Rachel Stammeyer’s June 17 letter expressed the understandable concern that dairy science students have about the closure of the ISU Dairy Farm at Ames. The farm has a history of nearly 100 years of educating students in the science and practice of dairy. It is a history that spans generations of students and families and has created tremendous loyalty to the program, the farm and the cattle. When the closure was announced, it tugged at the heartstrings of many hundreds of ISU students and alumni.

However, major budgetary shortfalls for Iowa State must be met with decisive action if we are to survive financially and move forward. Clearly, the dairy science faculty hoped that our programs would not be among those dramatically impacted.

When the dean announced the cuts, the Dairy Farm was on the list. It was a tough decision by the dean, but when viewed in the perspective of future plans there is a strategy to be found.

We knew the Ames and Ankeny dairy farms were to be closed in about three years and consolidated into a new ISU Dairy. Therefore, though the timing isn’t desirable for current teaching and research activities, this closure fits into plans that we had begun years ago.

So, what will the dairy science program do to adjust? First, we will not shut down teaching and research activities. We will move a major portion of the Ames herd to the ISU Dairy at Ankeny during the fall semester, and we have a pending temporary home for a significant number of the remaining cattle. We will have a dispersal auction for some cattle during the fall. The sale will help us address significant budgetary shortfalls at the dairy. Classes will continue to be taught at the Dairy Farm during fall term, but will begin to make the transition to the Ankeny farm by mid-fall. We will continue to use the Ames dairy pavilion for selected classes, while providing a shuttle system for classes and activities to be held in Ankeny.

Is there a silver lining in this news? I believe so. The closure of the Ames dairy will push the timeline up for the development of the new ISU Dairy. The new farm is likely to be located near our other animal science teaching farms south of Ames, very accessible for classes and research. The new farm will allow us to build upon the current herds to establish a state-of-the-art education, research and production facility.

Dairy science at ISU has been a nationally recognized program for more than a century. With a forward-looking attitude and some aggressive planning, the dairy science faculty and students will use our current challenge to plan for an even stronger future.

M. Douglas Kenealy

Professor

Animal Science