ISU Extension office celebrates 100th anniversary

This weekend, Jasper County residents will have a chance to celebrate their part in the history of Iowa State University as the ISU extension office celebrates it’s 100th anniversary in the county. The extension office has been a part of the county’s history, but the county also had an important role to play in the formation of ISU as well.

Nathan Crane, the regional extension education director, said staff at the extension office have been researching Jasper County’s role in the formation of Iowa State University, and that they plan to celebrate that role this weekend as they recognize their anniversary.

First established in 1856 Iowa State is one of the first land grant universities that would be established around the nation. After the Morrill Act of 1862 Iowa State was formally established as land grant university in 1864, with a goal of making higher education accessible to all. To fund schools like Iowa State federal and state governments worked together to provide funding for the fledgling university by selling off large tracts of land the federal government still owned in the state of Iowa. The majority of the land that was sold to fund Iowa State was carved out of the northwest corner of the state, but a portion of that land also came from Jasper County as well.

More than 3,000 acres had been set aside in Jasper County as a potential site for a new state capital after legislators decided to move towards a more central location in the state. When new state capital was located in Des Moines state legislators decided to sell off the 3,000 acres to help fund Iowa State University. This parcel, bisected by highway 163 is about a mile south of Prairie City.

“The university did some research to identify where those acres were, and we wanted to include them in the 100 year celebration because we want to make that connection with the people who currently own the land,” Crane said. “Their land helped get Iowa State University funded and started for the betterment of all the people in the state.”

On Sunday night staffers at the extension office will recognize the current landowners, and celebrate their connection to the university. Kara Warrick, who runs the extension offices outreach educational programs, working with local 4-H programs in Jasper County said the celebration is a chance for people to come together, celebrate, and learn more about what programs and services the extension office offers.

“We just want to bring awareness to everyone in the community about our programs, we’ve been around for 100 years,” Warrick said.

Originally housed in the basement of Newton’s post office, the extension office has seen a lot of changes over the years. As much as things have changed, Crane said one thing that hasn’t changed has been the office’s commitment to the community.

“What has stayed the same is that we’ve always tried to provide research based programming to solve community needs,” Crane said. “Farming has changed, families have changed, the times have changed, we have adapted our programming to remain relevant.”

Contact David Dolmage at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or ddolmage@newtondailynews.com