FROM THE DEAN – Spring 2012

Dean Wendy Wintersteen

Several times a semester, I meet with a student advisory group to listen what’s on their minds and let them know what’s on my mind.

The lineup of about a dozen students changes each year, but it began as a way to gain student input on difficult decisions the college was wrestling with because of declining state budgets. I recall one student telling me that as a future alum, she wanted to look back at her college and be assured it was still among the best programs in the nation. It was invaluable to hear these kinds of insights and concerns.

Since then, our topics have expanded. We’ve talked about a wide range of areas. They commented on our strategic plan draft. (One even volunteered to work with our strategic planning committee, which I gratefully accepted.) They brainstormed new ways to recruit high school students and to communicate with current students.

We’ve talked about how important it is for a new student to make friends through learning communities, and whether students in our majors need more living-together learning communities in the residence halls. We’ve discussed the need to develop more courses that link science to societal issues.

My favorite part of our meetings is to open it up to let the students talk about whatever’s on

their minds.

Some talk excitedly about the employers they met at our annual career day. Some share conversations they had with freshmen about how they’re adjusting to campus and how they’ve felt welcomed. Some talk about the record number of members in their student clubs. Last fall, one proudly spoke of a first-place showing of the soil judging team at a regional competition, and the individual honors bestowed on team members.

I deeply value the thoughtful input I hear every time I meet with these students. When I walk into the room and see them gathered, it is a highlight of my week and reinforces the important work we do together at Iowa State University.

Wendy Wintersteen

Endowed Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences

JUGGLING LEADERSHIP, SCHOLARSHIP AND FUN

Group juggling is one of many learning tools Beth Foreman, student services specialist, uses to teach students communication and leadership skills.

Tossing rubber chickens, stuffed pigs and numerous balls is a group activity Beth Foreman uses to illustrate teamwork and communication skills.

The activity is one of many experiential learning tools Foreman, student services specialist, uses with agricultural ambassadors. The students are college volunteers who give tours to prospective students and parents, host new student programs and work at various alumni and recruitment events.

In the group juggling exercise, students shout a name and toss a ball or stuffed item. As the activity continues, more items are added making it tougher to keep everything moving. To reflect, Foreman asks students what techniques made it easier to pass the ball to others in the group and keep the balls from dropping.

Foreman emphasizes how the rubber chicken, which is introduced near the end, represents the problems students encounter.

“It’s a teaching strategy that combines mental and physical challenges. It’s a simple and effective concept—you play the activity, review what worked and reflect on how it applies in other situations,” says Foreman.

She oversees the student-run ambassador program that is an essential part of the college’s recruiting efforts. Foreman says prospective students visiting campus want to talk to students who are here on campus.

Molly Heintz, a senior in animal science, says talking to students was a big selling point when she visited Iowa State. Once she enrolled, she also joined the ambassadors.

“We do a lot of fun things, and you gain something at the end of every activity,” Heintz says. “You always pick up a little piece of information that helps us communicate with students visiting the campus.”

For the past 10 years Foreman has balanced a fulltime job while pursuing her doctorate degree. She coordinates group and individual visits for the college and advises and trains student ambassadors. Her doctoral research is focused on the connection between student experiences and the development of leadership skills.

“I’ve gained a better understanding about how student involvement influences leadership and it’s made my work with students more effective,” says Foreman.

A Cyclone herself, with degrees in child, parent and community services and human development, she understands the importance of a positive student experience.

“I didn’t grow up an Iowa State fan,” Foreman says. “I became a fan because of my positive experiences as a student.”

She’s also seen evidence that her teaching strategies are working. Last year she overheard one student refer to a last minute problem as a “rubber chicken.”

Foreman, the ambassadors and her colleagues in student services are a large part of what has driven the college to record enrollment. In the fall of 2009 the college’s enrollment hit a 30-year high of 3,082 undergraduate students. Last fall the college surpassed that record with an enrollment of 3,298.

MICKELSON TOURS FOR A HIGHER POWER

Steve Mickelson was three when he started singing in public. Known as “The Mickelson Five,” he, his sister and three brothers sang at funerals, church events, community events and Farm Bureau meetings around Storm Lake where his family farmed. His mother taught them show tunes, hymns and gospel music.

Professor Steve Mickelson tours with a professional gospel group when he's not busy teaching or chairing the agricultural and biosystems engineering department.

Today Mickelson (’82 agricultural engineering, ’84 MS, ’91 PhD) tours with a professional gospel group when he’s not busy in the classroom or chairing the agricultural and biosystems engineering department. He has been singing with “Higher Power” for about 16 years at churches and community events around the Midwest.

The group performs more than 40 concerts a year, and they usually find time for a recording project each year. Although the group has been asked on more than one occasion to go full-time, they agree it isn’t for them.

