On March 21, the University Academic Planning Council (UAPC) approved the new name “Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences” for the CALS department currently known as Soil Science. The department is also offering a new undergraduate Certificate in Environmental Soil Science beginning this fall and is suspending its soil science undergraduate major in Spring 2025.
This is the third name change since the founding of the Department of Agricultural Physics in 1889. In the 1960s, the initial focus of the department towards agriculture was broadened to include environmental aspects, and since the 2000s, the scope has grown further with research on ecosystem processes and services, life cycle analysis, environmental remediation and more. The department is also home to the popular and growing undergraduate environmental sciences major.
“Soil science underpins most of the environmental challenges facing the world today,” says Doug Soldat, professor and chair of the department. “Our new departmental name is not merely symbolic but indicative of our expanded commitment to understanding and addressing the broader environmental challenges that intersect with soil science.”
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