Purdue News
Purdue NewsDecember 19, 1997
"Ag Forum from Jan. 21 to Jan. 23 will focus on what will drive change in rural Indiana and how those factors will affect rural communities," said David Petritz, conference chair and assistant director for agriculture and natural resources in Purdue's Cooperative Extension Service. "We'll have experts discussing trends in agriculture, education, technology and families that will affect all of us."
Titled "A 2020 Vision of Rural Indiana," the three-day program begins Wednesday, Jan. 21, with a general session that looks at rural economic change in Indiana, population migration and demographics, roads and other rural infrastructure needs and how rural Indiana families are changing.
Wednesday's final afternoon session will put Indiana leaders on the hot seat, asking them to outline what they envision their communities and industries to be doing in the year 2020 and what they expect Purdue to do to help them flourish.
On Thursday, Jan. 22, Ag Forum will begin with a question-and-answer session with Lt. Gov. Joe Kernan about his vision for rural Indiana. Ag Forum then will break into four concurrent session focusing on agriculture, education, technology and families.
The agriculture session will address farming demographics; rural opportunities; labor issues; the changing structure and size of farms; the global marketplace; environmental issues and evolving technologies in crop and livestock production; and coping with state and federal regulations. Victor Lechtenberg, dean of the Purdue School of Agriculture, will close the session with a discussion on "What Must Indiana Do to Compete in the 21st Century?"
The technology session will offer a broad look at how business and education technology will work in Indiana's economic future. It will include live demonstrations of how modern technology is being used in business and in education. After lunch and before joining the Lechtenberg discussion, participants can take part in a discussion with an expert panel about what the technological future holds
The education session focuses on what roles educators need to play in helping rural Indiana progress during the next 25 years. "You may not be going to school in a school," according to session organizers. "Learning Alternatives in the Future" will allow participants to experience distance learning technology and other learning-method alternatives. The session will conclude with a panel discussion of education experts including Suellen Reed, education superintendent for Indiana.
The fourth session, "The Changing Indiana Family," will include an examination of the state of child care and health care and a Purdue profile of the status of children in one rural county.
The traditional Ag Forum agricultural economics program begins Thursday at 7 p.m. WILL-580 Radio will sponsor an outlook panel with Charles Lindy, WILL farm director and panel moderator; Paul Bates, Bates Commodities; Wayne Nelson, L&M Commodities; Bob Utterback, Utterback Marketing Services; and Chris Hurt, Purdue agricultural economist.
Following the outlook session, Thomas Jackson of the AgMas Project -- a joint effort of Ohio State University and the University of Illinois -- will discuss the project's findings in a study comparing pricing performance of 25 ag marketing services. Hurt will cover "Using Indiana Grain Price Patterns for Market Timing."
Daytime sessions for Ag Forum will cost $15 for one day or $25 for two days, and preregistration by Jan. 15 through Purdue's Continuing Education department, (888) 398-4636, is encouraged. The outlook session is free. All the sessions will take place at Stewart Center.
On Friday morning, a panel of industry leaders will discuss the future of agriculture. The free session in Loeb Theater begins at 9 a.m. and will be broadcast live on Channel Earth.
Panel members include: Lechtenberg; Charles S. Johnson, president and CEO of Pioneer Hi-Bred International; William F. Kirk, senior vice president and general manager of DuPont Agricultural Products; Harry Cleberg, president and CEO of Farmland Industries; Dean R. Kleckner, president of American Farm Bureau Federation; and John Hagaman, president and CEO of Dow AgroSciences. Channel Earth's Orion Samuelson will moderate.
At 11:30 a.m., it'll be time for fun and fish at the Purdue Armory where the Ag Alumni Association will hold the 1998 Purdue Ag Fish Fry.
"We're Off ... To See The Wizard" is the theme, complete with Fish-Fry-style variations on the characters from the mythical land of Oz and the music of the Purdue Pep Band and performers from the Purdue Musical Organizations. The alumni association also will bestow certificates of distinction on honorees selected for their service to agriculture.
Fish Fry tickets are $12 each and are available only through advance sales at all Purdue Cooperative Extension Service county offices in Indiana or through the Ag Alumni Association office. Group discounts are available for parties of 10 or more. For more information, contact the Ag Alumni Association at (765) 494-8593.
Source: David Petritz, (765) 494-8494; e-mail: David_Petritz@ces.purdue.edu
Writer: Amy H. Raley, (765) 494-6682; e-mail: ahr@aes.purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
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