The Hutson School of Agriculture celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. In its time, the school has come a long way from a few classes at a farm to a complete school with dual credit, associate, baccalaureate, master’s, specialist and doctoral programs in 2025.
According to Dean Brian Parr, originally the school was founded as a department of agriculture in 1925, when Murray was a college designed to prepare teachers. The first teachers were Stanley Pullen and his wife Mable, who taught here from 1925 to 1935. They had a farm near the University, where they lived and often held classes. Eventually, it was donated to the University.
Former Dean Tony Brannon said it became a school in the year 2003 as part of campus restructuring. In 2010, it was renamed to the Hutson School of Agriculture in recognition of the gift of Cindy Hutson in memory of her late husband Dan Hutson Jr.
As part of this gift Murray State received another farm of 160 acres just north of town and a $3 million endowment.
The school of Agriculture now consists of three departments for agricultural science, animal and equine science and pre-veterinary medicine.
Brannon said he’s proud of the alumni network that’s developed and advanced agriculture in the region and throughout the U.S.
“Murray State agriculture has a strong foundation and I am glad to have played a small part in that during the last 50 years,” he said.
“The best thing about my role is primarily dealing with people,” Parr said. “I enjoy interacting with our students as much as I possibly can. We have a great faculty, and I feel like my job is to help faculty to do the things they’re passionate about and then I have to interact with the entire field of agriculture in general, whether it is business or farming, and by interacting with this people on a bigger scale, I get to see what opportunities for our students when they leave and go out to turn into a work force.”
Jeffreyy Young, agriculture economics instructor, said his care for Murray State resonates with the school of agriculture.
“I really enjoy interacting with students inside and outside of the classroom, whether it’s teaching, mentoring, student research projects or whether it’s faculty agribusiness club,” Young said.
Dani Rubenacker, an alum, said that the School of Agriculture had a huge impact on the person she is today.
“As a student I was given countless opportunities that continue to benefit me every single day,” she said. “From learning to show pigs to traveling to the capital to touring many different agricultural programs across the country, all have left a lasting impact on who I am. My classroom experiences have been just as beneficial because of our amazing professors who believe in a good education. They always find ways to meet our needs of learning as a student. I love that every single professor allows us to have hands-on learning experiences. I simply cannot say enough good things about the Hutson School of Agriculture. It has given me countless experiences, connections far and wide, some of my best friends, an amazing education and memories that will last me a lifetime.”
