By Mary Hightower
U of A System Division of Agriculture
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Members of the Board of Trustees on Friday praised an agreement between the University of Arkansas and the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture as a milestone.
Since the Board of Trustees created the Division of Agriculture in 1959, there have been long-standing differences between the Fayetteville campus and the division. For example, faculty with appointments in both institutions had to navigate different processes for tenure, as well as finances and facilities.
Charles Robinson (left), chancellor of the University of Arkansas, Jean-François Meullenet, director of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and interim dean of the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, and Deacue Fields, VP of Agriculture for the University of Arkansas System, present during the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees meeting on Sept. 15, 2023, in Fayetteville. (U of A System Division of Ag photo)
The agreement maps out processes and defines roles and responsibilities related to finance and human resources operations, services, benefits, facilities and space allocation, and management of joint faculty and staff appointments.
Land grant history
The University of Arkansas was established at Fayetteville as a land grant university, initially hosting all three land grant missions: agricultural teaching, research and extension, or outreach. In 1959, the Division of Agriculture held the research and extension functions through the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service. The teaching part was left with UAF, in what is now the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences.
At their meeting on Friday at the Fayetteville campus, the trustees heard from Deacue Fields head of the Division of Agriculture; Charles Robinson, chancellor of the University of Arkansas; and Jean-François Meullenet, interim dean of the Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences for UAF and head of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station for the division.
‘Do what they say can’t be done’
When it came to the effort to reach an agreement Fields offered a line from the “Smokey and the Bandit” theme song, saying they were going to “do what can’t be done.”
“We wanted to make sure this was shaping the trajectory of this relationship in perpetuity,” Fields said after the meeting. “We want this to follow behind us and set the tone for the new relationship we expect to happen from now on.”
Tearing down the wall
“We’ve torn down this wall,” Robinson said. “Now we’re building a culture together because we believe in the same things, and chief of them is helping Arkansas be the best state it could be.”
Meullenet, as interim leader at the Bumpers College and head of the Agricultural Experiment Station, is among those with a foot in each institution and expressed that faculty were fully invested in both.
“I think that with this agreement, we are showing that we work seamlessly toward maximizing our impact on the state and on our mission,” Meullenet said. “I want to convey — from a faculty standing — the faculty in Bumpers College, whether they are majority division or the University of Arkansas, are really fully integrated on this campus. They are as much a part of this campus as any other faculty.”
‘A major milestone’
Trustee Jeremy Wilson, who is a member of the Board of Trustees’ agricultural subcommittee, offered his congratulations.
“Thank you for all the hard work it took to accomplish this,” he said. “It’s a major milestone and I knew this was going to be a great presentation as soon as you said, ‘Smokey and the Bandit.”
Trustee Morril Harrian also gave his encouragement. He noted over the years the contentious relationship between the two institutions.
This is “absolutely a great day,” he said. “I commend each of you for working this agreement out and look forward to actually hearing one praise the other.”
Robinson and Fields exchanged Razorback and Division of Agriculture logo pins to mark the occasion.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu/. Follow us on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on Twitter at @AgInArk.
