The New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (NJAES) is mandated by the state and federal governments to conduct research and outreach to address the needs of New Jersey residents as they relate to agriculture, natural resources, and human and community development. Closely affiliated with Cook College, the land-grant college of Rutgers, NJAES is funded separately and directly by the state legislature. Founded in 1880, it is the third oldest experiment station in the United States. The two functions of the NJAES are to conduct research and assist residents of the state to put this knowledge to work.
The NJAES and the state-federal-county cooperative funding for its research and outreach mandate is an important and necessary infrastructure for the state of New Jersey. The mission-oriented research and outreach programs respond to pressing needs and problems of the state that would not be addressed otherwise. These include the needs of communities, businesses, and families dependent on agriculture, fishing, and other areas of primary production and the larger food system. They include more general public needs for assistance in landscaping, gardening, land-use planning, and environmental protection. They also include the needs of populations, communities, and families for help in dealing with financial, nutritional, health, and environmental risks and stressors. New Jersey has gone farther than any other state to expand the traditional land-grant focus on agriculture and rural communities to urban and suburban communities, as well as to new areas of critical concern such as the environment and overall quality of life.
The research arm of NJAES represents a partnership between the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the state of New Jersey. Among the station`s many important research accomplishments are the discovery of the antibiotic streptomycin which cured tuberculosis; pioneering work in mosquito control; artificial insemination techniques for dairy cattle; the development of highly successful plant varieties including the Rutgers tomato, asparagus, turfgrasses, and hybrid dogwoods; and the development of novel farmland and open space policies. NJAES supports approximately 150 research faculty in 12 discipline departments, 13 interdisciplinary centers on the Cook College campus, and eight off-campus stations and centers located across the state. The off-campus locations are connected to Cook through a leading-edge interactive television capability and networking infrastructure that is part of "Project Connect." This project is one of many college and station initiatives aimed at better connecting the outlying stations to improve the delivery of positive impacts to students and New Jersey residents.
The outreach arm of NJAES, Rutgers Cooperative Extension (RCE), joined the research component of the NJAES in 1914 with passage of the federal Smith Lever Act and state and local legislation. RCE is a continuing partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture, the state of New Jersey, and County Boards of Chosen Freeholders. RCE assists in the transfer of research from the laboratory and field to people through educational and technical assistance programs that help them to solve problems and gain skills needed to improve their lives, businesses, and communities. RCE specialists, agents, and educators also conduct research relevant to the needs of this clientele. RCE faculty, staff, and volunteers deliver educational programs through local Extension offices in all twenty-one counties of the state. These programs involve current and emerging issues in agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture, environment, natural and financial resource management, youth development, nutrition, child and elder care issues, and life skills development. Annually over 500,000 contacts are made by various educational methods including one-on-one instruction, classes, phone consultations, and newsletters and other media.
The Office of Continuing Professional Education (OCPE) offers seminars, conferences, symposia, and short courses to professionals involved in biotechnology, food science, marine and coastal sciences, environmental resource management, environmental science, agribusiness, and biological engineering. In addition, OCPE delivers innovative educational opportunities for at-risk and adjudicated youth. Some 13,000 professionals participate in these opportunities every year.
