Excited to be part of CAHNRS!

Dean Powers at Convocation Pinning

I have left my UC ANR Adventures blog behind, but not my commitment to the land-grant mission. I invite you to join me as I learn more about CAHNRS and share my discoveries, thoughts, and reflections. I am excited to travel around Washington to see the CAHNRS programs in action and meet with the great minds responsible for making a difference across the state. I can’t wait to share your successes with others across CAHNRS.

Last week, my first week as the Cashup Davis Family Endowed Dean went by in a blink. My unit at UC hadn’t fully come back to the office since the start of the pandemic. As a result, it has been years since I’ve had so few Zoom meetings in a day. It was nice, and at the same time odd even though I had been back in the office for more than a year. I had a chance to meet with a couple of departments, albeit only briefly in some cases. There is so much more to see and learn!

I appreciate those who are helping me learn about the work of CAHNRS. I was fortunate to meet Andy Perleberg earlier this summer as one of the Western Extension Directors Association awardees. This week, Andy shared the great work of an Extension Forestry intern, Lindsay Hunt, who constructed a story map of her summer experience at the WSU Vetter Demonstration Farm. Nice job, Lindsay! On the west side of the state, Todd Murray shared the announcement of John Stark’s success as the second WSU ESA Fellow. Congratulations, John! On Tuesday I participated in the CAHNRS New Faculty Orientation – what an impressive group of new faculty! I hope many of you take the time to reach out to our newest employees, faculty and staff alike, and welcome them as warmly as everyone has welcomed me.

The week was full of events, including Chancellor Elizabeth Chilton’s inauguration, welcoming the new students of CAHNRS, and convocation. In between, were onboarding-type meetings and a few planning meetings. I have a lot to learn regarding practices and policies, as well as systems and operations. Friday night I attended Depot Days. Shea Saralecos and Brandon Schrand prepared me well with talking points and background on the event. The evening was well attended by emeriti faculty, current faculty, and partners. I met a few stakeholders during the week and look forward to meeting many more in the weeks to come. I can’t wait to get out and get to know the people of CAHNRS and WSU!