Welcome Aggie Alumni

Updated: June 30, 2021

NCTA Dean's Message by Larry Gossen, Ph.D.

It’s welcome week for Summer 2021 and our campus graduates of the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture!

The “Aggie Alumni Day” is Saturday at campus, and I have the honor and pleasure of welcoming nearly 60 alumni to NCTA.

The Aggie Alumni Association will host nearly 80 individuals (with guests and staff) at the 11:30 a.m. luncheon in the “old gymnasium,” Student Activity Center now known by Aggies as “The Barn.”

Walk-ins are welcome to attend, registering between 10-11 a.m.. However, advance notice for the meal count would be appreciated. Call 308-367-5200 by Thursday afternoon.

We’ll have a wonderful time reminiscing about the college and high school years at campus. Alumni president Ann Ramm Bruntz (Vet Tech ‘71) has asked me to serve as emcee and to give an update from campus.

Gleaned from Aggies:

• Three alumni from the high school classes of 1952, 1958 and 1967 have registered.  Carl Yonkers of Maywood was a campus groundskeeper, and will be attending with his wife, Muriel, also a Curtis Aggie graduate.
• College classes began in October, 1965 when the University of Nebraska School of Technical Agriculture was started with Superintendent Stan Matzke at the helm. For three years, the Curtis Aggies high school continued simultaneously at campus, spanning from opening day on Sept. 9, 1913 until graduation in May, 1968.
• That first UNSTA class graduated in 1967 with Superindent Matzke and Gerald J. Huntwork as assistant superintendent. Stand is deceased and Jerry, who lives in Curtis, has a family commitment this weekend. He sends his greetings to all.
• Dale Doctor of Hershey, Class of ’69 Production Agriculture, plans to attend.
• Travelers from out of state – Santa Maria, California; Pullman, Washington, and several from Iowa.
• The Class of ’71 celebrates its 50^th anniversary with 21 alumni registered (so far).
•  Ron Schropfer of Fairmont has contacted all of his ’71 agricultural mechanics classmates and 10 will be attending. He shares that the tightknit friends and their families have gathered frequently over the past 50 years, at each other’s homes, camping at lakes, or coming back to campus. They are starting the weekend with a picnic at Johnson Lake, then festivities in Curtis, and visiting friends and relatives in the area.
• Saturday includes casual tours of “what’s new” and reminiscing at the older buildings, shopping at the Aggie Store in the Ed Center, visits to the Aggie Alumni Room at the Learning Resource Center (previously known as Ag, Land and Water).
• During the noon luncheon, Aggie Alumni will present awards, name two NCTA students as Aggie Alumni scholarship recipients, conduct a business meeting, transfer the president’s gavel from Ann Bruntz to David Fulton of Pleasanton (Agribusiness, ’80).
• A highlight, as well, is a silent auction which raises funds for the scholarships. The project was started when Mike Stewart of Lincoln, Production Ag, served as Alumni Association president. His goal to enable scholarships for children of UNSTA and NCTA alumni has continued each year. Mike passed away in 2014. His spouse, Connie Stewart (Horticulture, ’81) also served as alumni president and plans to attend.
• Agricultural Mechanics alumni lead registrations (16), Veterinary Technicians (13), Production Ag (10), Ag, Land, Water (6), Agribusiness (6), and Horticulture (1).

Certainly, I am grateful for the support that Aggie alumni give to campus and our students. We will hear appreciation, as well, in messages sent from University of Nebraska President Ted Carter and Vice President Mike Boehm.

Our NCTA recruiters Andela Taylor and Rulon Taylor are looking forward to meeting alumni, as graduates are among strongest links to prospective students.

A wonderful day planned for all alumni includes an invitation to Curtis area residents to stop by the Dean’s Residence between 2 and 4 p.m.  Fay and I will greet you for a tour of our home and open house. Please join us in celebrating the all Curtis Aggies along with our 1-year anniversary as residents of Curtis and beautiful NCTA.

For details on Aggie Alumni Day or to register online see https://ncta.unl.edu/aggie-alumni.

Until Saturday, be safe and enjoy your summer!

NCTA Events:

June 25:  Herding Basics Dog Clinic, 10 a.m., NCTA

June 26:  Aggie Alumni Day, 10 a.m., Registration, 11:30 a.m. Luncheon

June 26:  NCTA Dean’s Residence Open House, 2-4 p.m.

July 5:  NCTA Offices closed for Independence Day holiday

July 6:  NCTA New Student Enrollment

July 6-8:  NCTA Ag Mechanics Instructors Boot Camp

July 7: NCTA Agronomy Youth Field Day 

Part of the University of Nebraska system, the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture is a two-year institution with a statewide mission of preparing students for successful careers in agriculture, veterinary technology and related industries. NCTA is known for its affordable tuition, high job-placement rate for its graduates, and for the success of student teams in competitive activities including crops judging, ranch horse events, livestock judging, shotgun sports, stock dog trials, and intercollegiate rodeo. The college is consistently ranked as one of the best two-year schools in the nation.