$100,000 raised in scholarship fund in memory of Vermilion 4-H’er

Kaylee McLain was able to show her pig Pearl only once, in November 2020, before she died in an accident the next month. Photo provided by the McLain family

The sale of Pearl the pig raised $100,000 in Vermilion Parish for a scholarship fund to honor 10-year-old Kaylee McLain, who died in December 2020 in an accident. The fundraising effort came during the auction of 4-H animals on Jan. 16, 2021.

“We have amazing and generous people in Vermilion Parish,” said Shannan Waits, LSU AgCenter 4-H agent in Vermilion Parish.

In the midst of their grief, Kaylee’s parents, Erin and Allen McLain, set up the scholarship fund to help provide students with education in Catholic schools. Gwen Broussard, a 4-H volunteer who helped the McLain family set up the scholarship fund, said word spread about the upcoming sale, and numerous people pledged money to buy the pig.

“When this happened, people wanted to find a tangible way to support the family,” Broussard said. “Before the pig even sold, we knew we had $38,000.”

The pig wasn’t sold to just one individual for $100,000; numerous people placed winning bids on the pig, then donated the animal for another round of bidding. At the auction, Pearl was sold, then donated back for another sale 26 times, Broussard said. In total, more than 100 families and businesses contributed to the final amount.

Monica Guient leads diversity, inclusion and opportunity effort

Monica Guient

Monica Guient is the new assistant vice president for diversity, inclusion and opportunity for the LSU AgCenter and the College of Agriculture. She will be developing a diversity strategic plan, improving recruitment and retention, coordinating support services for underrepresented students and securing grant funding. A native of Texas, she holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Xavier University of Louisiana and a master’s degree in sociology from the University of New Orleans.

Matt Foster named cotton, corn and grain sorghum specialist

Matt Foster

Matt Foster, who had been an LSU AgCenter area extension agent working with sugarcane and soybeans, has been named the new statewide specialist for cotton, corn and grain sorghum. He is based at the Macon Ridge Research Station near Winnsboro and has an office at the Northeast Research Station at St. Joseph. Foster, who grew up in rural Concordia Parish, received his doctorate from LSU in 2018 in agronomy. He earned a bachelor’s degree from LSU in agricultural pest management in 2012.

Scientists awarded $600,000 grant to study water use

LSU AgCenter agronomist Changyoon Jeong is conducting a water reuse study at the Red River Research Station in Bossier City. Photo by Amber Wilson

Three LSU AgCenter scientists have been awarded a three-year $595,172 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation to study ways to decrease the use of groundwater and increase the use of fresh water in agricultural production.

The scientists are Changyoon Jeong and Syam Dodla, both associate professors at the Red River Research Station in Bossier City, Louisiana, and Jim J. Wang, professor in the Department of Plant, Environmental and Soil Sciences. Jeong said water availability is a critical limitation to crop production and sustainability, and tailwater recovery systems help supplement traditional irrigation by capturing runoff water and allowing it to be reused for agriculture.

Top AgCenter and College of Ag award winners for 2020 honored at virtual ceremony

The LSU AgCenter and the LSU College of Agriculture announced the winners of their 2020 faculty and staff awards during a virtual ceremony on Dec. 16.

Blair Hebert, area agricultural agent from Iberia Parish who has worked for the AgCenter for 26 years, with a focus on row crop field work and 4-H activities, received the Floyd S. Edmiston Award.

Sara Shields, Central Region horticulture agent who coordinates the Louisiana Master Gardener Program, overseeing more than 1,500 volunteers across the state, was the recipient of the Extension Excellence Award.

Jeff Davis, professor in the Department of Entomology whose research focuses on the biology and management of multiple insect species across several crop systems, received the G & H Seed Company Inc. Research Award.

Zhi-Yuan Chen, professor in the Department of Plant Pathology and Crop Physiology, received the Doyle Chambers Award for his research addressing critical needs of corn and soybean production, which represent more than 50% of the state’s total row crop acreage.

A team that developed an integrated pest management strategy for Tabasco peppers received the Denver T. and Ferne Loupe Extension Team Award. Team members are Mary Helen Ferguson, Kiki Fontenot, Raj Singh and Ron Strahan.

Margo Castro and Cherie Roger, 4-H agents, received the Rosalie Bivin 4-H Youth Development Award for their hurricane relief efforts in the Southwest Region.

Deborah Cormier, an administrative coordinator in the St. Martin Parish extension office, was the winner of the Ganelle Bullock Outstanding Service Award.

Chris Dunaway, an Orleans Parish extension horticulturist, was named winner of the Outstanding Service Award for Associates.

Lynn Kennedy, alumni professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness, received the Sedberry Award for Outstanding Graduate Teacher.

Lisa Fultz, an associate professor in the School of Plant, Environmental and Soil Sciences, received the Sedberry Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Teacher.