The ohio state university approved plan of work (POW) encompasses a five-year period and represents a joint effort by the two critical components of OSU's college of food, agricultural, and…

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded the Ohio Agricultural Research & Development Center (OARDC, a division of The Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences) $1,153,104 under the Cooperative Forestry Research program (CFDA 10.202) on October 1, 2025.

OARDC will conduct forestry research addressing reforestation, timber management, watershed and flood control, wildlife habitat, recreation, forest protection, and wood utilization. Work is performed at OARDC's location in Wooster, Ohio, with research and extension programming conducted across eleven research stations and field labs and in all 88 counties throughout Ohio.

The award funds a five-year Plan of Work encompassing research and extension efforts by OARDC and OSU Extension across nine academic departments. Activities span fundamental and applied research generating peer-reviewed publications, technical reports, decision-support tools, and best-management practices, alongside extension education delivered to lifelong learners and youth through 4-H programs.

The period of performance runs from October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2027. McIntire-Stennis funding policy allows fifty percent of FY 2025 appropriations to carry over into FY 2026, with full expenditure required by September 30, 2026, unless a waiver for greater carryover is approved by the National Program Leader.

The ohio state university approved plan of work (POW) encompasses a five-year period and represents a joint effort by the two critical components of OSU's college of food, agricultural, and environmental sciences (cfaes), the ohio agricultural experiment station (oardc) and OSU extension. Cfaes research and extension programs are conducted in nine academic departments on our campuses in columbus and wooster, eleven research stations and field labs, and in all 88 counties throughout the state. While the food and agricultural industry is the largest industry in the buckeye state, cfaes research reaches beyond agriculture and covers environmental, water quality and societal issues that rural and urban communities face. The cfaes strategic plan includes the goals listed below to guide our work and actions at all levels and with involvement of research faculty in all areas. Goal 1 student/learner first philosophy, cfaes teaching reaches across the lifespan from youth served through 4-h programs to students pursuing degrees on campus to 2 million plus lifelong learners in extension programs. Goal 2 innovative scholarship to sustain life, cfaes research projects and extension programs address our critical issues which cover areas in health and wellness, economic vitality, food security and production, environmental quality as well as helping people thrive across the lifespan. Goal 3 capacity building of our people and our communities. People are our greatest asset and cfaes strives to build on the success of our people. Changing workforce dynamics, market competi tion, economic drivers, an increasing desire for a more balanced approach to how life and work interface, and a need for diversifying our talent. Goal 4 partner of choice, cfaes wants to engage our entire community, including both internal and external stakeholders. Goal 5 resource stewardship in a one-college model, cfaes continues to transform and improve our physical environment across our three campuses. Recently completed projects include a new science building providing modern research space on the wooster campus and the new controlled environment agriculture research complex at waterman farm on the columbus campus. The multispecies animal learning center is under construction at the waterman farm on the columbus campus. The joint POW was developed around these goals as well as five critical issues. 1 health and wellness, exploring health related issues including but not limited to mental health awareness and initiatives, health bias, chronic disease and obesity prevention, community nutrition education, and farm safety. 2 economic vitality, issues related to economic vitality include but are not limited to business retention and expansion, enhancing rural economic opportunities, increasing broadband access in rural areas, the effects of trade policies on food and AG industries, and the economic benefits of ecosystem management. 3 food security and production, we will explore issues related to mitigating food insecurity through community service and food production education programs and food system enhancements including digital agriculture, resilience to extreme weather events, improved food animal health and production, crop improvement, weed and pest control, plant breeding and disease resistance, nutrient dense foods, new food preservatives, and antimicrobial food packaging. 4 environmental quality and production efficiency. Research topics cover areas such as soil health and remediation, biological control agents, reduction of pesticide use, production of polymers and bioplastics, water quality and wastewater treatment, aquatic ecosystem health, air quality and production of bioproducts and renewable fuels. 5 thriving across the lifespan, programs under this critical issue are related to positive human development for all ages. A major focus is youth development through 4-h and financial literacy programs.