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Just Hatched
D E PA R T M E N T O F P O U LT R Y S C I E N C E | AU B U R N U N I V E R S I T Y | S P R I N G 2016 N E W S L E T T E R | V O L U M E 3 I S S U E 1
A WO R D FROM D E PA R TME NT HE AD, DON CONNER Dear Alumni and Friends, Welcome to our latest departmental news. As the 2015-2016 academic year draws to a close, I can honestly say it has been a productive and successful year. The efforts and accomplishments of our students continue to be outstanding, and I am very impressed with our students’ commitment to the Department’s legacy. While our students represent the future, they certainly draw on the contributions that past faculty and students made in advancing our Department. As you read through this issue of Just Hatched, I hope you will see this “past-present-future” strand. Our Department has a strong history of developing and delivering teaching, research and extension efforts to address critical issues facing the poultry and food industries, and we remain committed to this mission. As I look to the future, I believe that we are entering a historic time of change in poultry/food production and processing. To that end, it is imperative that our Department be positioned to address emerging issues, and we are making changes with this in mind. Faculty are working hard to make sure our students not only have the technical and scientific knowledge base, but also have the professional skills needed in today’s work environment. We continue to assess and improve our curriculum and course content so that our students have a valuable and relevant learning experience. Our Poultry Production curriculum model will soon be improved to include new courses in production, feed milling, housing and business/finance. Also, we will offer a B.S. in Food Science beginning in the 2016-2017 academic year. This new B.S. will
CONCEPTUAL PL AN FOR FULL BUILD OUT OF THE CHARLES C. MILLER JR. POULTRY RESEARCH AND EDUCATION CENTER
enhance our ability to recruit students for careers in poultry processing and in the broader area of food processing. We are also making significant progress in achieving new “farm” facilities that will serve us well into the future. In November 2015, the Board of Trustees approved the naming the new farm, the Charles C. Miller Jr. Poultry Research and Education Center. The establishment of this Center, named for a pioneer of the Alabama poultry industry, significantly contributes to our vision of having the premiere poultry and food science program in the world. These new facilities will support cutting-edge research, and provide students and industry personnel with outstanding educational experiences. I
am very pleased to report that the first phase of construction has been started and we will be in these first buildings later this year. It truly is an exciting time for our Department as we continue to evolve to best serve YOU, our alumni and friends. I look forward to keeping you updated on all of the exciting changes on the horizon. Thank you for your continued interest and support. As always...WAR EAGLE!
Don E. Connor Department Head & Professor
P OULTRY SCIENCE CLUB OFFICE RS MEMORIALIZE L ATE DE PARTMENT LE ADE R WITH BREWE R SE RVICE AWARD
F O R T H E D E PA R T M E N T O F P O U LT R Y S C I E N C E ’ S
2016 Alumni, Friends & Recruiting BBQ S E P T. 10, 2016 AU B U R N T I G E R S V S . A R K A N S A S S TAT E
J O I N U S FO R T H E G A M E T I C K E T S A R E $25 .0 0
Stay for lunch, visit with Department faculty, staff & students. Kick off and event time TBA. Follow us on social media for more details!
poul.auburn.edu
Robert N. Brewer joined the Auburn University Department of Poultry Science faculty in 1969 and served as department head from 1987 until his retirement in 2000. Dr. Brewer, who passed away in 2015, was instrumental in establishing numerous scholarship endowments that continue to have a strong impact. He also led efforts to significantly improve the department’s facilities, his crowning achievement being the grand opening of the Poultry Science Building in 2005. Clearly, Dr. Brewer was the driving force behind the concept and execution of the building project, and his motivation was not for himself but for the poultry industry, faculty and students. In 2016, Poultry Science Club officers began discussing the best way to commemorate Dr. Brewer and his contributions to the department and industry among students. After considering several strong ideas, the officers, with the approval of current department head Donald Conner, instituted a commemorative service award for students who go above and beyond in their service to the department and commitment to the poultry industry. “For those of us who were able to meet and know Dr. Brewer, finding a way to remember his service to the industry and his dedication to our department needed to happen,” said
ROBERT N. BREWER
2015-2016 Poultry Science Club president Karri Fievet. Faculty and peers can nominate students for the Brewer Service Award each spring. Winners will receive a cash award, and their names will be added to a commemorative plaque that will be displayed in the Poultry Science Building that Dr. Brewer invested so much time and care to make a reality. Dr. Conner applauded officers for this student-driven effort. “Dr. Brewer has truly left a strong legacy that will serve to advance poultry science and Alabama agriculture well into the future,” he said.
