South Dakota State University (SDSU) announced that it has received a $500,000 gift from Farm Credit Services of America to support the construction of the Precision Agriculture Facility on the SDSU campus in Brookings, S.D.

The facility will be a hub for research, teaching and innovation that covers the entire spectrum of precision agriculture and will enable collaboration with differing disciplines within that space.

Don Marshall, interim dean of the SDSU College of Agriculture & Biological Sciences, said, “SDSU is extremely grateful to Farm Credit Services of America for their support of the precision ag project at this substantial level. Their generosity and our shared vision of the future of agriculture will help position SDSU students and researchers to address the grand challenges of global food security with technology and efficient production methods that sustain our natural resources for future generations.”

SDSU is offering the first four-year precision agriculture degree in the U.S. The degree is a collaborative effort encompassing the departments of agricultural and biosystems engineering, agronomy and horticulture and plant science, as well as the College of Engineering. The SDSU precision agriculture degree will keep students at the cutting edge of the rapidly evolving intersection of agronomics, high-speed sensor technology, data management and advanced machinery development.

“We, like our customers, are interested in efficient practices that maximize production and profits. We are proud to support South Dakota State University as it helps lead innovation in agriculture,” noted Bob Schmidt, senior vice president for Farm Credit Services of America in South Dakota. “Graduates from this program will be ready to meet the technology and expertise needs of employers in agronomy, equipment and more. Producers will have additional support in applying precision ag to their operations because of the work that will be done in this facility.”