Southeast Missouri State University adds degree programs in environmental sciences, agribusiness

Two new programs at Southeast Missouri State University will give more options to students in environmental and agriculture studies.

The environmental studies program is establishing a master's degree in environmental science program and the Department of Agriculture will offer agribusiness degrees at the university's Bootheel centers. University officials say there is demand for the options, and students have been pursuing them at other universities. The additions were approved at Thursday's Board of Regents meeting.

Environmental studies director Dr. Stephen Overmann said Southeast is the first university to offer the graduate program in the state. He said he expects it will also draw international students as other countries also look for training opportunities in the U.S..

"We anticipate we will see a good-size international student body," he said.

The environmental studies program was founded in 1998. Overmann said it averages between 40 and 50 students, but to pursue graduate training, they went elsewhere. The University of Southern Illinois Edwardsville was the closest option, he said.

Initially, it will not cost anything to start the graduate program because classes will be taught by current faculty. The program is expected to enroll about 10 students the first year and is projected to grow to about 25 students in five years.

"I think I can say with confidence it will grow quite a bit," he said.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment opportunities for environmental scientists will increase faster than most occupations. Employment is expected to increase by 25 percent between 2006 and 2016.

Environmental scientists and hydrologists held about 92,000 jobs in 2006. About 35 percent of environmental scientists were employed in state and local governments. As the federal government works to address issues like climate change, Overmann said he expects employment opportunities to grow. At the state level, the economy has taken a toll on state park employees. The Department of Natural Resources recently announced 100 layoffs.

The Department of Agriculture will also add an agribusiness program to university centers in Sikeston, Kennett, Malden and Three Rivers Community College starting in fall 2010.

"It is the ideal place to put such a program," department chairman Dr. Michael Aide said.

Initial costs are $17,386, which include one person to oversee the program at all the centers and laboratory upgrade, Aide said. Classes will be offered through teleconferencing and the Internet. Faculty will teach laboratory classes on-site, he said.

Aide said the program will prepare students to go into jobs like agriculture sales and finance.

"The idea is that many young people cannot go into farming because it costs a lot of money," he said.

He said students from the southern part of the Bootheel tend to go to other schools like Murray State University in Murray, Ky., and Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, Ark., to study agribusiness. Offering the program at regional centers will give those students an in-state option, he said.

The department is also developing an advisory committee to guide the program as it evolves. The program is projected to start with about nine students and will grow to almost 40 in five years.

The program will also support the Bootheel's growing international reputation, Aide said. Its high capacity for irrigation and transportation availability make it a "premier region" in agriculture, he said.

"There is no other region in the world that has this kind of water resource," he said.

abusch@semissourian.com

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