Hoping to recommend strategies for fundamentally revamping agricultural college programs throughout the United States in order to keep pace with the changing needs of society, a former chancellor of the University of California, Davis, has launched a one-year study funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The $51,000 research project will be conducted by James H. Meyer, an animal scientist who served as UC Davis chancellor from 1969 to 1987 and for six years prior to that was dean of the campus's College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Last year in the journal Science, Meyer published results from a nationwide survey of agricultural college leaders suggesting that land-grant colleges and universities need to evolve beyond their traditional emphasis on production agriculture if they are to survive and serve an increasingly urbanized nation. Land-grant colleges were initiated by a congressional act signed into law by Abraham Lincoln in 1862. The Morrill Land Grant Act, which set aside 30,000 acres in each state to be sold to finance new colleges, prompted development of 68 colleges and universities nationwide. These institutions were to be devoted to "agriculture and the mechanical arts ... in order to promote the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits and professions in life." According to Meyer, since their establishment more than 130 years ago, the land-grant colleges have helped U.S. farmers improve production so much that the number of people needed in the agricultural sector has plummeted, leaving the status and future of these colleges uneasy. "Although the original land-grant model was appropriate for its time, the modern environment at scientific and agricultural universities calls for a new model," he said. Production agriculture must retain an important position in that new model, however Meyer suggests that these institutions need to dramatically broaden their focus to encompass all aspects of the food and fiber system -- from production to consumption. To better serve society, the land-grant colleges of the future will need to place more emphasis on the environmental and consumer-oriented aspects of that system, he said. "The main thing we need to keep in mind is the importance of the land-grant philosophy of teaching, research and extension in the public service," said Meyer. In order to develop strategies for overhauling land-grant colleges, Meyer is conducting a comprehensive literature review, primarily focusing on how change is effected in private enterprise. He will incorporate findings from the literature with observations related to the peculiarities of the academic setting, then will recommend strategies for modernizing the land-grant colleges. He will supplement his report with a survey of land-grant college and university leaders, highlighting factors that might favor or inhibit revitalization of these institutions. The results of Meyer's research will be compiled into a report and provided to agricultural college leaders throughout the nation.