Work & Play EVERY SPRING OUR DEPARTMENT INVITES INDUSTRY PARTNERS TO REL AX AND PL AY A ROUND WITH US, BRINGING TOGETHER OLD AND NEW FRIENDS FOR A VISIT TO CAMPUS AND A DAY OF GOLF.
Join us this summer for one of our P.E.E.P.S. mini-camps! J U N E 13 O R 14 R I S I N G 1 S T-3 R D G R A D E R S
J U N E 16 O R 17 R I S I N G 4T H-6T H G R A D E R S
For more information and to register visit: poul.auburn.edu/outreach/summer Like our Facebook page for more photos: facebook.com/auburnpoultryscience
G R A D U AT E R E S E A R C H A D D R E S S E S F O O D S A F E T Y Kizmik McPherson’s passion for food science led her to change her major from pre-pharmacy as an undergraduate at the University of Georgia. “I just wasn’t enjoying my pre-pharmacy classes, but I was taking quite a few food science classes as electives alongside my major classes and was thriving in them,” she said. “That led me to switch my major to food science, and at the end of my undergraduate career, I realized I wasn’t ready to stop learning.” Today, McPherson is finishing up her Master of Science degree in food science in the Department of Poultry Science at Auburn University. Her graduate research focuses on the use of a novel antimicrobial compound—1-chloro-2,2,5,5tetramethyl-4-imidazoidinone—to control foodborne pathogens in alfalfa sprouts. Research on sprouts is important because the U.S. Food
KIZMIK MCPHERSON
FOOD SCIENCE GRADUATE STUDENT
and Drug Administration has classified them as a potentially hazardous food. In terms of produce items, sprouts are one of the most common causes of foodborne illnesses. “That’s why I really enjoy this project— because it’s a ‘big picture’ look at food safety for consumers,” said McPherson, who is conducting her research alongside Auburn food science professor Tung-shi Huang and under the the supervision of food science professor and extension specialist Jean Weese. In a climate where transparency in the food industry and consumer education are among top concerns for food scientists, McPherson’s research, which has shown promise in reducing commonly found pathogens on sprouts, has the potential to improve the safety and quality of alfalfa sprouts. While more research is needed before widespread application of these findings could be implemented in the industry, McPherson is excited about the real-world applications her research could have for consumers. Looking ahead to her career as a food scientist, McPherson cites the collaboration in her program as one of the most formative aspects of her graduate experience. From the dedicated technicians that help run the lab to the diverse group of peers in the food science graduate program, McPherson has found ample support for her work in the department.
VICTORIA HOLL AND
POULTRY SCIENCE STUDENT
U N D E R G R A D UAT E PRESENTS RESEARCH Victoria Holland, a junior in poultry production, was named a fellow in Auburn University’s Undergraduate Research Fellowship program in September 2015. This April, Holland presented her research at Auburn’s This is Research Student Symposium. Her research project, “Effect of incubational egg turning intervals on gut development in the chick, gut morphology and developmental biomarkers,” explores chick quality by examining gut development prior to hatching. Her poster presentation explained her research to viewers, as she stood nearby to talk them through her abstract, methodology and conclusion and to further discuss the topic. Holland will also present her research at the 2016 Poultry Science Association’s Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, in July. Read the full story at poul.auburn.edu.
A L U M N A P U R S U E S M A S T E R ’ S D E G R E E I N AV I A N M E D I C I N E T O B E T T E R S E R V E T H E P O U LT R Y I N D U S T R Y From the moment Victoria Drouet Pratt (BS ’06, Poultry Science; DVM ’10) stepped on the Auburn University campus as a student, she knew her career goals to earn a bachelor’s degree in poultry science and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree were possible. Pratt, who began her undergraduate education at Snead State Community College through the Auburn–Snead State 2+2 program, came from a strong background in poultry. The 2+2 program was ideal, she said, because it allowed her to take classes and work part time in a poultry processing company then called Gold Kist, now well known as Pilgrim’s. The Cullman County native found that hands-on experience in all areas of an integrated commercial poultry industry to be invaluable. “If I could go back and start over, I wouldn’t change the process,” Pratt said. “The work experience, coupled with classroom instruction, developed me into a very focused and driven poultry science/pre-vet student upon transfer to Auburn University.” Pratt settled in well at Auburn, joining clubs and enjoying her academic courses. As a member of the College of Agriculture’s Ag Ambassadors, Pratt represented the college to her peers on campus and the Auburn community. “Ag Ambassadors allowed me to make professional connections throughout many areas of the agricultural community and helped me become more aware of the network that so many of the agriculture students
TA K E T H E N E X T S T E P
in your career W I T H O U R P O U LT R Y & FO OD SCIE NCE JOB BOARD. SEARCH FOR POSITIONS, SUBMIT O P E N I N G S AT YO U R C O M PA N Y, A N D T A K E T H E N E X T S T E P T O D A Y.
