Bozeman Magazine

Celebrate Agriculture, an annual weekend-long event held each year by Montana State University’s College of Agriculture, has been scheduled to take place virtually Friday, Nov. 13, and Saturday, Nov. 14.

The weekend, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2019, will include many of the same elements as an in-person event, as well as some new virtual programming. Scholarship winners and donors will be honored, as will past recipients of the college’s Outstanding Agricultural Leader award, which has recognized more than 80 people since its inception in 1995.

Celebrate Agriculture weekend is an opportunity to recognize those people who invest in the future of agriculture and hundreds of agriculture students through those scholarships, said MSU Vice President for Agriculture Sreekala Bajwa. The College of Agriculture awarded more than $550,000 in scholarships during the 2019-2020 academic year through more than 130 individual awards.

“The scholarship donors that we honor each year at Celebrate Agriculture truly change the lives of so many of our students,” said Bajwa, who also serves as dean of the College of Agriculture and director of the Montana Agriculture Experiment Station. “Our tireless supporters and generous benefactors make a direct impact on our students and the work we do in the college. It is their willingness to give and recognition of the importance of agriculture that makes so much of what we do possible.”

Virtual content for Celebrate Agriculture will be available Nov. 13 on the College of Agriculture website, http://agriculture.montana.edu/celebrateag. The weekend will also include the annual Science as Art Contest for MSU agriculture students, who are tasked with translating their perceptions of science and agriculture into art projects using a variety of media. Celebrate Agriculture will also feature virtual speakers, research presentations, opportunities to engage with students and faculty within the college, and departmental celebrations.

The Department of Agricultural Economics and Economics will host a virtual version of its usual Agricultural Economic Outlook Conference during the celebration. The web-based conference will be free and open to the public, and will take place on Nov. 13 from 9 to 11:30 a.m. Information on presenters and the conference agenda can be found at https://ampc.montana.edu/fallconference/.

“Many things look different this school year, and one of those is Celebrate Ag weekend. But we also know that making this event virtual is about more than just ourselves. It’s about keeping every member of our community safe and healthy,” said Bajwa. “We are so looking forward to coming back to Celebrate Agriculture in person next year, bigger and better than ever.”