The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced the appointment of new members to the USDA/1890 Task Force.
The Task Force seeks to reinforce the relationship between the USDA and 1890 land-grant universities, a recent USDA press release said. The group serves as an advisory body for partnership initiatives so that all parties realize mutual benefits and interests.
“USDA’s partnership with the 1890 Council of Presidents is key to shaping the next generation of leaders in agriculture and ensuring access to USDA programs in underserved communities,” Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said in the release. “USDA is eager to continue working with the leadership of 1890 institutions, to create pathways to agricultural careers in the federal government and beyond.”
The USDA has a long history of support for historically Black colleges, in particular those founded under the Second Morrill Act of 1890; the release said.
The 1890 land-grant system consists of 19 universities: Alabama A&M University, Alcorn State University, Central State University, Delaware State University, Florida A&M University, Fort Valley State University, Kentucky State University, Langston University, Lincoln University, North Carolina A&T State University, Prairie View A&M University, South Carolina State University, Southern University and A&M College, Tennessee State University, Tuskegee University, University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Virginia State University and West Virginia State University.
Current members of the USDA/1890 Task Force include the following USDA members: Terry Cosby, chief of the Natural Resources Conservation Service; Kevin Shea, administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; Daniel Whitley, administrator of the Foreign Agricultural Service; Monica Rainge, deputy assistant secretary of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights; Dionne Toombs, acting director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture; and Hubert Hamer, administrator of the National Agricultural Statistics Service.
