man play about Carver; and Wendy Wintersteen, dean of agriculture and life sciences.

The spirit of George Washington Carver lives.

I've been reminded of the great man and one of our greatest alums throughout this academic year. Last fall, the college supported a traveling exhibit on Carver's life from Chicago's Field Museum, which was displayed at the State Historical Building in Des Moines. In November, we dedicated a new addition to the Seed Science Center that included a life-sized sculpture of Carver, created by Christian Petersen in 1949.

In February, the college sponsored OPERA Iowa's on campus performance of "A Dream Fulfilled: The Saga of George Washington Carver," a musical for both children and adults highlighting Carver's life.

This spring, we filled the George Washington Carver Chair, a newly endowed faculty position made possible by the Iowa Legislature and the Raymond Baker Trust. Andrew Manu, profiled in this issue, is our inaugural Carver Chair. Dr. Manu's plans as Carver Chair include developing young professionals, exploring soil and plant life to feed an ever-growing population, protecting natural resources and, in his own words, "developing energy from plants to wean us from our dependence on fossil fuels, as Dr. Carver would do." This summer, our long-running Carver Internship Program once again will bring in high school and college students from around the country to conduct research with 16 faculty mentors.

Carver once said there's no short cuts, that "life requires thorough preparation. Veneer isn't worth anything." It's true. That's why the spirit of Carver will continue to inspire - and spur us forward.

Wendy Wintersteen

Endowed Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences