Source: WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY submitted to NRP
REIMAGINING HIGHER EDUCATION FOR THE 4TH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: A PLANNING GRANT
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
ACTIVE
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1031622
Grant No.
2024-70003-41455
Cumulative Award Amt.
$30,000.00
Proposal No.
2023-05516
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Dec 1, 2023
Project End Date
Nov 30, 2025
Grant Year
2024
Program Code
[ER]- Higher Ed Challenge
Recipient Organization
WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY
240 FRENCH ADMINISTRATION BLDG
PULLMAN,WA 99164-0001
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Higher education is facing headwinds that threaten its core missions. Funding, the enrollment cliff, access, and reduction in public support for a four-year degree are just a few of the areas needing attention. The overall objective of this planning grant is to gather data from stakeholders and then use this data for the submission of a full Higher Education Challenge Grant (HEC). The long-term goal will be to create innovative strategies to advance the effectiveness of higher education and to prepare leaders who are innovative, creative, and resilient partners ready for careers that advance U.S. agriculture and human potential. Three tasks will be conducted: Task 1: survey stakeholders of our degree programs to identify positive attributes and areas of improvement needed for CAHNRS graduates. Task 2: compile and summarize the survey results and convene two focus group meetings to discuss and inform change. Task 3: examine the outcomes of Task 1 and 2 to identify opportunities for structural change across CAHNRS baccalaureate degree offerings and submit a compelling HEC grant to implement these changes. This project meets the HEC goals of curriculum development, instructional delivery systems and expanding student career opportunities.
Animal Health Component
10%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
10%
Applied
10%
Developmental
80%
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
90300013020100%
Knowledge Area
903 - Communication, Education, and Information Delivery;

Subject Of Investigation
0001 - Administration;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;
Goals / Objectives
The long-term goal of this work is to develop and implement strategies to address higher education challenges including reduced enrollment, employer frustration with skills training, and increasingly negative public perception of a four-year degree. The short-term goal of this planning grant is the submission of a full proposal for a Higher Education Challenge (HEC) Grant that will transform the higher education experience and prepare leaders who are innovative, creative, and resilient partners ready for careers that advance U.S. agriculture and human potential. The objective of this planning grant is to identify a testable, implementable strategy that can form the basis of a full grant proposal. The College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences (CAHNRS) at Washington State University (WSU) has the enthusiasm, talent, imagination and partnerships to lead this discussion and design and test alternatives.
Project Methods
Task 1: Alumni Career and Company SynthesisEach unit within CAHNRS, and to a broader degree the University, routinely compiles some information regarding where graduates from undergraduate programs begin working once their college degree is completed. But each unit lacks a cohesive understanding of how graduates of different programs find careers within different divisions of similar companies. What would be helpful information to obtain in identifying potential program changes is collectively where all CAHNRS graduates find jobs upon graduation (e.g., specific company/firm, agency, or organization). The collection of these data could be obtained partly from the CAHNRS development office and with a quick survey addressed to CAHNRS alumni. With these data obtained, identifying which industries, companies, firms and agencies/organizations hire our graduates of each degree program could be easily summarized. This information will be the basis for identifying industry engagement but approaching it from a better-informed position.Task 2: Industry / Stakeholder EngagementIdentify survey list (taken from alumni who are employed within industry)Questionnaire/survey developmentOnline questionnaire implementation regarding things they appreciate regarding WSU CAHNRS graduates, suggested changes, etc.Compile/summarize results, by industry, company, and position (examples follow)AgricultureInputs/ProductionWilbur-Ellis, Simplot, The McGregor CompanyFertilizer/ag chemical SalesProcurement OfficerEquipment Manufacture (John Deere, Ford NH, Lely and other precision ag companies etc.)SalesRelationship managerShop/equipment repairData managementProcessingColumbia GrainTraderElevator/Mill ManagerFinanceAgWest, CoBankLoan ManagerRisk ManagementOrganize two focus group meetings to present data collection results.Focus groups will be organized that target agricultural/natural resource sciences and human sciences employers. Members may include individuals from business as well as public-sector agencies. Focus groups will be used to refine and assess the feasibility of proposed curricula models described above, gauge interest in serving as a host for internship/immersion experiences and inform curricular content planning and decisions. They will be held in Western and Eastern Washington.Task 3: Possible Curriculum ChangesUtilizing the outcomes of Task 1 and 2, identify opportunities across CAHNRS degree offerings and develop proposed changes. These changes could include a wide variety of approaches (previously described).TimelineThe following work tasks will be completed over the next three years. Tasks 1 and 2 involve collection of data from external industry stakeholders. This knowledge is fundamental to understanding the types of skills and attributes needed for graduates entering the work force and how technology and data science are rapidly influencing careers. Task 3 synthesizes this information and evaluates existing degree programs to identify necessary program changes and enhancements. The outcomes will be produced in Task 4 in the draft and final report, followed by disseminating these results to industry stakeholders in Task 5.

