The rodeo is brought to fans by the rodeo team at Southern Arkansas University and is approved by the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association’s Ozark Region rodeo. The Ozark Region of the NIRA consists of colleges and universities in Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Ohio, Indiana, Georgia, Michigan, Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, Illinois and parts of Louisiana.

“We have about 15 schools in the region and about 220 participants total,” said SAU Rodeo Coach Rusty Hayes.

Hayes said he expects the SAU men’s team to dominate the calf roping and team roping while the SAU women’s team to be strong in the barrel racing, goat tying and break-away roping. Hayes said the women’s team recently won the title in their first rodeo of the season in Marshall, Missouri.
As true with other sports, sometimes athletes performing on familiar turf have a home field advantage, Hayes said, adding his athletes will have the benefit of being able to rest before the events.

“Because all of us and the horses haven’t ridden in a truck for 10 hours, we should be fresher,” he said.

Hayes said proceeds from the rodeo and the concession stand at the event pays for the Agriculture Formal each December, as well as some of the supplies for the animals.

A special aspect of Friday and Saturday evenings rodeos will be a calf scramble will be held for children 10 and under. First, second and third place prizes will be awarded to the children who can grab a ribbon of a calf’s tail the fastest.

Also, the collegiate cowboy and cowgirl with the highest totals for the rodeo will each be given a saddle donated by the Magnolia Advertising and Promotion Board.

For more information on the rodeo, call the SAU Agriculture Department at 870-235-4340.

It is ironic both because SAU is not where Moss began her college career and because her discovery of the University was made totally by chance.

After attending college in Louisiana for a couple of years and realizing her choice was not what she had hoped for, Moss, a native of Sarepta, La., decided perhaps college was not for her. While she weighed her options and her future, she decided to take a day to ride along with her mother, Tracy Teutsch, a log trucker, to deliver materials to Deltic Timber Corporation. After the stop, the two continued down U.S. Highway 82 towards Magnolia and a billboard at a busy intersection captured Moss’ attention.

“I fell in love with the picture of the mascot, the bucking Mulerider, and I just couldn’t help but think, ‘how… cool is that?’ ” Moss, now 23, said. “A bucking horse is my favorite iconic picture.”

So SAU’s namesake, the Muleriders—a one-of-a-kind name created from a true story of young men forced to ride mules to football games when no other transportation was available— was what prompted Moss to register for college. The day she registered was so late in August that it was the last day students could sign up for classes.

And as the old cliché goes—the rest is history.

For the past four years, Moss, an accomplished rider who bonded immediately with the agricultural roots of SAU, has been an ambassador for the University and a friend to a mule named Molly B. Now a senior with a major in agriculture science, Moss is seriously considering keeping her role as the Mulerider while she works toward a master’s degree in agriculture.

Over the years, she and Molly B, now 16-years-old, (which is considered middle aged for a mule), have had their share of ups and downs. When they first met, Molly B. was uncertain whether she wanted to give Moss the chance to tame her. But Molly B. didn’t realize who she was dealing with as Moss has a long history in training and developing horses and is the owner of her own business, Ranch & Extreme Performance Horses, where she offers this professional skill.

“She would bite and buck; she was just terribly mean,” Moss said. “I’m still the only one who can touch her ears.”

But through two to three hours a day of devoted attention during those first six to nine months, Moss won the trust of Molly B. and her behavior changed. These days Molly B. is no longer irritated when Moss has to pick up each of her legs to wrap them with the blue and gold colors of SAU. Although the wraps are meant to encourage school spirit, they are also on Molly B.’s legs for the practical reason that they offer protection when she travels at a fast speed.

Another item Moss uses for almost every outing, be it parade or football game, is glitter to make Molly B. shine. Moss spreads the glitter on Molly B.’s backside and then sprays hairspray to ensure it stays in place for the event.

“I bet I use three gallons of glitter a year,” Moss said.

The personality of Molly B. is something Moss has really come to admire as her partner over the past four years. When the two first met, Molly B. would hesitate when it came to jumping into a trailer to take her to an event. Now she jumps in on her own. She also has learned when it is time to run down the sidelines at football games.
“When she hears the touchdown, she gets ready to go by stomping her feet,” Moss said. “Her personality is so co complex and hilarious.”

Moss said most memories of being the Mulerider are funny, especially in retrospect. Like their first year when Molly B.’s eating schedule wasn’t quite adjusted for game time. Understandably, the football coaches did not look kindly on the distractions left behind by the mascot. But that was years ago, and it hasn’t happened on Moss’ watch since.

Besides the humor she provides, riding Molly has brought Moss some other unexpected blessings too.
“When the little girls come up to me and say that they want to grow up and go to school so they can ride Molly B., that definitely makes it all worth it,” Moss said.

Although the list of those who’ve come before her in Muleriding history is long and colorful, the story of Moss and Molly B. is unique because of the consecutive years they have been a team.

The pair added another colorful page to the history books this past weekend at the 19th annual Pea Ridge Mule Jump in Northwest Arkansas. Although Molly B. has never competed in a mule jump, she received the title of reserve champion in her division, which is the equivalent to second place. Molly B. secured her win in this category by jumping various heights ranging from 32 to 52 inches. But even Molly B. has her limits and has to put her hooves down at some point. And that point was just shy of the height requirement to win the first prize award.

“She would not jump 54 inches,” said Dr. Corbet Lamkin, vice president of Academic Affairs, who along with his wife Verna, traveled to the mule jumping competition to support the SAU team. “Ashley does an excellent job handling Molly B. I can assure you that a mule has its own disposition.”

Moss said she was extremely proud of Molly B.’s performance in the pole jumping contest, especially considering the other activities they competed in such as a flag race, pole bending and carrying a flag for the opening ceremony. And Moss has to admit that she got a kick out of Molly B.’s ability to make fans wherever she goes.

“At first everyone was looking at us funny because I was wearing the full uniform,” Moss said. “They were looking at us like ‘here is this little girl with her little mule,’ but by the end, Molly was the crowd favorite and everyone was cheering her over the jump. It was great. It was too much fun.”

And as Molly B. celebrates a decade being the representative for such a proud tradition at SAU this month, Moss can say without a doubt that she made the right choice for herself by choosing SAU.

“We are the only Muleriders in the world, and I love to be different,” she said.

Dr. Jim Tollett, chair of SAU’s agriculture department, said the $5,000 was split between the four students he selected based on their need and because they had not received any other scholarships. This is the first year SAU has been awarded scholarships from the Arkansas State Plant Board, Tollett said.

Recipients of the scholarship include Emily Harrod, a freshman agriculture business major from Hermitage, Ark.; Marrissa McKinney, a sophomore agriculture science/pre-veterinary major from Sheridan, Ark.; Aaron Jarvis, a freshman agriculture business major from Lufkin, Texas; and Michael Tallman, a freshman agriculture business major from Mineral Springs, Ark.

“They all wanted (the scholarship) and stayed on me about it, calling me every week,” Tollett said. “I knew every one of them by their first name.”

Funds to support the scholarships are derived from civil penalties collected by the Arkansas State Plant Board. People found out of compliance for any number of issues, ranging from not having correct contents of seeds listed or incorrectly completing paperwork, are found to be in violation and charged fees which are then put into the scholarship pool.

“We are a regulatory agency so we are never the good guys, but the fines from these violations let us turn around and do something good,” said Darryl Little, director of the Arkansas State Plant Board. “Hopefully this will keep some kids in agriculture.”

The Arkansas State Plant Board contributes scholarships to Arkansas State University, Arkansas Tech University, Southern Arkansas University and the University of Arkansas System, Little said.

Each student has their own personal story about how the scholarship touched their lives.

Harrod said after making a decision to go to school in Atlanta, which she regretted two weeks after her arrival, she was left without much hope of being able to pay her school. She said her parents were disappointed in her decision and did not understand how much agriculture meant to her.

“All my funds were taken away when I decided to come here, but the scholarship pretty much fixed me being able to pay for college,” Harrod said. “I like the city, it has a lot of fun shopping and stuff, but there were no four wheel riding and no country. The country is big part of my life and being here is great, I love it.”

Another student, Tallman, said that his college funding was also difficult to come by because his father wanted him to go to community college and prove himself before transferring on to a four year university.

“Now I get to come here and prove to my dad that I can do it,” Tallman said.

