Quinn new head of OSU agricultural communications services

Friday, April 20, 2007

STILLWATER, Okla. – Garvin Quinn has been appointed director of the Oklahoma State University Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (DASNR) agricultural communications services unit, effective July 2.

"Dr. Quinn brings an outstanding portfolio of experience to DASNR in the areas of marketing, communications and leadership from his present position as director in the Institute of Agriculture at the University of Tennessee," said Robert E. Whitson, vice president, dean and director of agricultural programs at OSU.

“His expertise is extremely well-matched to the needs of the Division and OSU. We are very pleased that he is joining our leadership team of unit administrators,” Whitson said.

As director, Quinn will provide leadership for planning, developing, integrating and implementing departmental teaching, research, extension and international programs and continue with the unit's primary goal – to make available needed information to various target audiences that cross community, county, state, regional, national and international boundaries.

“The Division serves all Oklahomans and I am enthusiastic to serve in this capacity,” Quinn said.

A native Oklahoman, Quinn served as a county Extension educator in Oklahoma after he graduated from Oklahoma Panhandle State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in agronomy in 1971. He then went on to earn a Master of Arts degree in communication from the University of Kentucky in 1977 and a doctoral degree in communication from UK in 1994.

Quinn was active in the Oklahoma 4-H program as a youth. He was named the Outstanding 4-H boy in Oklahoma in 1968 and was a National 4-H agricultural winner in 1966, as well as Oklahoma State First 4-H vice-president in 1967-68.

Currently, he is on the program committee for the 2007 Association for Communication Excellence in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Life and Human Sciences (ACE) and National Extension Technology Conference (NETC) joint international conference in Albuquerque, N.M. He also served as program chair for the 2006 ACE conference held in Quebec City, Canada. Other involvements include being the communications program committee chair for the Southern Region Extension Program Leadership Network and the professional organizations Epsilon Sigma Phi and Gamma Sigma Delta.

###