SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — The South Dakota Pork Producers Council (SDPPC) honored President Barry H. Dunn of SDSU in Brookings, South Dakota with the Dedicated and Distinguished Service Award at the Master Pork Producers Banquet on Wednesday, January 11, 2017. “The Dedicated and Distinguished Service Award recognizes an individual who provides outstanding and dedicated service to South Dakota’s pork industry; and Barry certainly has demonstrated this type of service to our industry. We are proud to honor him with this award,” commented SDPPC Executive Board member and association services and membership committee chairman, Mark Fuoss of Armour.
Barry H. Dunn was named the 20th president of South Dakota State University in April 2016, the fourth alumnus chosen to lead the institution. He assumed office May 23, 2016.
Dunn received a bachelor’s degree in biology at SDSU in 1975 and subsequently completed two graduate degrees in animal science-a master’s in 1977 and a Ph.D. in in 2000-at the Brookings campus. He became the South Dakota Corn Utilization Council endowed dean of the College of Agriculture and Biological Sciences in 2010. He also served as director of SDSU Extension and as a professor of animal science.
As dean, Dunn led a college with some 550 faculty and staff, 2,800 graduate and undergraduate students, and a $78 million annual budget, including more than $20 million in grant and contract awards, fundraising and development. He shaped the academic and strategic direction of eight departments, spanning 18 degree programs, one regional research and outreach center, six research field stations and 14,500 acres of Agricultural Experiment Station research land.
As Extension director, Dunn administered and set the vision for five program areas across two colleges and nine departments, as well as eight regional extension centers with a $12 million annual budget. He led a team of some 150 faculty and staff members and 3,500 adult volunteers.
Prior to that, Dunn spent six years at Texas A&M University-Kingsville from 2004 to 2010, as executive director of the King Ranch Institute for Range Management. He first worked in Brookings as an Extension livestock specialist and as an assistant professor in SDSU’s Department of Animal and Range Science from 1997 to 2004.
From 1979 to 1996, Dunn was a successful rancher, managing his family’s cattle ranch in Mission, S.D. In 2015, he was appointed to the South Dakota Habitat Conservation Fund by Governor Dennis Daugaard, and to the Governor’s Pheasant Work Group, 2014. He served as an ex officio member of the Ag Advisory Board for the First Dakota National Bank, Yankton SD, from 2011 to 2016, and was a member of the Board of Directors for Padlock Ranch, Dayton, WY from 2009 to 2016.
Dunn has a rich academic background, was a successful rancher and farm operator and is a published author and researcher. He is a nationally recognized expert in beef production and ranching systems, and is a member of several professional organizations, including the Society for Range Management, the American Society of Animal Science, and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. He has a deep historical and cultural knowledge of South Dakota and South Dakota State University, and strong, statewide relationships with industry influencers and stakeholders, including government officials, business leaders, university administration, faculty and staff.
Dunn and his wife, Jane, lived on her family’s original homestead north of Brookings where they raised their two sons.
The South Dakota Pork Producers Council (SDPPC) was created in 1954 to responsibly serve, support and enhance the success of the South Dakota pork production industry. Along with managing industry issues and improving the image of the pork industry, the South Dakota Pork Producers Council works to insure a safe, wholesome product for the consumer’s confident consumption.
South Dakota’s pork producers have 170,000 sows and they produce 339,000 farrowings per year. South Dakota is ranked #11 in pork production and ranks #2 in pigs per sow. South Dakota ranks 9th nationally in number of pigs born in the state. South Dakota’s pork industry contributes $2.1 billion overall economic impact of SD’s Swine Industry. Also, South Dakota pork industry contributes $17.4 million in total tax revenue.
— South Dakota Pork Producers Council
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