Downey

Ferris

Gordon

Rodibaugh

Whittington

Five agricultural leaders received the Purdue Agricultural Alumni Association's Certificate of Distinction at the association's annual Fish Fry in Indianapolis on Feb. 3.

The certificate honors those who have positively affected agriculture through professional accomplishments, involvement in agricultural activities, community work and other service activities, said Donya Lester, the association's executive secretary.

The 2007 recipients are:

W. David Downey, BS '61, MS '63, PhD '67, West Lafayette. A professor emeritus of agricultural economics at Purdue, Downey is a charter member of Purdue's Book of Great Teachers. He taught more than 10,000 agrimarketing and sales students during his 40-year teaching career. He co-founded the Center for Agricultural Business (later renamed the Center for Food and Agricultural Business) in 1986.

John N. "Jake" Ferris, BS '51, East Lansing, Mich. A professor emeritus of agricultural economics at Michigan State University, Ferris is a five-time recipient of the Premier Forecaster Award from the American Agricultural Economics Association. In 2005, he helped farmers build the first major biodiesel plant in Michigan.

William Philip Gordon, BS '65, Syracuse, Ind. A retired Extension educator, Gordon's efforts resulted in one of Indiana's first agricultural zoning ordinances protecting large farms from nuisance complaints. He served on the state's land use team, offering guidance to other communities in developing land use plans.

Danita Rodibaugh, BS '75 (CFS), Rensselaer, Ind. The office manager of her family's 1,400-acre, 400-sow farming operation, Rodibaugh is responsible for all financial records, herd records and activities, and a customer database. Rodibaugh is past president of the National Pork Board and a member of the Indiana State Department of Agriculture advisory board.

Charles L. "Shorty" Whittington, BS '68, Elizabethtown, Ind. He owns Grammer Industries Inc., Grammer, Ind., and Vickery Transportation Inc., Vickery, Ohio, a pair of transportation companies. He also owns Integrity Biofuels, the first continuous-flow soy biodiesel processing plant in Indiana, located in Morristown.