CALS Wolfpack Harvest: ‘A Brand-New Tradition’

The first-ever Wolfpack Harvest on Nov. 8 was a statewide celebration, showcase and alumni reunion for NC State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. 

More than 900 people registered for gatherings across North Carolina at a restaurant loft in Asheville, a family entertainment venue in Winston-Salem, botanical gardens in Wilmington and the Plant Sciences Building on campus. 

At the lively Raleigh event, the aroma of barbecue filled the air and members of the Power Sound of the South marching band entertained the crowd. Inside the Plant Sciences Building, hundreds of people visited interactive displays highlighting CALS academic programs, research, Extension work and student activities — extending from a fiberglass cow model at the front door to tours of the rooftop greenhouses. 

CALS Dean Garey Fox told alumni, faculty, staff, students and prospective students they were witnessing the start of “a brand new tradition.” 

“I’m a huge believer in tradition, because it’s powerful,” he said. 

Fox thanked faculty, staff and students for their dedication as he celebrated CALS’ growth: a record enrollment of more than 4,400 students this fall, fueled by a 10% increase in applications over 2024. He invited alumni to become mentors through the CALS Alumni for Student Success program.

“The real secret sauce is to make a big institution feel like a small college and a family atmosphere,” Fox said. “We’re dedicated to moving students from committed to prepared to employed, and, honestly, ready to change the world.”

Memorable Connections

Nicole Youngblood, vice president of the CALS Alumni and Friends Society, welcomed campus visitors by quoting what beloved professor Bob Patterson told her class on the first day of Introduction to Crop Science. 

“‘There are so many places in the world that you could be today, but you decided to be here. I’m so glad,’” said Youngblood, an Extension agent with N.C. Cooperative Extension at the Johnston County Center.

As Patterson circulated among the crowd, buttons with his photo were a popular item at the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences table. 

New CALS alumni pins were a hit with graduating students and alumni of all ages. 

Alumna Angela Grimes, a clinical project manager for Labcorp Drug Development, plans to place her new CALS alumni pin in a place of honor next to her dad’s cap in a display case at home. She grew up on a tobacco farm in Ashe County, and was active in 4-H from age 9 through high school, winning an “I Dare You” national 4-H leadership award. 

“NC State is home,” said Grimes, who earned a degree in zoology from CALS, as well as a master’s in comparative biomedical science from NC State. The Triangle resident exchanged hugs with former classmates and pondered asking her cousins in Ashe County about helping with a future Wolfpack Harvest event. 

She wasn’t the only one making connections.

“I think I’ll have some new collaborators from this,” said Joseph Donaldson, an associate professor and interim associate head of the Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences, who greeted dozens of visitors and colleagues at the department’s display. 

All in all, the first Wolfpack Harvest was a day to remember. 

This post was originally published in College of Agriculture and Life Sciences News.