Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** antimicrobials are used in…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** antimicrobials are used in production animals together with good husbandry, biosecurity, and disease prevention to protect animal and human health and maintain financial security in animal agriculture. The sustainability of animal agriculture is threatened, however, by the dissemination of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) organisms, compounded by restricted use of antimicrobial drugs in food animals. Agricultural science students, the future producers, farm workers and agricultural industry leaders can play a critical role in preventing the negative impacts of AMR through effective farm biosecurity, disease prevention, and antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). In cooperation with educators from the OSU college of food, agriculture, and environmental science, we plan to adapt the OSU college of veterinary medicine's antimicrobial stewardship program to address the educational needs of agricultural science students by developing learning modules targeting AMS in the production animal industry. With the guidance of specialists in agricultural communication and extension education, we also address the need for future agricultural scientists to share this knowledge with their colleagues working in the production animal industry, expanding employment opportunities for these graduates. We hypothesize that training animal science students to practice farm biosecurity, disease prevention and the judicious use of antimicrobials will prepare them for their role as antimicrobial stewards in the production animal industry. Development of oral and written communication skills will promote sharing of scientific knowledge with audiences of different backgrounds and levels of literacy and scientific training enabling future farm managers and industry leaders to communicate the principles of AMS with others working with production animals.