State Legislature Commends UC Davis For Top Ranking in Agriculture

From UC Davis

The California legislature last week honored UC Davis’ achievements and top ranking in agricultural teaching and research with a resolution that was unanimously passed by both the state Senate and Assembly.

The resolution, SCR 70, was prompted by the May announcement that UC Davis was ranked No. 1 in the world for teaching and research in the area of agriculture and forestry by QS World University Rankings, widely considered one of the most influential international university rankings providers.

That ranking was based on four criteria: the number of research publications in the area of agriculture and forestry, how often other researchers cited those publications in professional journals, opinions of other academics in the field, and opinions of employers in the field.

The resolution was introduced by state Sen. Cathleen Galgiani, D-Stockton, who represents District 5 and chairs the Senate agriculture committee, and state Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis, who represents District 3. It was co-authored by Sens. Anthony Cannella and Ted Lieu, and Assembly members Tom Berryhill, Susan Eggman, Kristin Olsen, Mariko Yamada, Toni Atkins, Brian Dahle, Richard Pan and Bill Quirk.

“Growing up in the heart of California farmland, I fully understand how fortunate we are to have the support of UC Davis,” Galgiani said. “California agriculture would not be as successful as it is today without UC Davis’ expertise; and as the top agricultural state in the nation, we must recognize the value that researchers, staff, and Cooperative Extension specialists have in overcoming challenges and ensuring abundant and sustainable agricultural production in California.

“It was an honor to facilitate the state Legislature’s recognition of UC Davis as the No. 1 agricultural university in the world,” Galgiani said. “I commend them for this extraordinary achievement.”

UC Davis Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi expressed her pride in the university’s accomplishments and gratitude for the legislative resolution.

“Agricultural teaching and research is both our heritage and our future at UC Davis, as we strive to feed a rapidly growing global community and wisely steward the world’s natural resources,” Katehi said. “We so appreciate our colleagues in the Legislature recognizing our achievements in the form of this resolution.”

Most of UC Davis’ agricultural teaching and research is carried out by the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. The college, which has 300 faculty members, was founded in 1905 as the University of California’s University Farm.

Today, it has more than 5,800 undergraduate students in 27 majors and more than 1,000 graduate students in 45 graduate groups and programs. More than 3,000 acres of UC Davis’ 5,000-acre campus are devoted to agricultural research.