Department Roundup: Department Roundup 2015 07 06

How do art and agriculture relate? At Ohio State, that question is being considered under its Discovery Themes. Dr. Michael Mercil, Professor, Department of Art, is aligned with the Resilient, Sustainable and Global Food Security for Health, an area of inquiry through Ohio State’s Discovery Themes Initiative. And as an extension of this theme is his new May session seminar “Re-imagining Ohio Food Landscapes from Mound City to Bob Evans Farm” (Art 5890). As the class came to a close the first week of June, the students spent some time in the Department of Animal Sciences meat science laboratory with Dr. Lyda Garcia, assistant professor of meat science.

The purpose of the course according to Dr. Mercil is to “become aware of and think deeply about the language, imagery and sense of place that food systems represent in a dramatically changing global environment.” (To learn more about the course, visit the Discovery Themes blog post “Pondering the Invisible Landscape of Food”.)

Students, whose studies range from art to the environment and many topics in between, delved into the three aspects of the seminar’s focus as they toured the meat lab and posed questions to Dr. Garcia. Their inquiries covered topics as diverse as gender breakdown in the meat industry to hormones and antibiotics to ritual slaughter. In the course of the conversation, Dr. Garcia explained the safety and health priorities that govern all meat facilities, including those at Ohio State, and described other facets of meat production, including animal welfare, economics, terminology, nutrition, waste streams and usage, animal diets, ethics, traceability, and labeling—too many topics to cover in less than two hours. She welcomed all questions and encouraged her audience to seek answers to future questions from her and others who work in animal agriculture.

If you haven't had a chance to meet Dr. Garcia, read more about her story at her link.

The 2015 Ohio Sheep Day is scheduled for July 11, 2015 at Schoolhouse Shropshires in Xenia, Ohio. More information about registration, program topics, and contacts: click here.

Read about alumna Emily Wright and her quest toward Olympic dressage (or access PDF here).

Animal Sciences students and alumni as Select Sires Inc. summer Interns

All OSU Counseling and Consultation Services (CCS) staff were sent home to tele-commute until further notice.The CCS phone line 614-292-5766 remains available for emergency assistance 24 hours per day, 7 days a week. Students can push 2 to reach a mental health counselor at any time.

CCS has suspended onsite and in person services, including those at embedded locations, through at least May 3, 2020.  You are still able to connect with a counselor  for a 30 minute phone or video consultation using Carmen Zoom or Skype. These consultations are offered 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM Monday through Friday in order to check in with students, problem solve, and offer support.  Students will need to share their address/location at the time of the call.

Students can access many self-help tools that are available on the CCS website at https://ccs.osu.edu . The CCS COVID-19 updates page linked to the website is a great resource. On that page, students will find helpful coping skills such as the mental health strategies video series. This time that can be difficult for many. All students are encouraged to check that out.

This link also contains some great information for coping right now:https://u.osu.edu/emotionalfitness/2020/03/12/mental-health-tips-during-covid-19-coronavirus/

If you encounter a suspected emergency situation with any student during this time, crisis support is available by calling CCS at 614-292-5766. If this happens with the student remotely located, please try to get as much contact information about the student such as name, phone number, OSU dot #, and address where they are currently located. If you suspect safety is at risk or compromised at that time for the student or anyone they are with, please call 9-1-1. They will help immediately regardless of where the student is physically located. After you have done one of the steps above, please let me know of the situation so that follow up contact attempts can be made with the student. Please make sure to provide me with the best way to reach you right now too.

This is an unusual time for all of us. Please practice good self-care, social distancing, and stay safe. Additional information on Coronavirus (COVID-19) is available at https://cdc.gov . Faculty and Staff should also remember our OSU Employee Assistance Program https://osuhealthplan.com is still available by contacting 614-292-4700 or 800-678-6269.

A full list of available counselors in the college can be found here. 

The College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences has renewed its partnership with Portfolium.com and will continue to provide ALL students and faculty the opportunity to create a professional, online digital portfolio. In today’s world, employers seek evidence of career-relevant skills and competencies beyond listings on a resume. Students at all levels can easily create evidence-based credentials. In other words, attaching documents, videos, audio files, graphics, coding samples and presentations help demonstrate your knowledge and abilities.

You should have already received your Portfolium invitation with the subject: “Access your CFAES Portfolium.” The email contains a link to activate your free verified account within the CFAES network using your Ohio State credentials.  If you missed the initial email, you can also join by using the Portfolium Resource Page.

For more information or inquires, contact Elaine Eberlin.