Where’s the 'NR' in CAFNR?
By Zack Ruesler

“I am torn. One moment I am part of CAFNR, the next I am in the School of Natural Resources. I don’t know what to believe. I just want some clarity,” Joey Stokes a freshman Atmospheric Science major said.

He, along with many other freshmen, share a common misunderstanding of exactly where they belong.

In 1989 the School of Natural Resources was formed and then housed within the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources. But since that time there has been an invisible barrier that has kept the two separate.

“The School of Natural Resources is a school and not a division because of prestige, tradition and size. The School of Natural Resources has upwards of 500 hundred students. When it gets to that many students, it just makes sense to make it its own school,” Dr. Paul Vaughn Associate Dean, Academic Programs said.

“We are a separate academic entity. We have our own curriculum and advising team to meet our students’ specific needs,” Dr. Mark Ryan, School of Natural Resource said.

The school size and prestige may warrant this separation, but the lines of communication between the two may need some work.

“ There is nothing really going on between the two schools, but apparently there are clubs going on that no one knows about.” Ann Mitchell, a junior transfer student in the School of Natural Resources said.

This has been seen by CAFNR officials, and actions are being taken to unify the two schools.

“We are looking at how we can make a very diverse college work as one. We have started by getting the schools’ ambassador teams working together,” CeCe Leslie, Academic Programs Office Coordinator of Student Recruitment said. “The same goes for the student councils’ of both schools. We have also created a unified look and feel for student recruitment and student information. That is in addition to sharing a web page and CornerPost.”

One of the largest changes to boost communication between the two schools is the transformation of Ag Week to CAFNR Week.

“This is an attempt to get more students involved,” Vaughn said “We would love for students to be more familiar and active in all of CAFNR.”

These actions alone will not unify the two schools according to Vaughn.

“It has to start with the faculty.”

Vaughn believes that once the faculties are united the students will soon follow.

“ We want the students to be more of a family with better connections between our great faculties and advising team, we will get there.”

A different approach comes from Ryan.

“It comes down to the individual to get involved. This will also spark other students to become engaged,” Ryan said.

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