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Before leaving for the University
of Florida to pursue his PhD, Travis Park helped make Tri-country
High School's vocational agriculture program one of the top six
in the nation. Photo by Tom Campbell
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"Showing cattle for 14 years at the local, county and state level
helped make me comfortable in front of people, comfortable showing leadership,"
says Kenneth Schwab, the 1969 winner, "and I think that carried
over through my career at Purdue."
Several, like Wayne Turner, who won the award in 1982, say their agrarian
backgrounds helped them excel as students.
"When you are talking about a group of people who are close to,
or who have participated in production agriculture, you are talking
about people who come from strong families with strong ethical beliefs
and responsibilities who know the importance of giving back to the community,"
Turner says.
Many say it is the family atmosphere the College of Agriculture fosters
between students and faculty.
"People like Dean (David) Pfendler and agricultural economics
faculty members Larry Bohl and David Downey really took me under their
wing when I got to Purdue as a freshman in 1972," remembers Jay
Townsend, who won the award in 1976.
"They were of a mindset that you are at Purdue to learn the subject
matter, but that the four years you are there are going to be the best
four years of your life if you make friends and take advantage of all
this campus has to offer. They encouraged people to join clubs, write
for the newspaper, go to ballgames, everything. Purdue is so much more
than an academic institution."
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