Jarvis, who also received a scholarship, said the funding coming through was just another factor that led him to believe he was supposed to be at SAU. He had considered a larger university closer to his hometown, but ultimately said he wanted to be involved in a program where it was easier to get around the campus and get to know everyone one.

Having the burden of paying for college the complete burden of her single mom made Marissa McKinney glad to have a scholarship. Otherwise, she or her younger sister, Tiffani McKinney, would have had to sit out a year of school.

“Now she is getting to start school too,” Marissa McKinney said.

“This new degree will offer an opportunity for graduate studies in agriculture that has simply not existed before in southern Arkansas,” said SAU President Dr. David Rankin. “The Master of Agriculture is an important part of our continued efforts to expand the university’s graduate programs.”

Dr. Penny Haase-Wittler, assistant professor of agriculture, began the process of adding a Master of Agriculture degree upon arriving at SAU in January of 2005.

“I feel that in order to remain competitive, we need to stay current with what individuals are requesting in the community,” Haase-Witler said.

The program begins October 1 and already has about 10 students enrolled. Because the semester has already started, students signing up for the first semester of school will complete a minimester. The minimester may sound abbreviated in nature, but actually requires students to double up on coursework to complete their semester the same time as everyone else on campus, Haase-Wittler said.

The 36 hour semester program has two tracks, one which requires students to write a thesis and the other non-thesis will require students to work with agriculture entities and professionals to advance their skills.

Early in the process of trying to make the degree a reality on campus, Haase-Wittler did a statewide needs assessment to find out what the response would be to adding the degree program at SAU. The results showed the promise she expected to find.

“I found that individuals in the state, particularly in the southern part of the state, were interested in a Master of Agriculture,” she said. “Most of the respondents were holders of a bachelor’s degree, and for the most part, said they would come and take master’s courses in agriculture at SAU.”

But without the support of key people at SAU, Haase-Wittler said no amount of hard work would have made the program a reality.

“The support of administration has been astounding, they supported it 100 percent and I couldn’t do it without their support and the support of the ag faculty as well,” she said.
Dr. Corbet Lamkin, vice president of Academic Affairs, said he was supportive of the Master of Agriculture program and thinks its main advantage is that it can be applied to people who have undergraduate degrees in agriculture science, agriculture business or agriculture education.

“We are excited about having this degree in southern Arkansas,” Lamkin said.

This year’s rodeo is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. nightly September 27, 28 and 29 at the Columbia County Fairgrounds.

One of the draws of the 27th Annual SAU rodeo will be the opportunity to watch members of the team who captured a fourth place national title for SAU in the collegiate finals earlier this year in Casper, Wyoming.

“It was the best we’ve done in years,” said Rusty Hayes, rodeo coach. “We’ve never even come close to (fourth place).”

The rodeo holds all the traditional events rodeo fans love such as bare back riding, saddle brock riding, bull riding and calf roping, but has a little something extra when it comes to women’s events, Hayes said. In addition to barrel racing and team roping, the collegiate level of competition includes goat tying and break away for young women.

In the goat tying event, young women have to demonstrate their speed and accuracy in tying up a goat. The break away is similar to calf roping, explained Hayes.

“The difference between this event and calf roping is the rope breaks away from the saddle horn,” Hayes said. “I’ve seen some of the girls do this in two or two and a half seconds.”

One of those girls, Ashley Mills, won the break away event in both the Florida High School and Georgia High School rodeo associations competitions this past year. Mills is a freshman from Live Oak, Florida, Hayes said. On the boy’s team, another standout, also from Florida, is Cody Prescott. Prescott, a sophomore of Jay, Florida, was fourth in the nation in calf roping at the competition.

In addition to being able to watch top rodeo talent, this year’s rodeo will also have an offering for the little cowgirls and cowboys in the audience. A calf scramble with cash prizes for first through third place winners will be offered for children 12 and under.

The cost of the rodeo is $5 for adults, $3 for students who present their student identification card and $3 for children ages 7-12. Children 6 and under are admitted free.

Representatives from Allied Poultry, a part of the Arkansas Poultry Federation, select the students during an interview process, said Dr. James Tollett, chair of the SAU’s agriculture department. Tollett said about 18 students applied for the scholarships this year.

