PROGRESS: Dordt College starts work on new ag stewardship center

Years in the making, the project reflects the rapid growth in the Sioux Center private college's ag programs.

“In 2005, our ag enrollment was at 69 students. Now it is 167,” said Gary De Vries, Ag Department Chair. “We need more space to accommodate those students."

“The facilities we had were adequate to get us started,” added Joel Sikkema, professor in the Professional and Technical, or Pro-Tech, program, which offers two-year associate of science degrees in manufacturing technology and farm operations and management. "But even with these first two classes of Pro-Tech students, we are up against their limit."

Construction, which began in October, will be completed in three phases, with the main building expected to be finished in August.

The new center is being built on the Broek Farm property. The 120-acre site on the north end of the Sioux County city, just off Highway 75, will serve as a "gateway" for the campus, said Howard Wilson, the college's chief administrative officer.

“We hope the new Ag Stewardship Center will be a creative space for our students to experience hands-on learning, as well as a center for agricultural excellence in Northwest Iowa and a convening space for agriculture leaders," Wilson said.

The main building – the anchor of the new center – will include a large gathering area capable of hosting 150 people. Local agricultural groups can hold meetings in this hall, giving students the opportunity to network with people in the industry. The building also will have three classrooms, a manufacturing lab, and a high-bay space where students can learn to repair and maintain multiple pieces of farm equipment.

The new location also will feature a steward’s house, a machine shed, a greenhouse, and a large cattle facility with a roof to shelter the animals in inclement weather. In addition, there will be a processing lab where students can practice pregnancy checks, castration, and treatment of ill animals. The larger facilities will allow the college to expand both the number and type of livestock.

Students also will have more opportunities to practice equipment maintenance, repair, and safety training at the new facility. They will be able to become proficient with PTO shafts or at backing up a trailer safely – skills for which the current facilities are not equipped.

“We care a lot about the students and their safety,” Sikkema said, “but also about their employers and being good stewards of the equipment.”