share,” Pratt said. She also joined the Poultry Science Club. While involved with this organization, she built friendships with fellow poultry science students and had the opportunity to network with leaders in the poultry industry. “Many of my poultry science classmates and speakers I met during those years at Auburn remain colleagues of mine today,” she said. Upon completing her DVM degree from Auburn in 2010, she entered the industry at a small-animal practice in Rome, Georgia. She then moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee, to work at an animal? emergency and critical care hospital and to start her own ambulatory practice, Tri-State Veterinary Services LLC, serving the large-animal community of Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee. Pratt also worked as a relief veterinarian in the tristate area. In 2013, Pratt accepted a position with Elanco Animal Health’s Poultry Business Unit, working with commercial poultry companies covering 12 states while maintaining her private practice and relief veterinary work on the weekends. In her “spare time,” she and her husband started VNP Land and Cattle Company, a registered Black Angus farm in Chattanooga. In 2015, Pratt enrolled in the University of Georgia’s graduate program and is now pursuing her master’s in avian medicine. During the week, she lives in Athens,
VICTORIA DROUET PRAT T
Georgia, and travels home to Chattanooga on the weekends to spend time with her husband and son. After completing her master’s in avian medicine, she aims to work in production medicine at an integrated commercial broiler company, with an emphasis on bird health and welfare. Her drive for this career stems from her desire to provide a nutritious and safe source of protein to people worldwide. “I have always wanted to be a veterinarian, and once I learned more about the poultry industry, I realized how important it is to provide veterinary care for the birds that determine the livelihood of families where I come from,” she said. “I want to support the industry that has such a positive economical impact to the great state of Alabama. “The poultry industry has a $15 billion impact on Alabama’s economy,” she said, “and I feel a tremendous responsibility to protect these birds and the lives that this industry touches.”
C H A R L E S C . M I L L E R , J R . P O U LT R Y R E S E A R C H A N D E D U C AT I O N C E N T E R AT A U B U R N U N I V E R S I T Y With a $2.5 million gift from the family of Charles C. Miller, Jr., a pioneer of Alabama’s poultry industry, along with gifts from many other generous donors, the Department of Poultry Science has initiated construction of new state-ofthe-art farm and CHARLES C. MILLER JR. support facilities.
We have taken a “phased” approach to building this Center and defined three phases of build out. Ultimately the Center will consist of the full array of facilities to meet our research and educational missions. Construction of Phase 1 has started and planning for Phase 2 is ongoing with construction to begin in early 2017. Full build out will proceed as funding is secured. For more information visit www.poul.auburn.edu/ charles-miller-jr-poultry-center
F O O D S C I E N C E G R A D U AT E B E G I N S C A R E E R W I T H T Y S O N
T O V I E W P O S I T I O N S , V I S I T:
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Kayla Fromhold, of Cullman, Alabama, will graduate from the Poultry Science Department with her BS in Food Science in May of 2016. Her determined work ethic and creative problem solving skills have led her accept a position at Tyson Foods in Berryville, Arkansas, as a manager trainee in the food safety field. “All my life I was in love with Good Eats and Unwrapped on Food Network,” Fromhold explained. “Those shows explained the science behind foods we eat every day and how those foods were commercialized.” She completed an internship in the summer of 2015 with Wayne Farms Decatur Prepared
Food. “From that job, I learned much about the industry, and how plant life makes the food we eat possible,” Fromhold said. This internship gave her background knowledge for her future career. At her new position with Tyson Foods, she will be working with food safety and quality of all of the prepared foods produced at that plant. Looking forward, Fromhold sees her career as a food scientist, saying “It is challenging, but rewarding to know you have the ability to impact thousands of people.” “Working with major parameters of making appealing, safe, and sustainable food creates a great puzzle” she said.