Following up on the previous post. Iowa State University released a Friday press release on the matter with a considerably different slant. KIRSCHENMANN NAMED DISTINGUISHED FELLOW; DEWITT TO BECOME INTERIM DIRECTOR OF LEOPOLD CENTER Fred Kirschenmann, director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University, has accepted a new leadership role as …
I’m sure that many readers know Fred Kirschenmann and/or the work being done by the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University. I received the following email late today. Folks, Last week, Fred Kirschenmann was given 48 hours to resign as director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture and to accept a …
Continue reading “Fred Kirschenmann Removed as Director of Leopold Center”
I will resume blogging here as soon as the academic semester is over. In the meantime, some might find the below list interesting. It is all of the search terms that led people to this website since the first of April. brian depew rural area residents of map of quad city iowa frederick kirschenmann leopold …
Iowa State University has a new Dean at the College of Agriculture. Dean Wendy Wintersteen. Not a single one of the news stories about the appointment includes a mention of Wintersteen’s involvement in the recent controversy at the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture.
This week’s Cityview (Des Monies, Iowa Alternative Weekly) also has a story. Mother Earth Imagine you’re an administrator and you’ve got this employee who’s catching a lot of attention. A guy who left a family legacy to move across state lines and take on your institution’s mission as nothing less than a personal crusade. An …
A couple of more news stories tonight for anyone who hasn’t seen them. First from the Farm News in Iowa. Leopold leader asked to step down By RANDY MUDGETT- Managing Editor AMES — Fred Kirschenmann is no longer the director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Ames. Last week, Wendy Wintersteen, interim dean …
No new posts tonight. We know enough to act. Instead of you reading what I have to say I want the administration at Iowa State to read what you have to say. If you haven’t yet written a letter please do so now. Send your letter to all of the following people: Wendy Wintersteen Interim …
A nice column by Alan Guebert in today’s Lincoln Journal Star. Farm and Food: A distinguished fellow In the big, slow move from the big, painted house in town this past summer my worn copy of Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac went missing. Truth be told, the lovely little book of simple, powerful essays …
Yesterday a letter from Dennis Keeney (Leopold Center Director prior to Kirschenmann) began circulating online. Here are the highlights. In a way, I am probably closer to the Center than anyone, because I was the first director in 1988 and the one who set it on course. […] As we know, the Center is now …
There was likely more than one reason why Interim Dean Wintersteen took the action that resulted in Kirschenmann’s resignation as Director of the Leopold Center one week ago today. I can’t yet put my finger on each of the seperate reasons, but one factor is certain to be diverging views on just what “sustainable†agriculture …
Iowa Farmers Union (IFU) came out swinging in a press release sent out earlier today. KIRSCHENMANN’S REMOVAL SIGNALS QUESTIONABLE DIRECTION FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE IN IOWA AMES–Iowa State University’s administration is moving in a questionable direction by removing renowned sustainable agriculture champion Frederick Kirschenmann from the position of director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, …
From the Ames Tribune we get Director’s removal shocks board members. Several advisory board members to the Leopold Center at Iowa State University said they were shocked to hear of the removal of the center’s director, noting they were not aware of any problems with his leadership. “As far as I could tell, everything seemed …
The folks over at Grist have a post up. The highlights Seedy business: A sustainable-ag champion gets plowed under at Iowa State Plunked down in the land of huge, chemical-addicted grain farms and the nation’s greatest concentration of hog feedlots, Iowa State University’s Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture has always had a tough row to …
In the Iowa State Daily story Interim Dean Wendy Wintersteen stated that there was a “significant number of people who felt they did not have a significant connection to the center.†Her following statement suggests that this might include some of the large commodity groups. What groups and/or individuals complained that they did not have …
It is becoming clear why some people wanted Kirschenmann out of his leadership post. I started to see hints of it yesterday in statements from Interim Dean Wintersteen. From yesterday’s Ames Tribune story Wintersteen stressed the Leopold Center is an Iowa center. “As such, it is critically important that there are very clear projects and …
If there is a hint of legitimacy in asking for Kirschenmann’s resignation as director of the Leopold Center it swirls around the issue of administrative duties. From an email sent to graduate students in the sustainable ag program at Iowa State by Interim Dean Wintersteen The new arrangement is meant to allow Dr. Kirschenmann to …
The first mainstream story comes from the Ames Tribune. Leopold director told to resign After leading Iowa State University’s Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture for five years, Fred Kirschenmann was told to resign his position as director last week to clear the way for a leader who would be more focused on Iowa issues and …
I’ll post some more significant commentary on Fred Kirschenmann and the Leopold Center later this afternoon. I have other commitments to attend to first.
Rumor has it that the Graduate Students in the Sustianable Agriculture program at Iowa State are not happy about the unexpected announcement regarding Fred Kirschenmann. If I have time tomorrow I will try to catch up with some of them.
