from each of the four CSREES regional turfgrass research committees – Northeast, Southern; North Central and Western.
Along with the ten representative organizations listed, Morris, as NTEP executive director, serves on the policy committee as a non-voting member.
Morris says, “Each committee member is elected or appointed by the group or organization they represent to serve a four-year term. NTEP does not specify the process, the groups do. Typically, each representative will serve a four-year term, but there are no term limits, and some do opt to serve two or more terms. Policy committee meetings start with each person giving a report on what’s happening in their side of the industry, providing that broad-spectrum perspective for the discussion to follow.
“Each trial has an advisory committee, typically six to eight people representing universities, breeders and marketers. It usually includes a policy committee member and often university turfgrass scientists that are also cooperators for the NTEP trials. Te advisory committee makes recommendations to the policy committee. So, every trial is guided by 16 to 18 turfgrass industry representatives.”
TPI NTEP
Policy Committee Representatives Te first TPI representative on the committee was Al Gardner, A-G Turf Farms, Inc., who was TPI President in 1986-1987. Gardner served two terms. Te second representative, Ike Tomas, Te Tomas Group, was TPI President in 1985-1986. Tomas also served two terms. Te third TPI representative was Warren Bell, Biograss Sod Farm, TPI President in 2005-2006, who served two full terms and part of a third. Gary Wilber, Oakwood Sod Farm, Inc., served the remainder of that term. Te appointment of the next TPI representative will be announced soon.
Great Expertise—Great Respect Bell says, “Te interaction within the committee was excellent, with obvious mutual respect. Te turfgrass scientists from the universities and breeders and seed companies all had their areas of expertise, yet all were very open minded and curious and willing to listen to questions and debate issues. Te discussion on why to set up certain trials in certain areas and why to explore different trials and then how those trials should be conducted took all the perspectives into consideration.”
Tomas says, “At my first meeting, I looked around the table and saw PhD, PhD, Ike, PhD, PhD … but everyone was very cordial. Strong opinions and strong personalities within the committee could be challenging sometimes, but everyone was committed to a common goal. Tere will always be
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different ideas and the committee has to come together to work through those; they must be addressed, and some form of resolution achieved—and that always happened.”
Dr. Mike Kenna, director of USGA Green Section Research since February of 1990, has served on the policy committee all but one four-year term since then. He oversees the USGA’s turfgrass and environmental research activities. Dr. Kenna says, “Representatives of all of stakeholder groups have primary areas of interest. For USGA, that’s the golf fairways, putting greens, low maintenance roughs and water issues, but it’s the whole spectrum of turfgrass industry issues that impact those areas. Having all the different industry perspectives and university representatives from the four different areas of the country helps us to address those issues from the national level.”
TPI member Paul Hedgpeth, Columbia River Seed, Kennewick, Washington, served representing the American Seed Trade Association. “I filled in the last year of my predecessor’s term and then my own four-year term,” Hedgpeth says. “As the trials are created for any given species, each of the committee members contributes what is important to the segment of the industry they represent and works to create trials that are relevant to that. For the ASTA representative, that’s breeding and marketing issues. Te TPI representative is interested in sod production and marketing issues, but also brings a real- world viewpoint from interaction with the end users—the municipalities, landscape contractors, golf courses, sports fields, and residential properties. Te academic side represents not only the cooperators and university research but also the regional issues and concerns. Tere are a lot of opinions involved. Each representative needs to be able to speak their mind in that forum and make a positive contribution. Te job is to talk about what does need to happen and then do it.”
TPI member Duane Klundt, GO (Grassland Oregon) served from 2004 to 2007, representing the Oregon Seed Trade Association/Pacific Seed Association slot. Klundt says, “My contribution as part of the committee came as a salesman, not a researcher. It helped me understand the researchers’ perspective and gave me a broader view of the markets. To have that collaboration within the industry, when the industry was fragmented for so many years, with each segment doing its own thing, is huge.”
Criteria—Fair and Equal for All “Te entire committee was committed to making sure there wasn’t any outside influence on the scientific methods of conducting the trials, on the performance of the seed or vegetative stock, or on gathering the data or compiling the results,” says Bell. “Tat is the most valuable asset—and the question we individually and as an industry should always ask, “How independent is the scientific data that is being presented?”
TPI Turf News September/October 2018
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