Bailey, Pat

JimMeyer Former UC Davis Chancellor JimMeyer joined UC in 1951 as an instructor of animal husbandry at the Davis campus . He was appointed chair of the Department of Animal Science nine years later and in 1963 was named dean of the College of Agriculture . He went on to serve as chancellor of UC Davis from 1969 to 1987 . During his tenure as chancellor , four new campuswide divisions and the Graduate School of Management were established , and enrollment jumped from 12,000 to nearly 20,000 students . Retired since 1987 , Meyer is now actively researching what the future may hold for Land Grant colleges of agriculture . What were society's expectations of the colleges of At the time you joined the University , what was the mood in agri - agriculture ? culture and in the University ? The mood was really quite upbeat . In those days you I don't think society had any expectationbecause food JM : JM : started as an instructor and spent 2 years before you be - was readily available and it was of high quality . The ex - came an assistant professor . The 2 - year program was pectations shifted from farmers to the agri - industry phased out by side , the big commercialcompanies such as the fertil - 1956 - 58 . Then Clark Kerr began to de - izer companies . They organized into associationsand centralize the university and in 1959 , the master plan greatly influenced the agricultural colleges . for higher education was written . So it was a very excit - Looking at changes that took place , let me empha - ing time , a time of change . size the three functions of a land - grant college - teach - Enrollment went down in the late ' 50s and ' 60s . ing , research and outreach or extension . As far as teach - There was a move from farmers being the main element ing is concerned , the land grant colleges of agriculture of agriculture to the development of the agricultural in - shifted to more basic courses and started to offer new dustry , of which farmers were a part . Soon , as much ef - courses that the public would be interested in . fort in the production of food was made by those off the Researchwise , this collegeand other agricultural farm as on the farm , supplying the fertilizers , the pesti - colleges across the United States contributed a great cides and so forth . So agriculture was changing , which deal . Over time , the research changed . In the past , the was one reason student enrollment went down - not as faculty did more applied research , but a lot of the ap - many farmers were needed . plied research eventually moved to industry since in - Mechanization began in the 1960s and had a dra - dustry provided matic impact . A second dramatic impact was Rachel so many of the inputs such as fertilizer , Carson's book pesticides and Silent Spring , and pesticides became an so forth . Industry could make money by issue . With that , plus the concern about a broader ap - doing the research and developingnew products.Take proach to the environment , this college changed its Calgene , for example.Now industry is doing very applied , name to the College of Agricultural and Environmental technologicalresearch . Sciencesin A lot of the demonstration research has moved into 1968 . Extension.Farm advisors are now doing research We had a very exciting time in our college here . - taking a known principle and applying it to different The faculty and administration were responding to the needs in agriculture . At the same time , we were looking environmental situations . Industry changes have had to the future and seeing the problems of pesticides , en - quite an impact on agricultural and environmental sci - vironmental quality and ences . so on . The other way that Extension has changed is that The vice president's officein agriculture at that private groups time delegated authority to the deans on campuses to - that is , paid consultants - have started doing extension work for hire . They might have take care of problems . There were major problems such 10 or 20 dairies that they consult with and visit once a as pear decline , on which this campus's pomology de - partment did a lot . A move toward mechanization led month . They look at the computer system , talk about to the development of the mechanical tomato harvester the price of feed and work on problems such as mastitis . A lot of the extension work is now done by these and new varieties of tomatoes . Then , of course , there people . It's growing faster in California than in any was the decrease in farm labor needs . The starlings also other state . were a problem and that was kind of a fun project.They I think change was bound to continue , and I don't did solve it pretty much ; they aren't a problem any think that's bad . But just as we responded to changes in more . Verticilliumwilt caused problems in cotton in the Central Valley . It was a great time for the college to 1950s and ' ~ O St , he system is going to have to re - the solve problems . spond to new changes now . CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE , NOVEMBER - DECEMBER1996 