FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Three finalists in the national search by the University of Arkansas for a dean of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences and associate vice president of the Division of Agriculture are scheduled to meet faculty, students, alumni and other stakeholders in October and November.

U of A System Vice President for Agriculture Milo Shult and Fayetteville campus Provost Bob Smith said the finalists were recommended by a search committee of faculty, students and stakeholders chaired by Entomology Department Head William C. Yearian.

The committee began a national search in January when former associate vice president for research and dean Charles Scifres left the U of A for an administrative position at Texas A&M University.

The candidates and dates for campus seminars and meetings with stakeholders around the state are:

. John C. Nye, University of Delaware dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and director of the Delaware Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service: Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

. Donald C. Coston, associate director of the Oklahoma Agricultural Experiment Station: Nov. 7-9.

. Gregory J. Weidemann, associate director of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and interim dean of Bumpers College: Nov. 14-16.

The Division of Agriculture includes the statewide Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service. The division’s associate vice president for research is in charge of the Experiment Station and reports to the U of A system’s vice president for agriculture. The dean of Bumpers College reports to the Fayetteville campus chancellor.

Experiment Station faculty are based on three campuses and at five research and extension centers. Most Experiment Station faculty members on the Fayetteville campus have joint appointments as faculty in the College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences.

The college has about 1,300 students in 17 undergraduate majors and M.S. and Ph.D. degree programs.

"The partnership of the Division of Agriculture and the Fayetteville campus is a powerful alliance for meaningful research, teaching and extension," Shult said.

"Sharing facilities and ideas in the setting of a major research university helps the faculty compete nationally for research grants," Shult said. "Students benefit by having teachers and mentors who are intimately involved in solving problems and creating opportunities through research and extension programs."

Gregory Weidemann joined the UA Department of Plant Pathology in 1983 and was named associate director and associate dean in 1995.

As a faculty member, Weidemann obtained $2.5 million in grants for research in pest management with an emphasis on biological control. He is internationally recognized for research on plant fungi, and he has received several teaching awards, including the National Association of Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture 1990 award of merit.

As an administrator, Weidemann has had extensive responsibility for planning and implementing initiatives to review and restructure research and service programs and facilities.

Weidemann has a bachelor’s degree in zoology and a doctorate in plant pathology from the University of Wisconsin.

John Nye has had responsibility since 1991 for the college, experiment station and extension service programs at the University of Delaware.

During his tenure, state appropriations for programs conducted by the college increased from $500,000 to $3 million, and extramural funding increased from $8 million to $17 million.

Nye led efforts to obtain industry and state funds for a $9 million biotechnology teaching and research center. A $14 million renovation of offices and classrooms was recently completed.

From 1984 to 1991, Nye was head of the biological and agricultural engineering department at Louisiana State University.

As a professor of agricultural engineering at Purdue University from 1972 to 1984, Nye taught and conducted research and extension programs in agricultural waste management, environmental control systems and computer applications.

Nye’s degrees, all in agricultural engineering, include a B.S. degree from Kansas State University and M.S. and Ph.D degrees from Purdue.

Donald Coston has been associate director of the state experiment station based at Oklahoma State University since 1995 and was interim associate director of the extension service from 1998 to 2000.

At OSU, Coston was instrumental in a campaign that raised over $10 million in gifts and bequests. He helped plan and implement the Oklahoma Food and Agricultural Products Research and Technology Center program, which includes a $16-million building and $2.3 million for annual operations.

From 1988 to 1995, Coston was associate dean for research and associate director of the South Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station at Clemson University. He coordinated biotechnology programs at Clemson and was director of the Alliance 2020 program, part of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s food systems professions education initiative.

Coston joined the horticulture department faculty at Clemson in 1978. His research and teaching programs were on tree fruit production, and he coordinated fruit research farm operations. He has a B.S. degree from North Carolina State University and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Michigan State University, all in horticulture.