K-State College of Agriculture presenting Distinguished Service Award to Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Adrian Polansky

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Source: Fred Cholick, 785-532-7137, fcholick@k-state.edu
http://www.ksda.gov/
News release prepared by: Erinn Barcomb-Peterson, 785-532-6415, ebarcomb@k-state.edu

Monday, October 23, 2006

K-STATE COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE PRESENTING DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD TO KANSAS SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE ADRIAN POLANSKY

MANHATTAN -- Kansas State University's College of Agriculture is bestowing one of its top honors to the state's agriculture leader.

The college is giving its Distinguished Service Award in Agriculture to Adrian Polansky, Kansas secretary of agriculture, at a reception at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25, in the lobby of K-State's Throckmorton Hall.

The college gives out only two such awards each year. The award recognizes prominent people whose work, support or accomplishments have contributed notably to distinguished professional achievement or public service in or related to the profession, agriculture and natural resource management. Each year, one award is given for achievement in teaching and/or research, and one award for extension and/or international work. K-State is honoring Polansky for his visionary leadership in agriculture, his dedication to developing value-added opportunities and his promotion of Kansas Agriculture to an international clientele.

"He's a friend of agriculture, he's a friend of the College of Agriculture and a friend of K-State," said Fred Cholick, dean of the College of Agriculture. "In that role, we value the partnership that has developed in our mutual mission to serve agriculture and the natural resources of the state of Kansas. He has vision where agriculture fits as an economic driver for the state, but he thinks beyond the borders of Kansas and has a global vision."

A lifelong Kansan, Polansky graduated from K-State in 1972 with a bachelor's degree in agronomy. He was appointed agriculture secretary in 2003 by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. Polansky serves on the steering committee of the Governor’s Rural Life Task Force, the Kansas Energy Council and the Governor's Council on Homeland Security. He is vice chairman of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture’s working groups on bovine spongiform encephalopathy and biotechnology.

He owns Polansky Farms and Polansky Seed, both of Belleville.

Polanksy received the outstanding young alumnus award from the K-State Ag Alumni Association in 1994.

His other awards include Hammer Award USDA, which recognized his efforts to build a government that works better and costs less; a U.S. Department of Agriculture distinguished service award for outstanding leadership and management contributions made to the Farm Service Agency; the 1986 wheat man of the year award given by the Kansas Association of Wheat Growers; and the outstanding service to agriculture award in 1986 by the Kansas Crops and Soils Industry Council.

After the college presents Polansky with the Distinguished Service Award in Agriculture, Polansky will give a lecture, "Changes, Challenges and Opportunity is the Future of Kansas Agriculture," at 4 p.m. in 1018 Throckmorton Hall. The lecture is sponsored by K-State's agronomy department, and it is open to the public.