ILEAD III Rounds Out State Tour in Northwest Arkansas

by Lisa Davis - July 1, 2024

Members of iLEAD Cohort III finished their year-long leadership development program in northwest Arkansas.

Day One

By Brian See, County Extension Agent-Staff Chair, Marion County

Day one of the iLEAD began with a warm welcome from the Clarksville research station director, Dr. Jackie Lee. She gave us a brief history of the station and its important research. It was all very interesting, for example, the blackberry breeding program at the station has an amazing legacy with most tame blackberries today deriving from the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture (UADA) lineage. Once we were welcomed it was time for a tour of the research fields.

We looked at the parent trees for peach breeding and many research plots including blackberries, muscadines, blueberries, and even hops! The farm has the capability to irrigate its fruit from two surface reservoirs: one large pond at the base of the farm and one at the top of the farm. The water is pumped from the large pond at the base to the top one. After the tour concluded we went back inside and did some taste testing of some new blackberry selections and filled out a survey to weigh in on our favorites and not so favorites. After lunch we traveled to Milo J. Schult Research and Extension Center in Fayetteville. Here we did an activity where each person was assigned three people to give feedback regarding their leadership skills. This was a great activity that boosted confidence and reinforced the group's cohesiveness. After this it was time for dinner at Hugo's!

Day Two

By Sun-Ok Lee, Associate Professor, Food Science

Day two was a dynamic exploration, highlighting the remarkable work being done in the departments of Food Science, Poultry Science, and Entomology and Plant Pathology. Highlights include:

• Understanding our taste sensitivity (Dr. Jamie Baum)
• Exploring advanced rice processing technologies (Dr. Griffith Atungulu)
• Platform for food entrepreneurs (John Swenson)
• Poultry Pilot Processing Unit to support the study and improvement of poultry processing techniques (Dr. Casey Owens)
• Poultry Research Farm to develop sustainable practices (Dr. Michael Kidd)
• Entomology roadshow truck to raise awareness about the importance of insects in our ecosystem (Dr. Austin Jones), and
• Development of novel control tools for understanding the ecology of pest and vector species (Dr. Emily McDermott).

Each session offered invaluable insights. The day’s experience broadened our knowledge and deepened our appreciation for scientific endeavors.

To learn more information about the iLEAD program, please reach out to Julie Robinson at jrobinson@uada.edu or Lisa Davis at ldavis@uada.edu.