2016 Dairy Science Hall of Service

	Mr. Scott Higgins The Ohio State University 2016 Dairy Science Hall of Service Distinguished Inductee
	Dr. Normand St-Pierre The Ohio State University 2016 Dairy Science Hall of Service Distinguished Inductee

Mr. Scott Higgins

Scott Higgins was born in Columbus, OH and was raised on a Holstein dairy farm located in Delaware and Licking counties. He is a 1984 graduate of The Ohio State University, with a BS in Agricultural Economics. He was a member of the OSU Dairy Judging Team in 1982 and 1983.

Upon graduation, Scott began to work for the American Dairy Association (ADA) Mideast and then quickly became President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ADA Mideast (1986-present) and later became CEO of the Ohio Dairy Producers Association (ODPA) (2005-present). Throughout his 30 years of service with dairy promotion, he has chaired and served on numerous national dairy promotion committees. Also, his leadership has resulted in consumers being more knowledgeable about dairy farmers and how they care for their livestock and about the benefits of dairy foods.

He successfully partnered with Milk Marketing, Inc. (now Dairy Farmers of America) to create and introduce Moo Kooler, which was the first single-serve flavored milk designed specifically for children in convenient 12 oz. plastic bottles sold both as singles and in 6-packs. Since 1986, Scott has served on the senior leadership team of UDIA/ADA/National Dairy Council/Dairy Management, Inc., which has delivered innovative programs, such as the Fuel Up to Play 60 program developed in partnership with the NFL. 

He served as president of the Ohio Livestock Coalition and served on the Board of Directors of the Ohioans for Livestock Care.  Scott has been a member and served as an officer of the Ohio Agriculture Council. He has made contributions to OSU and the College of FAES by serving as a guest lecturer for animal science and marketing courses and hosted dairy science classes at ADA over the past 20 years. His organization has annually supported the College, Animal Science, and 4-H youth events.  In 2009, he led the initiative for the dairy organizations to finance and construct the dairy building at Farm Science Review where the OSU Dairy Club serves milkshakes. He also serves on the OSU Food Science and Technology Advisory Board and OSU Veterinary Preventive Medicine Advancement Board.

Scott is a respected leader in Ohio agriculture, the nation's dairy industry, and his community. It was well summed up by 2 of his nominators, ”one of the most energetic and passionate leaders in Ohio’s agriculture” and “a true visionary leader who has a great compassion for all who work in the dairy industry”. The recognition provided as a recipient of the Dairy Science Hall of Service Award acknowledges Scott’s many contributions to the dairy industry and the training of OSU students and youth in agriculture.

Dr. Normand St-Pierre

Dr. St-Pierre was born in Quebec and obtained his BS (1978) and MS (1979) degrees from Laval University, Quebec City, in dairy nutrition. He earned his PhD (1985) from Ohio State in the area of statistical applications in dairy nutrition and management. Prior to his employment as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Animal Sciences at Ohio State in 1997, he worked in the dairy feed industry. He retired from OSU on March 31, 2016.

His love of statistics and quantitative approaches has led to major impacts on dairy production. He developed computer software that finds statistical relationships between feed prices and nutrient composition, allowing for economic comparisons among feeds in a local market. He also developed software to determine optimal sampling schedules for forages. One of his greatest achievements in research was the development of a new method to conduct meta-analyses, statistical methodology to collate results from numerous experiments. In addition, his applied research in protein nutrition has greatly benefited the dairy industry. His has 2 patents, authored or co-authored 94 peer-reviewed articles, and published 381 abstracts.

Dr. St-Pierre has significantly influenced the dairy industry in Ohio and nationwide through his Extension program, especially in advising on dairy farm management and economic assessment of farming practices. His wide -ranging expertise allowed him to interact effectively with dairy farmers, Extension educators, industry technical personnel, and policy makers. He has written 571 popular press articles and provided over 406 presentations.

For 4 years, he has taught animal nutrition, dairy herd management, and applied biometry in the Department and given many lectures in various courses during his 20 years at Ohio State. He has been on many local, State, and national committees and boards, including American Dairy Science Association (ADSA), Western Dairy Herd Management Conference, and Professional Dairy Producers of Ohio which led to the formation of ODPA. During 2012 to 2015, he was a Visiting Researcher, National Academy of Science and Technology, Brazil. He has received many awards, including 2 (Extension and research) from ADSA, GSD Extension Award of Merit, and William E. Krauss Directors Award for outstanding Ph.D. Dissertation.

Through his advice to dairy farmers, training of graduate and undergraduate students, software development, and contributions to dairy research, he has had far-reaching effects on the dairy industry. The recognition provided as a recipient of the Dairy Science Hall of Service Award acknowledges Dr. St-Pierre’s impact on the dairy industry, the scientific community, and students.