Welcome, Rob White!

In April, Rob White joined the CALS team and will serve Global Programs and CSRL as a Budget and Finance Specialist.

White earned his Ph.D. from the W. P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. Prior to that, he received a Bachelor of Arts in Russian, a Bachelor of Accountancy, and a Master of Accountancy degrees from the University of Oklahoma.

For ten years, Dr. White was a faculty within Iowa State University’s Ivy College of Business. While there, his research interests focused on corporate governance across a variety of settings, including entrepreneurial, international, and troubled firms. His work appeared in the Journal of Management, the Journal of Management Studies, The Oxford Handbook of Corporate Governance, and other research and media outlets.

One of Dr. White’s co-authored studies was awarded the Best Paper Prize at a Strategic Management Society Special Conference on Entrepreneurship held in Catania, Italy. He also received the Wiley-Blackwell Management and Organization Review Young Scholar Award for promising research focused on Chinese businesses.

Outside of academia, Dr. White has worked as a finance executive in an Iowa-based healthcare organization and served as a policy advisor to a senior U.S. Senator on matters of child welfare finance. Before recently rejoining Iowa State, he was part of a media-based entrepreneurial start-up firm which he helped to shepherd through the ISU Startup Factory, a university-sponsored startup incubator located in Iowa State’s Research Park. Prior to completing his academic studies, he lived and worked in the Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk regions of eastern Ukraine from 1994-1996.

Notice of Funding Opportunity - FY2023 Scientific Cooperation Research Program

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), Fellowship Programs, announces this funding opportunity to support the Scientific Cooperation and Research Program (SCRP) by issuing new awards. This opportunity is available to State cooperative institutions or other colleges and universities in the United States, as defined at 7 USC 3103. In addition, applicants must be former Mentors and Fellows from USDA/FAS’s Borlaug International Agricultural Technology Fellowship Program with an ongoing collaboration. This program is intended to support applied research, extension, and education collaborations between U.S. researchers and their foreign counterparts from selected emerging market economies.

Application Deadline: May 10, 2023

Notice of Funding Opportunity - FY2023 Scientific Cooperation Research Program

Notice of Funding Opportunity - College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Graduate Students

The Global Programs office helps facilitate scholarship and other funding opportunities for graduate students through the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. More information on graduate student funding can be found at https://www.global.ag.iastate.edu/funding. 

Graduate & Postdoctoral Funding:

• Borel Global Fellows Program
• Dean Kleckner Global Agriculture Graduate Scholarship
• Gamble International Agriculture Scholarship
• Global Funding for Graduate Students and Postdocs
• Gordon D. Brown International Graduate Research Award
• Graduate Student Travel Award for International Study in Sustainable Livelihoods
• Organization for Tropical Studies Graduate Short Course Scholarship

If you have questions or would like additional information on a specific scholarship please contact Shelley Taylor at sztaylor@iastate.edu.

Passport Processing Times Increased

Due to a surge in international travel demand and the continued backlog of passport applications, The State Department increased processing times on March 24. 

Processing Times as of March 24, 2023

According to a March 24 announcement by The Department of State, "As more Americans are traveling internationally again, we are directing resources to meet the unprecedented demand seen so far in 2023. We are on track to set the record for the highest demand year ever, far surpassing volumes seen during previous surges in demand in 2007 and 2017. During some weeks this winter, the Department received more than 500,000 applications, the highest number ever for this time of year, exceeding our official projections." Learn more on The Department of State website at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/News/passports/passport-processing-updates.html 

Memorandum of Understanding Signed between The National Research Council of Thailand and Iowa State University

The National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) and Iowa State University signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding. NRCT sponsors the Royal Golden Jubilee Ph.D. Program, an innovative mechanism for promoting international exchange programs and forging research partnerships between faculty and students from universities in Thailand and abroad. Through the understanding, ISU wishes to strengthen relationships with academic and research institutions in Thailand and other countries. Both NRCT and ISU also wish to promote scholarly ties, increase faculty cooperation and promote graduate training in such areas of science and technology. If you are interested in learning more about the agreement, contact Dr. David Acker. 

Information on other partners and Memorandum of Understandings can be found on our website at https://www.global.ag.iastate.edu/partners 

Spring and Summer 2023 Study Abroad Programs

A total of 100 students will participate in a study abroad program through the CALS Study Abroad office during May and June. 

