DR. JEWEL H. BRONAUGH, DEPUTY SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE, TO SPEAK AT THE 122ND COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY
LANGSTON, Okla. – Langston University announced that Dr. Jewel H. Bronaugh, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) will be this year’s distinguished guest speaker at the Commencement Ceremony. This year’s ceremony is set to be held in person at the W.E. Anderson Stadium on the Langston campus on Saturday, May 14, 2022, at 10:00 AM.
“We are very excited to welcome Dr. Bronaugh to campus for this special occasion. She is a champion for our country’s rural communities, families, farmers, ranchers, foresters, and producers,” said Dr. Kent J. Smith, Jr. “Her work with the USDA is game-changing. Most recently, she worked on a $1 billion investment that will transform rural areas across the country. This initiative will help strengthen access to health care for those who reside in those communities.”
The USDA has supported a broad range of research and extension programs over the years within the School of Agriculture and Applied Sciences. The most notable is their support of the E Kika De La Garza American Institute for goat research. They have also collaborated with our teams to help advance our international reach through small ruminant projects. This support has been vital in providing the support to build structures for irrigational systems for countries all over the world.
“As we prepare to celebrate the 125th anniversary of Dear Langston, it was important to us that we pay homage to our history as a USDA supported land grant university, said Dr. Wesley Whittaker. “The USDA partnership with LU has been instrumental. The financial support they provide has helped exponentially grow opportunity for the University’s academic and extension research, fellowship training, as well as providing student scholarship and internship opportunities.”
BACKGROUND:
Langston University (LU) was founded as a land grant college through the Morrill Act of 1890. It was officially established when House Bill 151 passed on March 12, 1897, and named the Colored Agricultural and Normal University. The bill mandated the University to receive federal funds matched by state funds for the support of agricultural research and cooperative extension and community engagement.
Langston University (LU) was established prior to statehood. LU was founded in 1897 as a land grant institution, it is the only Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in the state of Oklahoma. LU has both a rural and urban mandated mission with campuses in Langston, Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and one extension in Ardmore. Langston University produces top academic scholars within the six schools that house the degree programs. LU boasts a total of 30 undergraduate and 5 graduate degree programs are offered within Agriculture and Applied Sciences, Arts and Sciences, Business, Education and Behavioral Science, Nursing and Health Professions, and Physical Therapy. Currently, the top majors are nursing, health physical education and recreation, liberal education, and psychology.
