Panhandle Agriculture Consortium to Host Open House Oct. 10 in Canyon

Media contacts: Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, [email protected]; Kay Ledbetter, 806-677-5608, [email protected]

Public can see research, education, diagnostic highlights on recently completed 'Ag Row' at WT

CANYON, Texas - The newly formed Panhandle Agriculture Consortium will host an open house from 2 to 5 p.m. Oct. 10 along Russell Long Boulevard on the West Texas A&M University campus in Canyon.

The public is invited to tour the agricultural research, education and diagnostic facilities that now share the same stretch of campus, colloquially known as "Ag Row."

"The strength of the Panhandle Agriculture Consortium is the people and expertise we bring together to serve agriculture," said Dr. Lance Kieth, associate dean of WT's Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences. "This open house is an opportunity for our neighbors to meet the people behind that work and see how we are investing in agriculture's next generation."

The event follows the move of the final entity, the Texas A&M AgriLife High Plains Research and Extension Center, to the WT campus and The Texas A&M University System's Charles W. "Doc" Graham '53 DVM Center. This step fulfilled the vision for close coordination among the region's agricultural institutions.

To carry that coordination forward, the organizations have re-established a partnership formerly known as the Cooperative Research, Extension and Education Team under a new name: the Panhandle Agriculture Consortium.

Open house activities

The open house will include every agency and institution located along Russell Long Boulevard, plus the United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Conservation and Production Research Laboratory in Bushland, which together make up the consortium.

Each site will offer building tours, exhibits, subject-matter experts and ice cream. Visitors can also pick up a "passport" at any location and complete it for a chance to win a door prize. Minors must be accompanied by an adult.

Visitors can tour:

• The WT Agricultural Sciences Complex, including the Caviness Meat Science and Innovation Center, the Happy State Bank Academic and Research Building, the Piehl-Schaeffer Pavilion, and the Bain Event Center. A 4-H sheep and goat demonstration will be in the arena.
• The Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences Veterinary Education, Research and Outreach program, which will display teaching models for ultrasound and ophthalmology.
• The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory in Canyon
• The Texas A&M AgriLife High Plains Research and Extension Center. Billie Peden, AgriLife Extension family and community health agent in Armstrong County, will demonstrate whole wheat loaves baked from several of the center's elite wheat varieties, including TAM 114, TAM 115, TAM 205 and an unreleased experimental line. AgriLife Extension staff also plan to demonstrate fresh salsa preparation using a bicycle-powered blender.
• The USDA Agricultural Research Service Conservation and Production Research Laboratory in Bushland, which will have a booth set up at the Texas A&M AgriLife center.

Unified mission to understand, address region's agricultural needs

Organizers say the event is meant to open the new facility to the surrounding community and highlight the everyday work these agencies do on behalf of families and communities across the Texas Panhandle.

"The name of the game for this consortium is effective stewardship of taxpayer resources: reducing duplication, sharing key assets, capitalizing on opportunities for synergy, and above all, training our next generation of educators, researchers and diagnosticians," said Dr. Brent Auvermann, Texas A&M High Plains center director. "We're thrilled to be able to celebrate our revitalized public-sector partnerships along Ag Row."

The Panhandle Agriculture Consortium's executive team will also be recognized at halftime of the WT Buffaloes football game that day, in acknowledgment of the consortium's work on behalf of Panhandle agriculture.

The game against The University of Texas Permian Basin kicks off at 7 p.m. in Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium, just west of Ag Row on Russell Long Boulevard.

About West Texas A&M University

West Texas A&M University is a Regional Research University in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT boasts an enrollment of about 9,000 and offers multiple options for students to graduate and succeed: 65 undergraduate degree programs, including eight associate degrees; and 41 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor's and master's degree, a specialist degree and three doctoral degrees. WT recently earned a Carnegie Foundation classification as a Research College and University. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference; WT offers 16 men's and women's athletics programs.

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