Jay Akridge, MS ’83, PhD ’86, has been named the Glenn W. Sample Dean of Agriculture at Purdue, taking on a job that oversees academics, research, Purdue Extension and regulatory service for the state and beyond.

Akridge has been interim dean. His appointment is pending ratification by the board of trustees. As Purdue’s 11th dean of agriculture, he replaces Randy Woodson, who became Purdue’s provost last May.

“Jay is an excellent leader who has a clear vision for Purdue Agriculture,” Woodson said in announcing the appointment. “He is a very positive force who has the ability to build on the outstanding quality of one of the nation’s leading agricultural institutions.”

Akridge will be responsible for administering academic and research programs in the College of Agriculture and outreach through Purdue Extension and International Programs in Agriculture. He also will oversee a number of state regulatory services, including the Office of Indiana State Chemist and Seed Commissioner and the Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory.

“Agriculture plays an important role in Indiana’s economic vitality,” Akridge says. “The state looks to us to grow leaders to create new enterprises, provide expertise to help the industry remain globally competitive, and be a valued partner in youth and rural development. This is our charge and is what the people of Purdue Agriculture are passionate about.”

Purdue Agriculture includes 11 academic and two service departments with 315 faculty, 558 research/professional staff, 281 clerical and technical staff, and 271 Purdue Extension educators based throughout Indiana. Enrollment in the college is 2,535 undergraduates and 491 graduate students.

Here are Akridge’s replies to some questions posed by the Connections team:

The first major task is completion of the college’s strategic plan. We have a process in place for delivering a new plan during this semester. As part of the planning process, I intend to spend much of my time the first few months in dialogue with our external stakeholders, faculty, staff and students.

In the short run, the budget situation is on everyone’s mind. As a college, we will need to be prepared to respond to whatever cards are dealt with our state and federal appropriations. Fortunately, our university and college have benefited from strong and conservative fiscal management, so we approach a potentially difficult time from a position of strength.

Longer term, we will need to continue to address the changing demographics of our stakeholder base. Issues that affect the college broadly include the rural/urban balance of entering freshmen; a more diverse Indiana population; fewer, larger commercial farms; and increasing numbers of part-time farmers/rural entrepreneurs.

Finally, we must continue to position Purdue Agriculture to be a global player in the research arena. As funding sources focus on larger, multi-investigator, multi-institution projects; as equipment and facility requirements to do world-class science expand; and as exceptional faculty and staff have an increasing number of employment options, Purdue Agriculture will need to focus on creating a culture where exceptional people want to work, and then supporting their programs in every possible way.

I believe the Land Grant philosophy of learning, discovery and engagement is alive and very well at Purdue. Our respect for all three missions is a true strength of Purdue Agriculture, at a time when all public institutions of higher education are called to be more accountable.

We have been able to grow our faculty over the past seven years, and we have a truly exceptional research capacity to address what some call society’s grand challenges — food safety and security, energy, climate change, and stewardship of the environment.

I believe the undergraduate program is a true strength of Purdue Agriculture any way you measure excellence. Likewise, I am very excited about some of the new directions we are taking in Extension — the notion of transformational Extension programming is a powerful one, where the focus is on the question “What difference will we make?” Finally, I think our international programs are a model for the broader campus, whether we are talking about study abroad or international extension and research collaborations.

Challenges include aging facilities for research and teaching; attracting and retaining talented faculty and staff; addressing issues of diversity and inclusiveness among faculty, staff, and students; and evolving to respond to the rapidly changing expectations of our stakeholders.