“Allied Poultry pays for one semester and we pay for the other,” Tollett said. “Most of these students will be in the poultry industry when the graduate.”

In exchange for the scholarship money, students agree to devote two days during the state fair to working in “The Chicken Cooking Kitchen” at the fairgrounds. The proceeds from the booth help keep the scholarship program alive each year.

“This beats student loans hands down - those are tricky; they tend to want it back,” said Japheth May, one of the six recipients of the scholarships. “(Allied Poultry) pays us pretty good wages.”

The students who received the scholarship are Teresa Gaus, an agricultural sciences major from Beaumont, Tx.; Brant Henry, an agricultural education major of Dekalb, Tx.; Megan Lee, an agricultural business major from DeQueen, Ark.; Japheth May, an agricultural business major from Springhill, Ark.; Kyle Risley, an agricultural business major from Mena, Ark.; and Ashley Shelby, an agricultural business major from Maud, Tx.

“It has helped me out a whole bunch, I don’t know if I could do it without the help,” said Henry.

With six scholarship recipients, SAU is the second largest recipient of the Allied Poultry scholarships in the state, falling only behind the University of Arkansas, Tollett said.

Due to redistricting, the former Southwest District now includes about half of the former Southeast District.

“SAU was chosen as the CDE site over other institutions in the district largely due to the dedication of our faculty, staff, and students in the Department of Agriculture to put together quality events,” said Dr. Jeff Horne, associate professor of agricultural education.

According to Horne, this event is the first step in national competition. The top six teams in every event will advance from the Southern District to the state competition. State winners will compete in national events next October in Indianapolis, Ind.

SAU hosts several events including nursery/landscape, land, floriculture, dairy foods, livestock, poultry, forestry, agronomy, and farm business management.

According to the national FFA website, career development events are an important component of agricultural education programs.

These events allow FFA members to explore many of the more than 300 career opportunities in agriculture. They provide students an opportunity to work with their peers and teachers as well as community and business leaders as they prepare for the events.

Most events will center around Childs Hall, but some events will be out in different locations on the farm. Land will be held in one of the pastures, and forestry could possible be off campus.

For more information regarding the career development events to be held on the campus of SAU, call the Department of Agriculture at 870-235-4340.

Courtney McHughes, a 2005 graduate of Southern Arkansas University, Magnolia, has had hands-on experiences with these pigs at the University of Missouri at Columbia, where she is pursuing a master’s of science degree in animal reproductive physiology.

McHughes helped to care for one of the litters of cloned piglets. According to McHughes, the entire lab worked together and aided in the birth and then subsequently took care of the piglets.

“This was a really exciting time,” she said. “These were the first piglets that I got to work directly with in my lab.”

The project involves the creation of pigs that can synthesize their own omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s have been linked to heart health. Under normal circumstances, pigs and humans are unable to make these fatty acids on their own. The only way for humans to benefit from Omega-3s is by taking a supplement or consuming certain types of fish, like salmon and tuna.

In this project, a gene-fat-1 was introduced into the pig’s DNA and then the pigs were created using somatic cell nuclear transfer, a cloning technique.

“If these ‘fat-1 pigs’ were entered into the food chain, we could be eating bacon that is rich in Omega-3s, making it as good for heart health as eating fish,” she said. “The really important thing is that these pigs can be used as a model to study the effects of Omega-3s on heart health.”

According to McHughes, pigs are very similar to humans physiologically, and these particular pigs can be used to evaluate the effects of Omega-3 fatty acids on heart health and on the cardiovascular system as a whole.

“This research would translate to a better understanding of human health,” said McHughes. “If these pigs are one day approved to enter the food chain, not only would it be beneficial for consumers to be eating healthier pork, but if the pig is also healthier, it is beneficial for farmers as well because they would see less livestock loss.”

After graduating summa cum laude with a B.S. in agriculture science, McHughes spent time with her family and then made the move to Missouri. She is a graduate assistant in Dr. Randy Prather’s lab at the Animal Science Research Center on the university campus.

Right now she has plans to pursue a Ph.D. at Missouri after completing her master’s. Although she has not quite made a decision what career path to follow after graduation, she is positive about one thing.

“Whether I decide to work in academia or in an industry position, I definitely see lots of research in the many years to come,” she said.