	Greece and Italy: Food, Culture and Agriculture May 14-26, 2023 Program Directors: David Acker, Sotirios Archontoulis, and Cintia Sciarresi		Wildlife Conservation in Tanzania May 14-28, 2023 Program Directors: Stephen Dinsmore and Julie Blanchong
	Heritage Livestock - United Kingdom May 14-30, 2023 Program Directors: Jodi Sterle and Matthew Wenger		Animal and Dairy Science in the Netherlands May 15-28, 2023 Program Directors: Jack Dekkers and Leonora James
	Dean's Global Agriculture and Food Leadership Program to Rome May 14 - June 10, 2023 Program Directors: Carmen Bain, Elisabeth Lonergan, Steven Lonergan, and Shelley Taylor		Creating a School Garden: Service Learning in Uganda May 30 - July 8, 2023 Program Directors: Gail Nonnecke, Dick Schultz, Tom Brumm, Dorothy Masinde, and Julie Blanchong
	Cathedrals, Castles, Culture and Cuisine-sustainable, Safe & Nutritious Food in France June 4-17, 2023 Program Directors:  Kurt Rosentrater and Claire Kruesel

To Infinity and Abroad - CALS Study Abroad Podcast

To Infinity and Abroad is a podcast hosted by the College of Agriculture and Life Science's Study Abroad office. The podcast is free to listen too online at https://open.spotify.com/show/3PLP2KeQyUZRSJKjSIMW0M 

	Episode 1: Get to know CALS Study Abroad Meet our hosts, Courtney and Garhett, in this episode they will discuss their experiences abroad, the different types of programs offered, and what the goals of the podcast are!  Listen
	Episode 2: Get to know Perrotis College (Ft. Logan Nodine) Sit down with us to learn about Logan's spring semester abroad at Perrotis College in Thessaloniki, Greece. Logan shared some great insight on classes, life in Greece, and some unexpected challenges he faced. Tune in, you will want to hear his stories!  Listen
	Episode 3: Catching up with a Recent Graduate Part 1 (Ft. Kelli Wicks) Hang out with us to hear what traveling looks like post-graduation. Kelli shares her stories traveling to Spain through Iowa State University as well as her experiences working for the National Pork Board. Listen
	Episode 4: Catching up with a Recent Graduate Part 2 (Ft. Nick Battles) On this episode Nick Battles shares his stories of traveling to the Netherlands and how those international experiences have helped in the workplace. Tune in to hear Nicks adventures post-graduation. Listen

Student Highlight: Adam Knoblock 

"Studying abroad was the best decision of my college career. You don’t get these opportunities or accessibility to these types of opportunities for the price you pay and the experience you gain!" Adam Knoblock, a junior in agricultural business, was swayed to study at Iowa State University because of the array of international opportunities available to students, including studying abroad. Adam participated in two travel courses through the CALS Study Abroad office, Culture, and Economic Diversification in the United Arab Emirates and the Soils, Agriculture & the Environment of Uruguay.   Adam's Student Highlight

Summer 2023 College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Study Abroad Scholarship Awards

The CALS Study Abroad office awarded 26 students a total of $27,400 in scholarships for Summer 2022 study abroad programs. Scholarships wouldn't be possible without the support of our generous donors. 

Behrens Scholarship for Study Abroad Recipient	Robert Wendt Study Abroad Scholarship Recipient	William K. Deal Scholarship Recipient
"This scholarship meant the world to me because it quite literally opened the door for me to pursue the opportunity of an international agriculture secondary major through experiences like this one. I am on my own 100% financially for college, so to be able to experience things like this and advance through the international agriculture curriculum with the support of donors means a great deal to me." Bryce Jermier, agricultural business Agriculture Production, Business, and Trade in Australia	"This scholarship has provided me assistance in partaking in an invaluable opportunity and experience that allowed me to be touched by the world's problems and goodness firsthand. This scholarship has aided in the direction I want to take for my remaining time at Iowa State while setting the foundation for my future."   Ashley Althaus, agricultural systems technology American Farm School, Thessaloniki, Greece	"This scholarship means the world to me. It reduced the cost of my trip drastically and allowed me to have an incredible out-of-country experience that I would not have been able to receive on my own. I am incredibly thankful for the scholarship and all the experiences it allowed me to participate in."     Caleb Kehrli, agricultural business Business Development Study Trip In Brazil and Argentina

CALS Study Abroad Spring Break 2023 Recap Video

Calendar of Events

• May 1: Application Deadline: Sociology 234 - Conservation Ethics & Values (Study USA)
• May 1: Application Deadline: Soils, Agriculture and the Environment of Uruguay
• May 1: Application Deadline: India Study Abroad: Crops, Culture, Food, and Traditions
• May 1: Application Deadline: Tropical Agriculture and Culture in Ghana
• May 1: Application Deadline: Tropical Agricultural Production, International Business, and Trade in Panama
• May 1: Scholarship Deadline: CALS Sponsored Scholarships, Fall 2023 Programs
• May 5: Application Deadline: Semester Along the Nile: Learning in Uganda (Fall 2023 Semester)
• May 5: Application Deadline: EARTH Service Learning on St. John (2023 Fall Semester)