Former CoAg Dean Wins Lifetime Achievement Award

By: Loreal Brooks

The winner of this year's Alabama Nursery and Landscape Association's Lifetime Achievement Award is Ronald L. Shumack, former interim dean of the College of Agriculture. He was presented with the award in February during the annual Gulf States Expo in Mobile.

ALNLA's prestigious award is presented annually to an individual who has contributed to the advancement of the horticulture industry within Alabama. James Harwell, president of ALNLA at the time Shumack was presented with the award, says, "He has always been a perfect gentleman and a tremendous encourager for our industry and for students and faculty. He has always had that extra source of wisdom."

Throughout his 36-year career, Shumack has been deeply involved with the horticulture industry in Alabama and he has also contributed significantly to agriculture. In addition to being a former interim dean of the college, he has also been the interim director of the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, associate dean for Extension in the college, head of Auburn's Horticulture Department and state Extension horticulturist and floriculture specialist. He is currently serving part-time as the legislative liaison for the Alabama Agricultural Land Grant Alliance.

A letter from the Alabama House of Representatives, which commended Shumack at his retirement, stated that he "was especially significant in his efforts in developing the horticulture industry, alternative industries in rural areas and the teaching and research programs in the College of Agriculture in Alabama; the founding and development of the Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association; and the unification of teaching, research and extension programs in agriculture."

Shumack grew up on his family's farm in Lenox, Ala. After graduating from high school, Shumack attended Auburn University and earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in agricultural education. He began his career in 1963 as a county agent with the Escambia County Extension office. Since the county did not have a horticulture specialist at the time, Shumack handled all of the horticulture issues, working with greenhouses and nurseries, and even had his own radio show.

"I got all the horticulture questions by default and found that I liked it very much. I had a local radio program where I talked about horticulture issues," he recalls. "Folks told me that they liked the radio program, and that was very motivating. Horticulture pulled in homeowners and so many different people. The more I got into it, the more I realized that it was a lot of fun."

After joining the Auburn faculty in 1967 to "work with the extension folks," Shumack entered the horticulture Ph.D. program at Michigan State University. While he was working on his doctorate, he taught indoor plants and flowers classes. Upon graduation, Shumack returned to Auburn and continued working with Extension, serving as the state horticulturist and floriculture specialist for many years.

Shumack began to take the horticulture department in a new direction when he was hired as the department head in 1988. "When I came into the department, student numbers were down considerably," he says. "We only had three graduate students and we had seven faculty openings. I had a chance to really revamp the entire department.

"I feel the most important thing I did as department head was to put together a faculty who enjoys working with the students," he adds. The enrollment of graduate students increased dramatically from 3 to 23 students, and the number of undergraduates in the department went up as well as did the grant money received by the department.

In 1993, Shumack was invited to be the associate dean for extension in the College of Agriculture in addition to his responsibilities as department head. While serving in this position, he was in a vital role to plan and implement the agricultural extension programs.

Two years later, he became a full-time interim dean and director of the Experiment Station. Working as the dean, Shumack enjoyed "getting to understand all of agriculture and seeing how it all fits together. Agriculture is such a big and important area, and I got to see it up close working as the dean. I realized how many folks really want to support us and enjoy what we were doing. I have many friends who have helped out and I appreciate that a lot."

He also notes, "One thing that really stands out is that you don't do anything by yourself. You have to have a dedicated faculty group working, and we have that in the horticulture department as well as in the college of agriculture."

When Shumack retired in 1999, he had planned to do consulting work. However, the state of Alabama continues to hold onto him as a resource, as he has been honored to serve as the executive secretary and legislative liaison for the Alabama Agricultural Land Grant Alliance since 2000. His main purpose in this position is to get the faculty from the three Alabama land-grant universities to work together on projects to benefit Alabama.

"Everybody in the legislature loves the idea of this," explains Shumack. He is also currently the president of the Soil and Water Conservation Committee in his home County of Conecuh.

Shumack now lives on the same family farm in Lenox where he grew up. He and his wife of 42 years, Jo Ann, share a bond through horticulture, as she is an avid gardener herself and they work together on their land. "Through her, I have been amazed at the number of people who thoroughly enjoy gardening and really enjoy the landscape," he says.

They are currently working on incorporating vegetables into the landscape. "I like to have a place with neat and straight fence rows and a pretty landscape without weeds. That desire is due to my horticulture background," Shumack says.

David Williams, head of the Department of Horticulture, says Shumack "is one of the five most influential people in my professional life. He has always been a man of character and integrity, a perfect role model for those following in his wake. He sets high standards for all those around him on how to work with people, and is always bringing out the best in those he works with."

Charles Gilliam, former chair of the Department of Horticulture, says, "Ron has been a major influence in the lives of many people throughout his career. During the time of his service as extension nursery specialist, the nursery industry in Alabama experienced the most rapid growth rate that has ever occurred. He played a major role in the growth of our industry, which has become the number one agronomic crop in Alabama."

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