McPeak Agriculture Hall of Fame

McPeak

AGRICULTURE

Hall of Fame

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Objectives Agricultural pursuits come in many forms -- from communications to natural resources, and from food science to pre-veterinary medicine.

Connors State College has provided 109 years of service to the Oklahoma agricultural industry by training professionals within its ranks. We lay the foundation for future success, by pairing higher education with lower tuition, and offering priceless networking opportunities, nationallycompetitive teams, and major educational options.

The objective of the McPeak

Agriculture Hall of Fame was to celebrate this rich heritage of the college -- one that began in its roots as an agricultural training school; to identify faces of the agricultural programming’s foundation; to provide historical insight into each team, club and extension mission; and more.

These displays are viewed by hundreds of participants in the annual livestock judging camps, McPeak’s Be A Champ Camps, GearUp and many others, which take place at the Indoor Arena and Hall of Fame. As a function of recruiting, the Agriculture

Results As a result of the McPeak Agriculture Hall of Fame development, livestock judging and other agricultural program giving has increased by 75%.

Agricultural alumni have shown an interest in donating to their respective programs, and have enjoyed coming to campus to view the historical display.

The first Hall of Fame inductee will be inducted in December 2017.

Hall of Fame relays the rich agricultural heritage and tradition of each of the programs to parents and prospective students, alike, in an impressive display.

From a donor standpoint, the Agricultural Hall of Fame provides a reminder of the foundation of excellence the college has provided to alumni. It brings the past, present and future into the same room, allowing a consistent marketing campaign aligning alumni and private supporters to the mission and vision of the college’s agricultural programs.

Total Costs The components of this Agriculture Hall of Fame display were developed, designed, photographed, written, produced and executed by Stacy Pearce, Director of College & Community Relations; Debby Golden, Division Chair for Agriculture; and Dr. Ryan Blanton, VP for External Affairs and Director of the Development Foundation at Connors State College.

The completed McPeak Agriculture Hall of Fame historical display.

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$21,900 Breakdown: $1500 – Panels Printed $400 – Cowhide Donor Sign $18,000 – Carpentry $2,000 – NIRA Trophy Saddle

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Audience The audience for the McPeak Agriculture Hall of Fame is extremely diverse.

From traditional students to alumni, and from college supporters and donors to prospective students, we hope the Hall of Fame will appeal to the various demographics who will visit it in person, within our service area.

A bonus, secondary audience for the museum is virtual, online. The historical information and photos now are also housed on a live website. This website -- ConnorsGiving.com -- is available to browse via the web.

Details about our service area are listed below.

Connors State College (CSC or Connors) is a public, two-year community college located in the heart of eastern Oklahoma’s Native American region. Originally named Connors State School of Agriculture (after the State Board of Agriculture’s first chairman, John Connors), the institution came into existence shortly after the establishment of Oklahoma Statehood in 1907. The College has grown from a secondary school of agriculture with an enrollment of 15 students and 4 faculty members in 1909 to an accredited community college serving more than 3,100 students annually, more than one third of whom are Native American (37%), with 55 full-time faculty members.

The main campus of CSC is in the town of Warner (pop. 1,323), a rural, agricultural community located at the junction of U.S. Highway 64 and Interstate 40 in eastern Oklahoma.

CSC also has a campus in Muskogee (pop. 39,052), located 18 miles north of Warner which houses CSC’s popular Nursing program. Through

very trying times, the institution has remained committed to a mission of “continuously providing affordable, accessible and effective learning environments for the lifelong educational needs of the diverse communities it serves.”

CSC’s seven-county primary service area (4,563 sq. mi.; pop.

317,186) is predominantly rural with a high percentage of socioeconomically disadvantaged, low-income and poorly educated residents. More than one third (36.6%) of area families are low-income, 19.7% of residents live in poverty, and the median household income is just $42,251. Also within CSC’s service area, only 18.1% of adults have a bachelor’s degree and almost one out of every six adults has not completed high school. (Source: U.S. Census, ACS 2014) Our service region encompasses two Native American Nations (Cherokee and Creek); 17.2% of all service area residents are Native American with some counties showing more than 38% Native American residents. Disadvantaged characteristics are accentuated among this population with 22.8% living in poverty, only 15% having a college degree, and 16.1% without a high school diploma.

Despite many challenges, CSC’s commitment to the success of its students has resulted in this Native American Serving Institution being ranked number 13 among the nation’s top 100 two-year colleges in Native American students attending and receiving degrees and certificates (Community College Week, June 2012). And, in 2015, Diverse Magazine ranked Connors State first in the

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nation for healthcare programs for Native Americans. Healthcare and, more specifically, Nursing programs, which have long been high performing at CSC, present excellent career opportunities for our students.

Economically, Muskogee County (home to CSC’s campus which houses the Nursing program) is a regional healthcare hub. With 204 healthcare employers, healthcare represents the largest employment sector, responsible for 19% of the county’s workforce.

Local healthcare providers often find it difficult, if not impossible, to hire and retain adequate numbers of qualified healthcare professionals to meet the local demand. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2015), the county faces a 3% healthcare workforce shortage, translating to $500,000 in annual lost payroll. Local healthcare jobs are expected to grow by 11% over the next decade, or an added 598 skilled positions, which could lead to even greater workforce shortages, or to tremendous opportunity for local residents if a sustainable “grow our own” healthcare workforce development and retention strategy is employed. Statistics for our region as a whole are even more severe. All seven of our service area counties are classified as Medically Underserved and Health Professional Shortage areas by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Approximately 18 high schools from our service area provide more than 80% of our students. On average, among those 18 high schools, 65% of students are free/reduced lunch eligible and 43% are Native American (Office of Educational Quality & Accountability, 2014).

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700 College Road • Warner OK 74469 www.connorsstate.edu

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