I’m Told It Isn’t Political
By: Doug Busselman, Executive Vice President
After posting the last post regarding the announcement by the University of Nevada officials that they were going to close the College of Agriculture, if their budget for the current biennium was the amount Governor Sandoval proposed – I was contacted and it was explained to me that the intent behind the announcement wasn’t to be political. It had to do with the budget for the 2013-2014 biennium budget and the need for Senator Horsford to be made aware of what the plans would be for the next, after the next, biennium – if the next biennium budget isn’t funded at the level it has been for the current biennium. (Actually, having sat through the last meeting of the Nevada Senate’s “Committee of the Whole” a week or so ago…that explanation makes some sense.)
The apparent need to raise taxes isn’t just to deal with the shortfall in the amount of money that the majority party believes should be spent for the upcoming biennium – it also extends to the need for tax increases for the next, after the next, biennium.
Now getting back to this issue of closing the College of Agriculture…it probably doesn’t really matter that the intent wasn’t supposed to be political – driven instead by the reality of the College of Agriculture being expendable…on a repeated basis…(unless there is sufficient funding for the UNR going forward for the next budget cycle). Whether taxes get increased and necessary funding provided – or not – the point is clear that whenever necessary…the College of Agriculture will be on the chopping block (as will the potential for further erosion of what was once considered the foundational pillars of the Land Grant University).
Beyond being capable of cashing federal checks associated with being a Land Grant University, it is fairly obvious that doing what a Land Grant University is supposed to do…isn’t part of the vision for UNR's future. The minimum levels of effort will probably be attempted to justify continued eligibility for the funds they want to continue to receive. Beyond that there's not much cause for believing that things will change for the better.
Jumping through hoops or having expectations for a future of agriculture at UNR ought to be extremely clear. If we are going to be making any investments of time or resources, the focus should be on various alternatives to figure out ways that Nevada agriculture can get what it requires from some place other than UNR. Whether it comes in the form of finding effective ways for students interested in agricultural studies to go where such an education opportunity is available – or searching for research projects that can be developed with agricultural experts that work for other state’s Land Grant Universities…it’s time to stop anticipating UNR even attempting to deliver.
Long-term, it would be worth developing a strategy. This plan should include securing the agricultural assets to make certain that experiment station lands aren't sold off to only benefit non-agricultural endeavors. We also need to look into the process required to strip the undeserved title of “Land Grant University” from UNR, seeking a more worthy institution to provide the deliverables that should be expected…
After posting the last post regarding the announcement by the University of Nevada officials that they were going to close the College of Agriculture, if their budget for the current biennium was the amount Governor Sandoval proposed – I was contacted and it was explained to me that the intent behind the announcement wasn’t to be political. It had to do with the budget for the 2013-2014 biennium budget and the need for Senator Horsford to be made aware of what the plans would be for the next, after the next, biennium – if the next biennium budget isn’t funded at the level it has been for the current biennium. (Actually, having sat through the last meeting of the Nevada Senate’s “Committee of the Whole” a week or so ago…that explanation makes some sense.)
The apparent need to raise taxes isn’t just to deal with the shortfall in the amount of money that the majority party believes should be spent for the upcoming biennium – it also extends to the need for tax increases for the next, after the next, biennium.
Now getting back to this issue of closing the College of Agriculture…it probably doesn’t really matter that the intent wasn’t supposed to be political – driven instead by the reality of the College of Agriculture being expendable…on a repeated basis…(unless there is sufficient funding for the UNR going forward for the next budget cycle). Whether taxes get increased and necessary funding provided – or not – the point is clear that whenever necessary…the College of Agriculture will be on the chopping block (as will the potential for further erosion of what was once considered the foundational pillars of the Land Grant University).
Beyond being capable of cashing federal checks associated with being a Land Grant University, it is fairly obvious that doing what a Land Grant University is supposed to do…isn’t part of the vision for UNR's future. The minimum levels of effort will probably be attempted to justify continued eligibility for the funds they want to continue to receive. Beyond that there's not much cause for believing that things will change for the better.
Jumping through hoops or having expectations for a future of agriculture at UNR ought to be extremely clear. If we are going to be making any investments of time or resources, the focus should be on various alternatives to figure out ways that Nevada agriculture can get what it requires from some place other than UNR. Whether it comes in the form of finding effective ways for students interested in agricultural studies to go where such an education opportunity is available – or searching for research projects that can be developed with agricultural experts that work for other state’s Land Grant Universities…it’s time to stop anticipating UNR even attempting to deliver.
Long-term, it would be worth developing a strategy. This plan should include securing the agricultural assets to make certain that experiment station lands aren't sold off to only benefit non-agricultural endeavors. We also need to look into the process required to strip the undeserved title of “Land Grant University” from UNR, seeking a more worthy institution to provide the deliverables that should be expected…
Posted by Doug Busselman at 4/5/2011 4:43 AM 
Categories: Agriculture
Tags: Closing The College of Agriculture Nevada Land Grant Universities University of Nevada
Categories: Agriculture
Tags: Closing The College of Agriculture Nevada Land Grant Universities University of Nevada
How does a university get land grant status? Is the designation made by the state legislature or does congress? Move the land grant status to Great Basin College. At their heart the administration of UNR want to be "modern" agriculture is so old fashioned. People get their hands dirty? No American wants a job like that. Americans want their children to go into bondage to obtain a piece of paper so they can spend their life as a "cube" dweller. (I hope you caught the sarcasm.)
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