Ag Week 2013 set for March 30-April 5 in Auburn

AUBURN, Ala.—A weeklong on-campus celebration aimed at raising awareness of and appreciation for agriculture is set for March 30-April 5 during the Auburn University College of Agriculture’s Ag Week 2013.

This year’s Ag Week will feature a variety of special activities designed to enlighten the non-ag community about not only the growing importance and economic impact of agriculture but also the many career possibilities a degree in agriculture promises, says Amanda Martin, student recruiter and alumni relations coordinator for the college.

“A feature article in The Wall Street Journal last month pointed out the high demand for graduates with degrees in the ‘fertile field’ of agriculture, and we see evidence of that in the College of Ag at Auburn,” Martin said.  “Even in the down economy, our graduates’ job opportunities have continued to increase, with most majors boasting 100 percent job-placement rates.”

Ag Week 2013 will kick off Saturday, March 30, with “Ag in the Park,” an event that will bring future and current students, alumni, faculty, staff and their families to campus for an informational program, tours, lunch and the Auburn-Alabama baseball game at Plainsman Park.

On Monday, April 1, the College of Agriculture and Ag Council will sponsor “Feed Me…the Truth about My Food,” an interactive discussion on food and agriculture. The event, set for 4:30 p.m. in Langdon Hall auditorium, will include short video clips of Auburn students sharing their perceptions of food and agriculture; a talk by Bill Moar, former Auburn entomology professor who now leads the insect resistance management aspects of Monsanto’s biotechnology-derived corn, soybeans and cotton; a faculty panel; and free Blue Bell ice cream.

The annual Ag Hill Picnic, a career fair and announcement of the winner of a “Kiss the Goat” fundraiser to benefit the Cam Newton Foundation all are on tap for Wednesday, April 3, at Comer Hall. Picnic lunches—featuring fried chicken or fried catfish, coleslaw, fries and tea—will be served from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the Comer lawn, with the Kiss the Goat finale at noon. Picnic tickets are $5 each until March 19 and $7 thereafter.

Other activities of the week will include “Tea and Tie-Dye” Tuesday, April 2, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the Concourse, offering free popcorn and Milo’s Tea and, for $5, the chance to tie-dye a T-shirt; an “Ag Facts Day” with free Foster Farms corndogs Thursday, April 4, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the Concourse; and a “Get Ag-tive” field day for local elementary schools at Ag Heritage Park Friday, April 5.

A full schedule of activities is online at www.ag.auburn.edu/agweek. For more information, contact Martin at amanda.martin@auburn.edu or Megan Ross at mhr0001@auburn.edu.