Q&A with Troy Ott

Now, as he marks his first year in this leadership position, Dean Ott reflects on what he's learned so far and shares his vision for the college's future. In this Q&A, he shares insights into his leadership journey and the initiatives shaping the college's path forward.

Q. Looking back on your first year as dean, what accomplishments are you most proud of, and what challenges have been most surprising or unexpected?

A. What stands out most is the breadth of our impact across Pennsylvania and radiating out around the globe. I have set a very aggressive schedule of traveling the state, listening and learning about what Pennsylvania citizens need from their land-grant university. I also have learned about the incredible impacts our scientists, teachers and extension professionals are having daily. It is humbling to lead a college with such breadth and depth of excellence.

The college is large and complex, and I have spent these early months crawling around every nook and cranny to understand better how we operate. I have been so impressed with the skill and professionalism of our staff, who are all working hard to help me successfully do my job. We have been actively engaged in strategic planning, reviewing our academic programs and portfolio, streamlining our administrative processes, and finding resources to support teaching, research and extension. We are in the process of hiring critical positions across our mission areas, and it has been such a joy to see the incredibly talented individuals who want to join our team in the College of Agricultural Sciences.

I was so pleased with the support given to me and the college by Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding and his team in the Department of Agriculture. I am grateful that Gov. Josh Shapiro understands the importance of agriculture to Pennsylvania and has implemented many initiatives to help strengthen our agricultural economy.

Finally, we are truly thankful to have Rep. Glenn "GT" Thompson, a congressman from our district, as chairman of the House Ag Committee and leading the drafting of the farm bill. Broad support for the work we do in support of agriculture exists from the counties to the state to the federal government. We could not do what we do without this critical partnership.

Q. How do you see the College of Agricultural Sciences evolving to address pressing issues such as climate challenges, food security and labor shortages over the next five to 10 years?

A. The College of Agricultural Sciences has a 170-plus year history of providing science-based solutions to the challenges facing agriculture, food production, health, natural resource management and community thriving. We will continue and double down on this mission, using the latest technologies to improve agricultural productivity, farm profitability and sustainability, and to enhance and implement labor-saving technologies.

We will prepare the workforce of the future with a deep understanding of modern science and technology tempered by the well-developed interpersonal skills needed to build successful teams and lead innovation and change.

As Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi has said numerous times, "At Penn State, we can do anything, but we can't do everything." This means we must decide where to have the most significant impact and allocate our resources to realize that impact. This also means that we will have to stop doing things that are no longer strategic, are in areas where there are other contributors, or where we do not have the capacity to be great.

A big part of being effective is developing true agility to respond at the pace of the world. We have aspired to this for a long time but still fall short of what society demands of us. This means that we will have to make decisions with incomplete information, take risks and occasionally fail. We will need to develop closer partnerships with industry to deliver the solutions needed to enhance our competitive advantage and to train our students to be the next generation of leaders.

Q. How can advancements in artificial intelligence and robotics shape the future of sustainable agriculture?

A. It is essential that our students are comfortable with the practical and ethical use of artificial intelligence and related technologies. I do not doubt that history will show that the deployment of AI will be transformative for those who effectively adopt these tremendously powerful tools. We also will have to learn how to extract the greatest good from these technological innovations while minimizing the potential bad uses.

Relative to sustainability, I have always understood that profitability is the foundation for sustainability. Enterprises that are not profitable and are losing money cannot invest in practices that increase sustainability. If we can improve the profitability of our agricultural enterprises, they will become more sustainable. I have never met a farmer who wasn't proud of what they produced and of their land and who did not want to hand it down to the next generation in better condition. We need to help provide science-based solutions so these farms can be profitable and achieve our goal of sustainability.

Dean Ott attends the annual Ag Live celebration.

Dean Ott congratulates the Class of 2025 and acknowledges their achievements.

Penn State students and Dean Ott during a 4-H Nutrition Workshop.

Q. Partnerships are crucial in higher education and research. What new partnerships or initiatives will strengthen the college's impact?

A. We need to build stronger partnerships with our stakeholders in the commonwealth. We need to understand their challenges and direct our resources and expertise to help them address them. We are currently working on an initiative called Technologies for Agriculture and Living Systems, or TALiS. This research initiative is designed to develop, refine and deploy next-generation technologies to improve agricultural productivity; enhance ecosystem monitoring, management and restoration; and reduce labor costs. We are making critical investments in the human and physical infrastructure needed to do this work.

We also need to be better partners with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. They serve a critical regulatory, support and advocacy role for agriculture, and we provide the critical research and development capability of that partnership. Furthermore, we prepare graduate students to be innovators and leaders in the broad agricultural mission areas we serve. We are the only university in Pennsylvania with this as its founding mission.

Finally, we need to adopt a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship fully. I am pleased to see how much the college has done in this regard, and I'm particularly grateful for the support from alumni and friends of the college who helped us get here. But we must do more. Innovation and entrepreneurship are the engines that drive the future economy and create future high-paying jobs. We need to be spinning off more technologies and companies and graduating more students with an innovation mindset and skillset. To accomplish this, we must change the culture and incentive structures that are holdovers from the past. We must reward innovation, risk taking and driving discoveries to impact in Pennsylvania.

Q. What strategies will effectively support faculty, staff and students in achieving their research and academic goals, especially considering current budget constraints and funding challenges?

A. For faculty and staff, we need to minimize red tape and create greater efficiencies and systems that protect their time so that they can use it on the most important and impactful aspects of their jobs. If we want a college full of scientists trying to solve humanity's greatest challenges, we must understand that this takes risk. Therefore, we must create systems encouraging going after big and risky things.

Babe Ruth was known as the "Home Run King" because he was constantly swinging for the fences. He also struck out more than others. Taking a cautious and low-risk approach in science will yield mediocre results that will not move the needle for society. Regarding budget uncertainty, the best approach is to move fast and do great things. If we do this, we will likely find our funding partners stepping up to help support the things we do. We will undoubtedly get nowhere by merely complaining that we need more money. We need to demonstrate our value every day.

For student success, we need to ensure they are learning from the best scientists and teachers in the world. We are a university with a very high research activity, and we strive to be the best in the world. This brings us the very best students, who interact with the best faculty in ways that transform their lives. This happened to me when I came to Penn State as an undergraduate, and as long as I'm in the role of dean, I will work day and night to ensure that Penn State continues to transform lives for the better and deliver value to citizens of the commonwealth.

Q. As the landscape of higher education changes, how do you plan to ensure the college remains competitive and attractive to prospective students?

A. People are attracted to excellence and innovation. People recognize leadership and integrity. People want to be part of meaningful endeavors that bring personal joy and satisfaction and enable them to live full lives. Some colleges and universities may be swamped by the change in demographics and increased competitiveness in academia, but Penn State will not be one of those. You might ask why I'm so confident about this. Well, it comes back to what we do here every day. We strive for excellence in every mission area and deliver value to the people we serve. As long as we keep this as our North Star, we will continue to be competitive and attract the best students from Pennsylvania, the nation and worldwide.