Dr. Leslie MacLaren, Vice-President Academic, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Glenn Stratton as interim Professor & Director of Research at the Nova Scotia Agricultural College.

Dr. Stratton is well known on campus in his role of professor and researcher, a role which he has carried out for the past 25 years at NSAC. He is the first NSAC faculty member to have held an NSERC Discovery grant and was in the first group of researchers to hold an NSERC Strategic Grant.

He is still an active participant in NSAC's agricultural waste management and water quality research teams and directs the group's analytical laboratory. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in the Department of Environmental Sciences, supervises several graduate students and has been a dedicated member of both the Research and Graduate Program Committees for several years.

We look forward to having Dr. Stratton's extensive knowledge and expertise dedicated to the promotion and further development of excellence in our institutional research efforts. Congratulations Dr. Stratton!

Dr. Leslie MacLaren
Vice-President Academic
Phone: (902) 893-2773
Email: lmaclaren@nsac.ca

New Poultry Centre Slated for NSAC

Construction is set to begin on the Atlantic Canadian Centre for Poultry Research at the NSAC with the official sod-turning taking place on Wednesday, December 7th

The Centre, valued at over $10 million, will provide teaching and research capabilities in all phases of poultry production from hatching to value-added product processing.

The state-of-the-art facility, slated to open in 2007, will allow fundamental research on nutrition, physiology, poultry product quality, food safety and poultry waste management while providing opportunities for the development of new and innovative research directions important to support key regional and national priorities.

Funding for the 3000 square metre Centre has been made possible through funds allocated by the Province of Nova Scotia, the Canada Foundation for Innovation and the Nova Scotia Research & Innovation Trust. Additional funds have been generously provided by the National and Atlantic Feather industries, Atlantic provincial governments and various individual donors.

NSAC Partners with Christmas Tree Council of Nova Scotia

NSAC is proud to announce the R&D partnership with the Christmas Tree Council of Nova Scotia. Christmas tree production adds nearly $30 million to the Nova Scotian economy and over 3500 producers are involved in the production and exporting Christmas trees.

NSAC will be involved in highly critical research on Needle Retention in Balsam Fir trees. Dr. Lada, in collaboration with Dr. Tom Smith, has initiated Needle Retention Research.

Mr. Len Giffen, Co-ordinator of the Christmas Tree Council of Nova Scotia states, "Dr. Lada, on behalf of the Christmas Tree Council of Nova Scotia, I want to thank you for partnering with us to conduct research on needle retention in Balsam Fir Christmas Trees. This is the single most important issue given by consumers in North America against the use of real trees. Anything we can do to reduce needle drop will be a significant boost to the industry."

We thank the council for choosing NSAC as their R& D venue of choice. For more information, please contact rlada@nsac.ca

Award for Excellence in Community Development

The Colchester Immigration Partnership, which is a sub-committee of the Colchester Regional Development Authority (CORDA), was honoured on November 18th at the "Celebrating Innovative Communities" conference and awards. The Immigration Partnership won the award in the "Excellence in Community Development" category. The conference was organized and hosted by the federal and provincial governments.

NSAC is a member of the Immigration Partnership, represented by Deborah Stiles (Rural Research Centre) and Krista Lake (NSAC International).

Congratulations to CORDA and the Immigration Partnership for their excellent work in facilitating diversity in our community.

NSAC Professor Dale Cunningham passes away

The NSAC family was shocked and saddened to learn of the sudden death of NSAC professor Dale Cunningham, at home on November 25th, 2005.

A memorial to celebrate his life was held Monday, November 28th at First Baptist Church, with Rev. Andy Crowell officiating.

The NSAC Engineering Department hosted a reception in the Banting building. It was a time to gather as an NSAC community and in spirit to celebrate Dale's contribution to our lives.

The NSAC Equestrian Club

The NSAC Equestrian Club for the first time has selected a group of 12 NSAC riders to form a Club Team. This Equestrian Team, the first of its kind for NSAC, has recently competed in their first competition within the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association.(IHSA) - a USA based organization. At this point, Acadia University is the only other Canadian University with membership in the IHSA.

The organization hosts three to four competitions within the university academic year in each of the nine zones in the continental USA. Acadia and NSAC compete as part of the New England zone. With a successful first year (05-06) as a club team, they will become part of the Varsity Program at NSAC.

Last Chance for 2005 Tax Savings

The Development Office will be processing donations made for the calendar year right up until we clear the mail in early January. Any donations received or postmarked before January 1, 2006 will be issued a receipt dated in 2005. So, there is still time to make a contribution to the Fall Mail Appeal that began in October. We would also ask that you honour your outstanding pledge toward the 2nd Century Endowment Campaign if you have one before year end. We will be sending reminders in the spring for those with multi-year pledges in this campaign and our plan is to continue our calling program this winter so others will have a chance to talk to our students and participate.

Your gifts to NSAC are very important. If you are considering a donation for the 2005 tax year through any of our campaigns, please remember the December 31st deadline.