39one out of three new hires in animal science is a The original driving force for the land - grant col - woman . We also have Barbara Schneeman as dean . This leges was to meet agriculture's needs . When they were resulted in an enlarged pool of excellence for the College . started , the poor people of this country were on farms . So the land - grant concept was started to improve the Looking toward the future , what is the most important task for the quality of life for the people on the farms.One of the ways Division and for UC ? to do that was to improve the productivity of the farms . Then , of course , the farmers became fewer and fewer in number . Now what is the driving force ? The I think the Division needs to catch up with societal JM : driving force will no doubt be population pressure . Be - needs and the efficiency of decentralized decision mak - cause we have expertise in natural resources , all of ing . We need to respond to the impact of population these collegeswill work on problems of environmental growth on environmental quality and food needs . quality as it pertains to food production and quality of so far we've been able to keep up People will say that life . On this campus , there are several environmentally fu - with population growth , but we need to look to the oriented departments ; even in the Department of Ani - ture and consider how population growth has and will mal Science , research is moving toward environmental impact air and water quality . Of course this is a prob - science , which includes pollution . For example , we have so big that it will require the attention of more than lem a faculty member who primarily works on manure just the colleges of agriculture . An entire campus must management . This department , in looking at its future be involved . research , is looking at both the environmental and food production sciences.It may be that environmental prob - What have you discovered in your studies for the Kellogg Founda - lems will keep this kind of institution in business for the tion on how to effect change in the land - grant colleges of agriculture ? foreseeablefuture . Each state must respond to the driving forces of its own JM : What were UC's most significant research and extension contribu - UC Davis's population and environmental concerns . tions during those years , particularly in your area of expertise ? agricultural college did lead the way starting in the 1960s , signifiedby its name change in 1968 . New En - I think the faculty's research quality at both the applied gland has responded quickly , the South much more JM : and basic levels was excellent . In teaching , the main slowly . I don't know how California will respond . contribution was to broaden the curriculum to include I'm sure almost all of the colleges of agriculture environmental studies and courses . Research and exten - will focus on the environmental issues . They'll have to go hand in hand . The faculty did a good job sion had to address problems both of the environment and of agri - so that new processesand industries of problem solving culture . But environmental issues will be the driving could evolve . force . Their clientelewill be consumers , environmental In the specificarea of animal sciences , the nutrition - interests and the agricultural industry . Leaders of agri - ists and physiologists did applied and basic research , cultural colleges throughout the country realize that such as on bloat . The geneticists.worked on the problem there will be great variation between the states . of dwarfingin beef cattle . We moved into net - energysys - But teaching , research and extension will always be tems for evaluating livestockfeed , and sheep researchers their main functions.These collegesmust decide who in twinning . You can't pick out any - becameinterested their clientelewill be and look to the state and federal specifically , because you had about 16 activitiescom - thing governments for funding . ing togetherat the same time . In the land - grant colleges , leadership will be key . The colleges will find that their main connectionsto the U.S . De - federal governmentwill be not only through the How have societal changes over the last 50 years influenced the Divi - partment of Agriculturebut also through the Environmen - sion of Agricultural and Natural Resources ? tal Protection Agency , the NationalScienceFoundation and the National Institutes of Health . I see that as positive . One of the big changes has been that women have come JM : - Pat Bailey into the department and campuses . Now it seems like http : / / www.ucop.edu / anrhorne / danr.htmI CALIFORNIAAGRICULTURE ASSOCIATE EDITORS Lorrie.Mandoriao @ ucop.edu Animal , Avian , Aquaculture Human & Community Pest Management Telephone : ( 510 ) 987 - 0044 & Veterinary Sciences Edward G . Platzer Development Fax : ( 510 ) 465 - 2659 Christopher M . Dewees Linda M . Manton Joseph G . Hancock , Jr . Kathryn Radke Rust Karen P . Varcoe Michael K . I . Osburn Bennie Frank G . 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