Poultry Foundation Awards Recruiting Grant to University of Arkansas

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Wes Morris, group vice president of retail poultry and prepared foods for Tyson Foods and USPOULTRY board member, left, presents a check for a student recruiting grant to Michael Kidd, director of the Center of Excellence for Poultry Science at the University of Arkansas.

TUCKER, Ga. – The USPOULTRY Foundation recently awarded a $19,043 student-recruiting grant to the University of Arkansas department of poultry science. Wes Morris, group vice president of retail poultry and prepared foods for Tyson Foods and USPOULTRY board member, presented the check to Michael Kidd, director of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture's Center of Excellence for Poultry Science in Fayetteville.

“More students are going to college in the U.S. than ever before. The only problem is that the majority of students choose majors outside the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields, and those majors typically have lower economic potential and do not drive the U.S. economy. Many other degrees outside of STEM are oversold to students, saturating those career fields to the point of limiting job availability and potential career growth,” Kidd said.

Most students don’t understand the career potential of STEM fields, much less the poultry industry, said Kidd, who emphasized that funds from the USPOULTRY Foundation are vital in the university’s outreach to K-12 youth and community college students.

“These funds give us the means to develop forums to attract and explain the vast and lucrative career possibilities that a poultry science major can provide," Kidd said. "Moreover, it’s a testament that the U.S. poultry industry wants to help us recruit today’s youth, contribute to their education, and develop future leaders in these careers. The funds from the USPOULTRY Foundation allow us to tell our story to youth.”

The USPOULTRY Foundation board recently approved student recruiting grants totaling more than $180,000 to the six U.S. universities with poultry science departments and 14 other institutions with poultry programs. The foundation provides annual recruiting funds to colleges and universities to attract students to their poultry programs.

U.S. Poultry & Egg Association is an "all-feather" organization representing the complete spectrum of today’s poultry industry, with a focus on serving member companies through research funding, education, communication, and technical assistance. Founded in 1947, U.S. Poultry & Egg Association is based in Tucker, Ga.