“We want it to be fun. We have never wanted it to be a burden on our family, or to take away from our fulltime job responsibilities,” he says.

Music has always been a major part of Mickelson’s life.

“I grew up on the Oak Ridge Boys and the Statler Brothers. The Imperials was a gospel group I loved,” Mickelson says. “I remember seeing them at Estes Park at the age of 16 in Colorado and saying, ‘I want to do that.’”

While studying agricultural engineering at Iowa State, Mickelson made time for taking part in the Oratorio Choir, Chamber Singers and a VEISHEA play. He met his wife, Colette, a music education major, in Cardinal Keynotes, the university’s show choir.

Each of the couple’s five children have chosen to make music an important part of their lives as well. Mickelson says bus rides to gigs became a family tradition, “like camping, but in style.”

Mickelson says he feels blessed to have music as such a big part of his life.

“It’s still a tremendous passion for me. My wife will sometimes ask, ‘Do you really want to go out and sing this weekend?’ And I say, ‘I can’t wait.’

COMPETITIVE SPIRIT – CALS TEAMS BRACKET NATIONAL SUCCESS

Crops Team

The ISU crops team helps prepare students for a career as agronomists by teaching them skills such as plant, insect and disease identification as well as problem solving. Each year the team competes against other four-year universities at the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA ) contest which is held at various locations across the country. During the competition the team also travels to farms and agricultural businesses to learn about the area’s agriculture. In 2012 the ISU Crops Team finished first in the Knowledge Bowl and second in the Crops competition. Erik Christian and Josh Enderson, agronomy, are coach and assistant coach of the team.

Dairy Product Evaluation Team

The Dairy Products Evaluation Team is a student club in the food science and human nutrition department that focuses on learning and sharpening the sensory evaluation techniques and skills for six dairy products: 2% milk, cottage cheese, vanilla ice cream, Cheddar cheese, butter and strawberry yogurt. Until the 2009 team was formed, ISU hadn’t competed in the National Collegiate Dairy Products Evaluation Contest since the late 1970s. Since reviving the team, the students have enjoyed success, earning finishes within the top four each year. Each fall semester the team prepares for the annual National Collegiate Dairy Products Evaluation Contest and in the spring they focus on fundraising, social activities and industry visits. The team is coached by associate professor Stephanie Clark.

Livestock Judging Team

Intercollegiate livestock judging provides students with communication and decision making skills. At each contest, teams representing universities from around the country compete by placing 12 classes of livestock (cattle, hogs and sheep) and giving eight sets of oral reasons. A set of oral reasons is a prepared speech given to an official by a student defending the way the individual placed a particular class of livestock. Typically over 30 teams compete at national events. The 2011/2012 Livestock Judging Team finished first at the Aksarben Stock Show, Iowa Beef Expo and at the Sioux Empire Farm Show. They brought home a third-place finish from the National Western Stock Show in Denver. Jonathan DeClerck, animal science, coaches the team.

Meats Judging Team

Intercollegiate meat judging is a competitive student team activity dating back to 1926. Students travel across the country and interact with leaders in the meat industry, while competing against teams from other universities. These competitions provide students opportunities for improving their skills and competencies in determining the value of beef, pork, lamb and processed meat products. The team is coached by Sherry Olsen and the assistant coach is Lori Ellensohn. At the 2011 Southeastern contest the team finished third and fourth. They finished ninth at The American Royal, and at The International, the team finished 16th.

Soils Judging Team

Success is a common theme associated with Iowa State’s soils judging team. Three of the past four years, the ISU team has won the regional contest and in 2012 the team finished third overall in the National Collegiate Soils Judging Contest. Graduate student Matthew Streeter and professor Lee Burras, agronomy, coach the soils team. Jonathan Sandor, who recently retired, coached the team for 28 years. The competition allows students to develop their skills while describing soil properties, identifying types of soils and associated landscape features and interpreting soil information for agriculture and other land uses.

Turf Bowl Team

The ISU Turf Club has captured first place in the last 12 of 14 national “Turf Bowl” competitions. Hosted by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, the competition gets students excited about mastering professional skills key to the industry. Over the years, the Iowa State team has become known as the team to beat. The team’s achievement is largely due to their willingness to devote time to hands-on training at prominent golf courses. They also learn the latest techniques in turf by inviting guest speakers to club meetings. Networking with the top golf course superintendents in the United States at various conferences has also helped their success. While the Turf Bowl is what they’re best known for, the club also offers projects for members to bridge their knowledge from the classroom to real life scenarios. The team is coached by Nick Dunlap, a graduate student in horticulture, and the team adviser is Nick Christians, University Professor of Horticulture.