Iowa Pork Producers Association awards $400,000 to projects
The Iowa Pork Producers Association’s (IPPA) long-time philanthropic support of facilities and academic programs at Iowa State University is continuing with new gift commitments for two upcoming facility projects on campus.
The IPPA has committed $200,000 to both phase two of the Biorenewables Complex and the Agriculture Pavilion.
“We are grateful for the generosity of the Iowa Pork Producers Association in supporting these two campus facilities that will be critical resources for animal agriculture in Iowa,” said Wendy Wintersteen, Endowed Dean in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. “This gift is only the most recent way that the association and its members demonstrate their commitment to the work of Iowa State’s faculty and their programs in research, extension and teaching.”
“Both of these projects are extremely important to all of Iowa’s pork producers,” said Leon Sheets, president of the Iowa Pork Producers Association. “The Department of Agriculture and Biosystems Engineering has played an important role for many years in addressing critical issues that have faced Iowa’s farmers.”
According to Sheets, the department has a long history of providing solutions through the development of modern technology used on farms and in food processing, through prudent management of natural resources, and through assistance of farmers in addressing societal concerns.
“The Agriculture Pavilion will enhance the educational opportunities for those people who will be Iowa farmers in the future and those people who will be providing important services to Iowa’s farmers,” Sheets said.
Virgil B. Elings Hall along with a second Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Building are included in phase two of the Biorenewables Complex. The $107 million project includes three buildings connected by an 8,000-square-foot atrium and will serve as the new home of the nationally top-ranked Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering. The project is funded through $60.4 million in appropriations from the state of Iowa and $14.1 million in private support. Phase one – the Biorenewables Research Laboratory – was completed and dedicated in the fall of 2010.
Groundbreaking ceremonies for phase two of the Biorenewables Complex are scheduled for Friday, Sept 30, at 3:30 p.m.
The Agriculture Pavilion will enhance animal interaction education and outreach in animal agriculture as well as providing much needed space for classroom activities in a number of departments in the college. Additionally, the pavilion will act as a location for recruiting programs and activities by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
The structure will include a 125-by-250-foot arena with seating for 1,000 people, which will provide an ideal location for students to gain valuable experience through interactions with animals, including courses, agricultural judging and skills competitions. The arena is also well suited for hosting short courses, training sessions, and livestock shows.
The all-weather heated pavilion, with its arena, classrooms and animal holding areas, will serve a broad array of multiple teaching and public events. Four energy-efficient classrooms accommodating up to 35 people each will be constructed beneath the arena seating area.
The Agriculture Pavilion is still in the fundraising stage, with a goal of raising $7 million. To date, the project has raised over $3.5 million. The facility will be built on a site south of campus near other campus animal science teaching and research operations.
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