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For hundreds of years, generations of the Klosler family worked off the land in Transylvania, Romania; growing fruit, making wine and raising livestock. In 1921, shortly after the end of WWI, George Klosler’s grandfather came to Canada to earn money for his family. He always planned to return home, but the onset of the Great Depression and WWII prevented him from making the trip he longed for. He continued to work on a tobacco farm in Norfolk County, Ontario with his family a continent away.

Second semester of fourth year is a stressful time for undergraduate students. “In last week’s class you could feel the tension,” explains Prof. Vern Osborne from the Department of Animal and Poultry Science who is currently teaching the  Applied Environmental Physiology & Animal Housing course. Vern’s solution to a class full of stressed out fourth years was to mix up one of his class’ format to give them a break. In his March 12 class, he asked his students to become “Flash Mob Solvers”.

The Department of Animal and Poultry Science is pleased to announce Dr. Angela Canovas as the new Beef/Small Ruminant Genomics Professor beginning June 15, 2015.

Upon arriving at the McCracken family home in Scotland, Ontario, we are greeted by their standard schnauzer named Fritz. Friendly, regal and a big part of the family; little did we know how Fritz would play a part in our story. Ron and Doreen McCracken both grew up on farms, and still feel at home in the country today. Their current residence, built in 1993, has some 48 acres. A neighbour farms a portion of the land with the remaining set aside for hobby farming, their garden and a place for Fritz to roam. Ron has kept bees, raised geese and ducks, and even guinea hens, but today he enjoys retirement after a long and interesting career.

In January, Michael Rogers joined the Department of Food Science as an associate professor. Rogers is an alumnus of the University of Guelph, attaining both his MSc and PhD in the department. Prior to returning to the University of Guelph, he held faculty positions at Rutgers University and the University of Saskatchewan and as the Center Director for the Gastrointestinal Physiology Center at New Jersey’s Institute of Food, Nutrition & Health.  

The School of Environmental Design & Rural Development's (SEDRD) Capacity Development and Extension (CDE) program recently donated its entire radio production studio to CFRU 93.3 FM, the University of Guelph campus radio station. The donation was arranged by Prof. Helen Hambly Odame and included all audio production hardware and software previously installed in the school's Media Lab. A preliminary estimate places the value of the equipment donated at approximately $62,000. The equipment includes broadcast microphones, a mixing console, processing hardware and software, computers and monitors, patch bays, cables and connectors, monitor speakers, and more.

The Department of Animal and Poultry Science is pleased to announce Dr. Christine Baes will be taking up the Semex – Canadian Dairy Network (CDN) – Holstein Canada Professorship in Dairy Genomics effective June 1, 2015. Dr. Baes will join the department as an assistant professor. The position is supported by a $750,000 gift from Semex Alliance, Canadian Dairy Network (CDN) and Holstein Canada.

Growing up on a broiler breeder farm, Christopher Olbach came to OAC to expand his knowledge of agriculture. Focusing on crop science, Chris hopes to get into the field (literally) as a crop agronomist. He is an active member of the OAC community as the president of his class and enjoys the relationships he is building at the University.

In 2010, Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) dean Rob Gordon met with Aileen MacNeil, director of the Agriculture Development Branch of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) regarding the challenges the branch was facing with finding qualified employees. While scribbling ideas on a napkin at a restaurant, the two agreed on a partnership where OAC students could learn new skills under the mentorship of both OMAFRA staff and University of Guelph (UofG) professors.

Lauren Benoit is active in almost "everything OAC". She enthusiastically volunteers her time with various clubs and associations on campus and still has time to explore the sights of Guelph. Lauren's summer job as a field researcher assistant expanded her passion for agriculture, and she hopes to continue her education in the area of plant agriculture.