Progress 12/01/23 to 11/30/24

Outputs
Target Audience:We are in the faculty and staff training phase of our project. On April 18, 2024, we kicked of our "Transforming the Student Experience Summit" by engaging our faculty, staff, and stakeholders. We had presentations by the following partners: Agenda 2:00 - 3:00: Keynote Address "The Career Ready Graduate: What Employers Say About the Difference College Makes" by Ashley Finley, Vice President of Research at AAC&U 3:00 - 4:30: Industry/Governmental Panel of thought leaders featuring: • Deborah Dihel, Vice President, Strategic Growth Innovation - Lamb Weston; • Dana Honn, Global Supply Chain Innovation, Product Management Director - NIKE; • Frank Santiago, Sr Sales Representative Turf & Ornamental Portfolio - BASF; • Sara Malvar, Senior Research Software Development Engineer - Microsoft; • Greg Williamson, Youth and Family Housing Program Manager - Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families 4:30 - 5:00: Synthesizing Knowledge for Collaborative Problem Solving and Q & A • Kris Johnson, Professor, Animal Sciences • Nancy Irlbeck, Clinical Associate Professor, Animal Sciences • Michael Phelps, Assistant Professor, Animal Sciences We continued the "Transforming the Student Experience" theme and held another event on Sept. 26, 2024. The agenda was as follows: Agenda 12:00 - 12:45. David Attis, Managing Director of Research at EAB - The Partnership Imperative: Enhancing the University and Industry Collaboration 12:45 - 1:00 Petra Atilano, Senior Vice President - Credit Washington, AgWest Farm Credit 1:00 - 1:15 Jacob Blauer, Assistant Professor of Potato Physiology at WSU, with previous experience at ConAgra Foods/Lamb-Weston, J.R. Simplot Company, and Land O'Lakes/Forage Genetics International 1:15 - 1:30 Q & A By inviting our colleagues and partners and offering these presentations, we hope to energize our faculty, so they are ready to "reimagine higher education" for our planning project. Changes/Problems:The project started off strong with monthly meetings, and then attendance dwindled. We pivoted and worked on the professional development piece so all faculty and staff were trained and ready to tackle implementing the change that is needed. We will start up the monthly/bi-monthly meetings again. We also had difficulty finding a social scientist to help with the survey, but we now have someone working on our behalf. We hope to have all survey data collected by May 2025. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?On April 18, 2024, we kicked of our "Transforming the Student Experience Summit" by engaging our faculty, staff, and stakeholders. We had presentations by the following partners: Agenda: 2:00 - 3:00:Keynote Address"The Career Ready Graduate: What Employers Say About the Difference College Makes"by Ashley Finley, Vice President of Research at AAC&U 3:00 - 4:30:Industry/Governmental Panelof thought leaders featuring: Deborah Dihel, Vice President, Strategic Growth Innovation - Lamb Weston; Dana Honn, Global Supply Chain Innovation, Product Management Director - NIKE; Frank Santiago, Sr Sales Representative Turf & Ornamental Portfolio - BASF; Sara Malvar, Senior Research Software Development Engineer - Microsoft; Greg Williamson, Youth and Family Housing Program Manager - Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families 4:30 - 5:00:Synthesizing Knowledge for Collaborative Problem Solving and Q & A Kris Johnson, Professor, Animal Sciences Nancy Irlbeck, Clinical Associate Professor, Animal Sciences Michael Phelps, Assistant Professor, Animal Sciences We continued the"Transforming the Student Experience" theme and held another event on Sept. 26, 2024. The agenda was as follows: Agenda 12:00 -12:45. David Attis, Managing Director of Research at EAB -The Partnership Imperative: Enhancing the University and Industry Collaboration 12:45 - 1:00 Petra Atilano, Senior Vice President - Credit Washington, AgWest Farm Credit 1:00 - 1:15 Jacob Blauer, AssistantProfessor of Potato Physiology at WSU, with previous experience at ConAgra Foods/Lamb-Weston, J.R. Simplot Company, and Land O'Lakes/Forage Genetics International 1:15 - 1:30 Q & A By inviting our colleagues and partners and offering these presentations, we hope to energize our faculty, so they are ready to "reimagine higher education" for our planning project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We recorded both of our "Transforming the Student Experience" events, and also have PowerPoint presentations for each. These are being dissiminated to our faculty, staff, and stakeholders. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? For the next reporting period, we will be collecting data through a survey to our industy/business/agency throughout the region. We will also survey our alumni from the past 30 years. Other activities include listening sessions, compiling the data into useable reports, and brainstorming ideas using the data that was collected. We also began implementing sprecific groups targeted to transforming the student experience. The first group, the Faculty Innovation Committee, just met for the first time on Nov. 8, 2024. All groups will be meeting monthly and will work on the key tasks in their areas. Below is our action plan. TRANSFORMING THE STUDENT EXPERIENCE - ACTION PLAN - 2024-2025 Vision:CAHNRS is known for teaching and learning excellence with hands-on, real-life, relevant experiences in collaboration with alumni, business/industries, agencies, Extension, and research. Teaching is prioritized and rewarded for excellence and innovation, and students are recognized as critical thinkers and lifelong learners. Why?Increasing workforce development needs, college priorities include increasing recruitment and retention, offering more hands-on experiences to help students explore career and academic opportunities. STUDENT FACING ACTION PLAN - Short Term 1.Create Career Ready Cougs Committee(Implemented Nov. 2024) A. Determine outcomes and how each is measured: professionalism, leadership, communication,equity & inclusion, critical thinking, teamwork, technology, career & self dev. (*NACE Standards) B. Explore cost savings by using Badger in Canvas (instead of Suitable) for badges 2. Create Experiential Learning Committee(Implemented Nov. 2024) A. Inventory current Dept/Unit/degree programs' field trips, internships, etc. B. Develop menu of experiences with student learning outcomes and expectations for each on and off-campus (internship, research (field or lab), teaching, Extension, and study abroad) C. Utilize Handshake (WSU-wide database) for all student experiences D. Implement career seminar series for students (an idea) FACULTY INNOVATION ACTION PLAN - Short Term Create the Faculty Innovation Committee(Implemented Nov 2024) Assess existing majors/degree programs, look at viability of each major/degree, explore options And concentrations, etc. Require curriculum mapping/revision with ACE (Office of Assessment for Curricular Effective) facilitator (decide how often) Review and propose novel different delivery options per course/internship, e.g. location, time of year, length, increased credits, etc. Evaluate current CAHNRS UCORE classes and survey recent alumni for input Evaluate capacity for new courses Determine why newly proposed UCORE courses do not get approved Create Certificates Committee for Academic Credit(Implemented Nov 2024) A. Create Ag Leadership Certificate (request from Washington Dept. of Agriculture) B. Create additional relevant certificates C. Explore moving non-credit certificate programs to academic credit D. Explore developing microcredentials and professional certificates for increased departmental revenue FACULTY INNOVATION ACTION PLAN - Long Term(In progress - for continuous program improvement) Continually Review Career Ready Cougs for all of CAHNRS (*NACE Standards) Create more internships at WSU campuses, REC's & county Extension offices (include HS students) Investigate and create novel, longer duration, and increased credit internship experiences Investigate novel delivery options for courses, e.g. mini-mesters - intensive winter/summer session, weekend, two-week sessions Increase delivery options of courses at WSU Campuses, REC's & County Extension - deliver classes onsite (could be hybrid with on-site experiences) Create community college cross-listing with collaborative field experiences Increase and expand 2 + 2 programs (include Running Start) Inform HS curriculum to include ag tech, agriscience careers Collaborate with regional universities such as University of Idaho and Oregon State University *NACE - National Association of Colleges and Employers

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? We are completingyear one of our in the planning phase ofour project. I am repeating what was submitted for an earlier question, but it is part of our planning project. Part of our short-term goal is to collect the data needed to prepare a full proposal for the HEC grant. We collaborated with the Latinx students in our Juntos grant and with the K-12 curriculum development piece of our AgAID grant. In both grants, we are focusing on Latinx/underrepresented students and the promotiono of agriscience careers. Data collection has occured in the Juntos program. For the AgAid program, we are engaging with K-12 Ag Education education and FFA. We areassisting with the Ag Tech piece of the curriculum. Students will be exposed to Ag Tech and will compete in the FFA Career Development Event, Spring 2025. We are also finalizing survey questions to send to our industry, business, and agency stakeholders as well as to our alumni. We completed two training/professional development sessions for our faculty and staff. See below.

Publications