Jonesboro University Rotary
N E W S L E T T E R
Thursday, Sept 21, 2006
President Rusty Clark called the meeting to order;
Ken Stacks led the prayer;
Sandy Puryear led the pledge of allegiance;
Visiting Rotarians
None.
Guests
Chip Layne, supt. of Bay School District, former sharpshooting guard for Buffalo Island Central, was guest of Jim Keller.
Make Ups
Ken Stacks, Sandy Puryear and Mike Webb made up missed meetings.
Super Seniors:
Jim Keller introduced Garrett Bollinger of Bay High School, son of Jim and Susie Bollinger. Garrett, who is an outstanding baseball and basketball player, carries a 3.8 GPA and a .486 batting average.
Hailey Hundley, daughter of Daniel and Robin Hundley, addressed the club. This Valley View senior is president of the Student Council , a student ambassador for People to People, the program that carried her to Australia last summer. She is a former All-State and All-Region percussionist. She is considering a future career in the medical profession.
Announcements
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· Jay Clevenger said we still have team slots available for $750 or individual slots for $250 in the Pro-Am rounds during the Optus Senior Open. Teams get the unprecedented opportunity to play a round with a Heartland Tour professional, get promotional exposure, lunch, the Kroger Pro-Am dinner, etc., etc. With expenses covered, selling these tournament slots is the key to our profit. A call party is set for 1-3 p.m. this Friday (tomorrow) - bring your cell phone to the Jonesboro Regional Chamber of Commerce to help us round out the field. Also, we will need HAMMER TIME crews Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 to place signs and banners on the course. Those of you who have volunteered for this duty will get info on specific times after this afternoon’s committee meeting at Sage Meadows. This tournament will help us fund programs for youth, the future leaders of our community and country.
Club Meeting will be at Sage Meadows Clubhouse Oct. 5 – Larry Lacewell will be the speaker and a number of the golf pros will be our gests.
· Josh Fletcher said Mickey Stafford went a perfect 10 for 10 to win the first Football Picks contest. The last prognosticator standing after the bowl games receives a free Pot O’ Gold ticket.
· Nominations are now being accepted for the VOCATIONAL EXCELLENCE AWARD. The award will be given on Thursday, October 26th. Nominations will be accepted through Thursday, September 28. Jake Morse and Ken Stacks are co-chairs. Contact them for nominations.
Program
Our own Dr. Greg Phillips, dean of the College of Agriculture (and at least two other colleges) at Arkansas State University, gave a glimpse into the future of agriculture. Technological advances including GPS and GIS technology, production of specific varieties for specific markets, with income from subsidies perhaps replaced by premiums paid by processors for those products. Dr. Greg sees more value-added processing as consumers seek more convenience and speed in their meals. Organic crop production may increase but will still account for only 15-20 percent of the crop. Controversial animal ID programs may gain more use. Biofuels research and production – “something we should have done in the ‘70s” will continue, he predicts.
Also, education should return to teaching science and math at an early age, stressing discovery – the “gee, whiz factor” over lecture.
