WSU's Legacy of the Land Program

Washington Ag Today September 5, 2011 Washington State University has set up a new program to handle land donations given to it. Dan Bernardo, dean of the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences, says this is in response to criticism of how the university has handled such gifts in the past.

Bernardo: “We understand the sanctity of agricultural land that as been in families for generations and President Floyd wanted to develop a program that recognized that, honored that. And we have developed this Legacy of the Land Program, which essentially will allow us to receive land gifts and manage those gifts in agricultural production for years to come.”

The dean says a unique feature of the program is that a committee of farmers will help manage agricultural land donations. That committee will be appointed by WSU President Elson Floyd.

Bernardo: “I think it is important to underscore this is so important to President Floyd that this committee would be a Presidential committee. Those people would be appointed by him and report to him in an advisory capacity. So this is happening essentially outside the domain of the WSU Foundation and is occurring with the President’s office.”

There are currently eight farms under WSU management.

For more information go to legacyofland.wsu.edu

I’m Bob Hoff and that’s Washington Ag Today on Northwest Aginfo Net.

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