Message, Continued from page 1
The State of Tennessee has appointed a Joint Land-Grant Funding Study Committee that began to look at the historical discrepancies in funding of the land-grant programs at Tennessee State University. President Glenda Glover has recently testified to this committee and explained the missed opportunities due to the history of unmet state matching funds that were required for the federal land-grant awards. I have narrated the phenomenal growth of the College of Agriculture in securing competitive federal grant funds and in graduating B.S., M.S., and Ph. D students majoring in agricultural fields. We are very confident that once the study is complete, the State of Tennessee will substantially increase TSU’s land-grant funding! Thanks to modern science, we all will get vaccinated soon and will be able to go back to operating normally, that’s my hope and prayer. Thanks for your continued support of Tennessee State University and its land-grant programs! Sincerely,
From the Editor
A
video traveled through social media last year of an irate gentleman hauling a garbage bag labeled 2020 out to the roadside trash can. He tosses the bag into the can. A successful slam dunk. It’s funny. For a second. Then, it’s not. 2020 has been easy for no one. Certain words became part of our daily vocabulary: quarantine, face mask, social distancing, virus, and death toll.
Joan Kite Editor
Perhaps some of you lost someone to the virus during this historic pandemic. At TSU, we did too. We send you our sincere condolences. Or maybe your life has been upended in other ways. A tornado blew through your home. A job was lost. A forced and sudden move. Or perhaps you suffered an illness or accident that sent you to a hospital while hospital beds and corridors were packed with patients stricken by COVID-19. I can relate. That happened to me, too. So we added other words to our verbal arsenal: resilience, patience, empathy, endurance, optimism, and hope. In light of new leadership in the White House and COVID-19 vaccines being approved and distributed, we now have hope. At TSU, our leaders did not cringe. President Glenda Glover, and her team, and Dr. Chandra Reddy, and his team of scientists, administrators, and staff at the College of Agriculture, stepped forward sizing up the two beasts — the tornado and the pandemic. We will rebuild what the tornado destroyed. We will protect our students and employees from the virus by staggering work and class schedules, teaching online, and shortening semesters. When we do see each other, we are masked heroes, standing six feet apart, communicating our needs to get the job done. Whatever it takes.
Chandra Reddy Dean and Director of Research/ Administrator of Extension
Our scientists are currently working on three-year research projects that will help small nurseries identify customers possibly suffering from COVID-19 and divert them to a safer shopping experience. Another researcher is overseeing a team of academics who are developing online curriculum for high schoolers interested in pursuing careers in agriculture. A pandemic will not thwart our efforts to steer the best and brightest into Ag labs, farms, and fields. Yet a third scientist is testing the effects of UV rays on surfaces contaminated with COVID-19. All of this is happening despite the damage this past year has brought us. Soon, we will be able to gather again. Our own personal harvest time. We will share food, tell tales, and truly enjoy each other’s company. A “new normal” will emerge that is better than the “old new normal” because we have learned what to value and appreciate.
This issue documents events from 2019 and 2020 to include an accurate history of newsworthy happenings at TSU. The next issue will appear in June 2021.
For now, a new year is upon us. 2021 is fresh with promise and hope. We wish you the best as you pursue those scholarships, obtain those internships, and earn those degrees. We are here to help no matter the damage or danger. Now go make us proud.
Winter 2020 | AgLINK 3
