Dear CAES Family, Happy Holidays to each of you! As I reflect on the year’s events, I realize that 2021 has been a year of contrasts. It was the year we all came back together with a new appreciation for community, although we began the year apart due to the pandemic. It was a year in which we had much to celebrate, because throughout the year, we did what a college of agriculture does best: We grew.

More than 90 CAES students are expected to present an enormous array of their summer academic experiences during the annual Showcase of Excellence, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Sept. 6 in B.C. Webb Hall. The student experiences will span the gamut of agricultural fields, including corporate and Cooperative Extension internships, study abroad, and independent research projects at N.C. A&T and other universities or government agencies.