McHughes believes the education she received at SAU has prepared her well for her chosen career.

“SAU has prepared me not just for the work I am doing right now, but for life in general,” she said. “It has prepared me in so many ways that it is hard to talk about them all.”

She gives credit to the Departments of Biology and Agriculture for helping her with her current project and providing her with a dedicated and sound work ethic.

“The Biology Department helped to prepare me for the lab work I do every day as part of my research,” she said. “Not to mention the invaluable scientific knowledge and drive that all of my professors helped to develop in me.”

“I want to do that on a national level,” said the sophomore agricultural education major at Southern Arkansas University, Magnolia. “I want to impact the lives of kids. I believe that I have that ability to be influential in a child’s life.”

In August, Coker took one step closer to her dream when she was chosen as the representative from Arkansas to run for national office. Since that time, she has been preparing for the interview process that will take place in October.

“During the summer I will study the history of the FFA and agriculture issues,” she said. “I am also looking into internship opportunities.”

If elected to one of only six national officer positions, Coker will be required to leave school and spend an entire year traveling.

“National officers live out of a suitcase,” she said. “They are always on the go around the country spreading agriculture literacy.”

National FFA officers are responsible for serving and representing more than 490,000 FFA members. Officers represent the image and direction of the National FFA Organization to teachers, state staff, teacher educators, agriculture industry executives, government leaders, the media, and the general public.

“The experience of being a national officer will be exciting,” she said. “It will be an opportunity to see the country.”

While at SAU, Coker has been involved with the Association of Baptist Students, College-FFA, Agri Business Club, and Alpha Tau Alpha, the agricultural education national honor society.

After finishing her studies at SAU, Coker plans to spend time in the classroom helping students.

“I hope I can find an FFA chapter to teach,” she said. “I want to be in the classroom with students. I want to be a teacher who students can count on and they can talk to.”

Ly Phan, a computer science major who graduated in December was recognized as the outstanding student from the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science as well as the College of Science and Technology Outstanding Student.

While at SAU, Phan served as secretary of the Mathematics and Computer Science Club and as team leader of the SAU programming team for the ACM Programming Contest and was an active member of the French Club and International Student Association.

Phan has been named to the Dean’s List every semester during her tenure at SAU. She was also inducted into Alpha Chi and received the SAU Retention Scholarship for International Students for the 2004-05 and 2005-06 academic years. In December 2005, Phan was selected to Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.

She won first place at the SAU programming contest and third place in the SAU writing contest. She led the SAU programming team to represent SAU at the ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest and helped ensure the team’s best performance in recent years. She volunteered to work at the 2004 Arkansas Literary Festival at Little Rock as part of the SAU Writing Center.

Sailesh Tripathi, an engineering-physics and mathematics double major from Kathmandu, Nepal, was named the outstanding student from the Department of Physical Science and Technology.

Tripathi is a member of the Engineering Club, Lambda Alpha Beta, Alpha Chi, International Student Association, and the Soccer Club.

His undergraduate research project was “Solar energy transmission by optical fibers.” It is scheduled for presentation at the Undergraduate Research Conference.

The Department of Agriculture named Stephanie Dickerson as its outstanding student. Dickerson is an agricultural education major from Hot Springs.

Dickerson has tutored students in numerous subjects in agriculture, helped advise students, and was the assistant in the computer labs. She regulated the agricultural computer usage.

She has been described as “honest, personable, goal oriented, prompt with assignments, and courteous to everyone.”

While at SAU, Dickerson has been active in the Collegiate FFA and Alpha Tau Alpha, where she served as vice president. She is a member of the National Agriculture Teacher Association.

Tonjeh Mary Stella Bah, a biological science major from Cameroon, was named the Department of Biology Outstanding Student.

Bah has served as president of Tri Beta and the Biology Club, vice president of the Chemistry Club, secretary/treasurer of the Residence Hall Association, and treasurer of the International Student Association. She was a National Residence Hall Honorary, named Resident Assistant of the Year, and served on the Bussey Hall Council.

She was also inducted Alpha Chi, Tri Beta, National Residence Hall Honorary, Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges, and the National Dean’s List.

During her sophomore and junior years, Bah has served as an algebra, chemistry, and biology tutor. She was also a supplemental instructor in statistics in her junior and senior years.