INTRODUCTION

Land resources for food animals have dwindled continuously in the Northeast. The animal industry has increased vertical integration, while educational demands regarding companion, laboratory, and wild animals have escalated. During the same period, exciting new opportunities for animal biotechnology and molecular biology had to be embraced by teachers of Animal Science. To accommodate these new demands, institutions in the region have stretched their shrinking resources to the limit. New educational paradigms are required to accommodate the new demands, without abandoning traditional animal science all together.

Therefore, this project was conceived to uncover ways to meet the expanding needs of students, industry, and society while conserving and optimizing the reach of teaching resources. Conceptually, to enhance Animal Science education, the plan was to bring together faculty with complementary expertise to offer courses and programs that could not be accomplished by most institutions alone. As will be shown below, a regional Animal Science partnership has evolved to deliver specialized information to students and stakeholders, regardless of their location across the region.

MISSION

The mission of this project was to establish a regional partnership to help transform Animal Science education for the 21st century. If the partnerships can be sustained, through inter-institutional collaboration, by 2020 the separate Animal Science programs may evolve into specialized centers to focus on specific species or disciplines to provide much of the teaching for the entire region. While the focus of this project has been on teaching, discussions among the partners have surprisingly enhanced research collaborations.

GOALS

We aspired to share and conserve teaching resources so as to expand educational opportunities beyond traditional food animals to include companion, laboratory, zoo, and wild animals, as well as animal biotechnology and molecular biology, and with improved quality of learning.

PROJECT COMPONENTS

1. Computer Assisted Courses/Distance Learning. This is the largest component of the project. All fifteen institutions involved have fewer resources devoted to Animal Science education than in the past. Fewer courses are being offered because the numbers of their faculty have dwindled, thereby affecting the quality of the programs. As a result, the group decided to share resources via computer-assisted learning. There are currently five courses developed or in development - Animal Genetics, Canine Genetics, Feline Genetics, Animal Nutrition, and Horse Management, and three more are planned. In addition, a Student Internship Database was created wherein students may access job opportunities and potential employers may assess students through a web site now managed by the national scientific societies.
2. Outreach Dairy Extension Training for the Northeast. The major thrust of this component is an annual workshop (or regional Extension, state government and industry personnel involved with dairy production, taught by national experts, the substance of each workshop is given to each participant electronically so that it may be easily adapted for use in local Extension education programs.
3. Multimedia Coordination. The goal is to agree upon codes used for multimedia materials from each of the participating institutions so that resources can be shared. In addition, participants can share successes and failures in the production of digital resources such as websites, computer-based learning programs, computer animations, and on-line testing, so that everyone can learn from these experiences.

PROJECT UPDATES

Animal Nutrition
Since September 2000, 24 modules in Animal Nutrition have been available both on the Web and on an identical CD. These modules comprise an entire undergraduate course in Animal Nutrition offered for Rutgers credit through eCollege to students regardless of their location. In addition, the modules have been used a course supplement similar to a reference book at the Universities of Delaware, Maine, Maryland-Eastern Shore, and Ohio State. This development means that students throughout the world have access to a high quality, interactive course in animal nutrition for which they may receive college credit.

The original Animal Nutrition database has been revised on the basis of suggestions from teachers and students who have used the database and from nine external peer reviewers. The revision is being used to teach the course during fail term 2002. At the same time, the potential for a modification of the same database is being tested for graduate credit for high school biology teachers.

Animal Genetics
University of Massachusetts, the Pennsylvania State University, Cornell University, and SUNY Cobleskill have shared an Applied Animal Genetics Seminar every fall. Others are invited to participate.

Collaboration with the American Zoological Association has resulted in an epidemiology modeling computer program, Outbreak, that is applicable in diseases and in genetics. Outbreak and the earlier program, Vortex (for teaching genetics), may be downloaded from Cornell to be used at any institution.

The Cornell CD-based Canine Genetics and Cat Genetics, and Inherited Diseases of Companion Animals each have been taught several times. Canine Genetics will not be offered again until updated seminars can be developed.

Aided by a USDA Higher Education Challenge grant a genetics web site has been created for the general public.

Dairy Extension In-Service Training
The fourth annual in-service training workshop, “Clearing the Way to Profitability: Nutrition and Herd Health, Labor Management, and Profitability,” addressed practices to improve nutrition, herd health, labor management, and profitability. Sixty-four extension educators and 16 speakers participated.

The training program included three major sessions a) Nutrition and Herd Health, b) Labor Management and c) Profitability.

Each participant received a CD-ROM with the PowerPoint presentations from each speaker, along with a notebook containing their slides. Despite expiration of Food System Consortium funding, participants recommended the training program should be continued, possibly subsidized by funds from each institution.

Shared Computer-Teaching Technologies
Supported by a USDA Higher Education Challenge Grant to John Riesen (CT), this project aims to teach animal science faculty how to use computer-based teaching resources. A one-day workshop was conducted at 11 of our collaborating institutions to 1) increase faculty comfort in computer-based learning technologies, 2) acquaint instructors with computer-based teaching resources in the region, 3) help faculty develop their own computer-based teaching projects, and 4) recruit submissions to the regional teaching databases. Each workshop was conducted in cooperation with the local administrative and computer support personnel, and included a hands-on period for faculty to work on their own projects. Three faculty with the most promising projects at each school were awarded $500 to help complete their projects.

On the basis of our regional workshops, the participating institutions have greatly expanded use of electronic databases that may be shared with others at distant locations. These will permit expanding course offerings to students in our region, while conserving resources at our institutions.

Internship Database
With support from a USDA Higher Education Challenge Grant, Geoffrey Dahl (MD) created a website for internships in animal agriculture. It was coordinated with a career opportunity course to increase students' appreciation for alternative careers in animal science. These activities have enhanced undergraduate students' experience, strengthened university-stakeholder ties, and promoted the movement of animal science students into animal agriculture and related careers.

The internship database was transferred effective September 1st 2001 to the server at the national headquarters for our scientific societies, and expanded to be a national registry. This database is now managed by the scientific societies, thereby institutionalizing the database - a major contribution from the Food System Consortium. A revolving faculty-industry committee has been appointed to oversee the internship database, and Geoffrey Dahl will continue to guide its development from his new position at the University of Illinois.

Partners

Universities and Higher Education
Cornell University, NY; Delaware State University, DE; Delaware Valley College, PA; Pennsylvania State University, PA; Rutgers University, NJ; Sussex County Community College, NJ; University of Connecticut, Ct University of Delaware, DE; University of Maine, ME; University of Maryland College Pork, MD; University of Maryland Eastern Shore, MD; University of Massachusetts, MA; University of New Hampshire, NH; University of Vermont, VT; West Virginia University, WV.

Industry
Alpharma, Inc., NJ; Cargill Feed, NY; ECollege, CO; Genzyme Transgenics, MA; Helmdale Farms, NY; Holstein Foundation, VT; Merck & Co., NJ; Murphy Family Farms, NC; National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, CO; New England Feed Grains Council, ME; NJ Farm Bureau; NJ Veterinary Medical Association; NY State Dairy Association, NY; Norman Borlaug University, NJ; Purdue Poultry Farms', Mo; Purina Mills, PA; QC Inc., MD; RW Johnson Pharmaceutical Research Institute, NJ; Show Place Farm, NJ.

Government
US Department of Agriculture, CSREES; Department of Agriculture, MD.