Aggie Blue: Statesman Administrator of The Year
When five Indiana State students died in a plane crash last week, it brought back sad memories for Dr. Noelle Cockett, dean of Agriculture at Utah State University.
A van carrying nine USU students and a professor crashed in September, killing nine. Cockett immediately began doing what she could in the face of the tragedy, said USU President Stan Albrecht. He said one of the first tasks she took on was to meet with the young widow of one of the victims.
“[The van accident] was something I never, ever thought I would be dealing with,” Cockett said sitting in her office in the Agricultural Science Building. The walls in her office are lined with shelves full of orderly binders and the desk is completely free of clutter.
Cody Bingham, Agriculture Senator, said because of the van accident he’s worked more closely with the dean than other senators do.
“I met with her every day that week and about once a month throughout spring semester,” he said. Bingham said as a leader, Cockett is open-minded and willing to ask others’ opinions of her ideas.
“She was a model for students, faculty and fellow administrators that helped the entire campus through this difficult time,” said Provost Raymond Coward in an email.
Albrecht said he felt Cockett’s compassion was one of the things that set her apart from other administrators. But that isn’t the only thing about her that is praiseworthy, according to her colleagues.
“We need Noelle’s good, steady hand, her judgment and her maturity,” Albrecht said.
“It’s amazing how much she gets done,” said Donald Snyder, associate dean of the College of Agriculture.
Cockett carries a lot of responsibility at USU. She is the Dean of Agriculture, the Vice President for Extension, a world-renowned agricultural researcher, and editor for a bi-monthly academic journal. Not only that, Cockett also served as interim Provost for 11 months until Raymond Coward took over the position in January.
Cockett said her time as Provost opened her eyes to another level of the university, and that each of her jobs helps her perform the others better. She said though things can get overwhelming sometimes, she’s not ready to give up her research.
Growing up on a beef ranch in Montana prepared Cockett for a career in agriculture. She got her bachelor’s degree in animal science from Montana University and her master’s and doctorate degrees from Oregon State. With her PhD in animal genetics she began work as a researcher for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
She came to work at USU in 1990 as an assistant professor and taught for 10 years. She said though she misses teaching she doesn’t think her schedule could accommodate it.
“I thought about how much I miss teaching, but it would put me over the edge,” she said.
Cockett’s research concerns sheep genomics. In the coming years, agriculture will be highly visible and increasingly high-tech, she said,speaking with enthusiasm.
“In the U.S. we’re very proud that food costs are so low. So little of our income goes to food,” she said. “There are countries that spend 75% of their income on food.
Cockett’s research isn’t the only thing keeping her busy. With the Merrill library’s demolition a free space has been opened up on campus. Snyder said Cockett has been working with other administrators in the College of Agriculture to get funding to build a new agricultural science building there. Two million dollars have already been obtained to move forward with the plan, he said, but building is still a ways in the future, he said.
She said she’s also working on recruitment. Many students simply don’t think of agriculture as a career, but there are opportunities in the field in business, research and even communications, Cockett said.
Cockett’s work has been appreciated by her colleagues at several levels of university administration. Coward said he expects more good things from her in the future.
“Noelle has the capacity to be a national, academic leader in higher education. Frankly, she has the ability to do whatever she wants and go as far as she wants,” he said.
-ella@cc.usu.edu