Lusk Named New Dean of Oklahoma State's Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources
Oklahoma State University announced Dr. Jayson Lusk as the new dean and vice president of its Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. Lusk will succeed Dr. Tom Coon in early August.
The announcement was made by OSU President Kayse Shrum and Provost Jeanette Mendez at the OSU/A&M Board of Regents meeting on June 16.
Lusk currently serves as Distinguished Professor and Head of the Department of Agricultural Economics at Purdue University. Prior to that, Lusk served as a tenured professor and holder of the Willard R. Sparks Endowed Chair at Oklahoma State University. He earned the title of Regents Professor in 2013.
“It has been an honor and privilege to serve as the head of the Agricultural Economics Department at Purdue University, and I will miss my friends and colleagues in West Lafayette. Now it’s time for a new challenge,” Lusk said on his blog. “There are many exciting things happening at Oklahoma State University, including the near completion of the New Frontiers campaign and building, a new University strategic plan that has clear emphasis on agriculture and the land grant mission, and the opportunity to work with the faculty and staff to identify some key strategic opportunities to raise the impact of the division.”
Lusk has spent a significant portion of his professional career at land-grant institutions, is recognized as a preeminent scientist and advocate for agricultural research and innovation and has received national recognition for his research, including the Lou Ann Aday award, Purdue University’s most prestigious research award in the humanities and social sciences.
During his time at Oklahoma State University, Lusk led a project that surveyed consumers about their attitudes on meat purchases at both the retail and restaurant levels. The Food Demand Survey featured the opinions of a thousand plus consumers monthly. He has been interviewed and published editorials in outlets such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today and the Washington Post, and has appeared on numerous network and national cable television shows. Lusk has published more than 270 articles in peer reviewed journals, including several of the most cited papers in the agricultural economics profession. He has authored five books, the latest being Unnaturally Delicious.
He has served on the executive committee of the USDA National Agricultural Research, Extension, Education, and Economics (NAREEE) Advisory Board and has testified before the U.S. Congress on multiple occasions. He is a fellow and past president of the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
Lusk earned a bachelor’s degree in food technology from Texas Tech University and a PhD in agricultural economics from Kansas State University. He held previous appointments at Mississippi State and Oklahoma State Universities and the French National Institute for Agricultural Research.
Read More:
How the Consumer Dollar Drives Changes in the Industry
Plant-Based Meat Alternatives: Is the Hype Over?
