Southern Administrative Heads Winter 2026 Meeting

Omni Louisville Hotel, Louisville, KY
Monday, February 2, 2026, 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Minutes

1. Federal Budget and Farm Bill Update – Bridget Krieger, Lewis-Burke Associates
   • Appropriations – 2026 bill for agriculture is done
   • Funding for NIH, NSF, and DOD is being held up due to DHS controversy
   • May be a partial shutdown beginning Feb 1, but it should be very short
   • 2027 approps will be similar to 2026
   • Farm Bill – Ag Committee is going to try to move bill in House soon
   • RFA funds will not be in Farm Bill because they’re now in appropriations
   • Senate is waiting on House before addressing Farm Bill
   • USDA-NIFA – capacity funding is not flowing yet, but expect it soon
   • NIFA wants to get back to a regular schedule for release of NOFO’s (Notice of Funding Opportunity)
   • RFA funding – listening session next week on process and criteria
   • New NOFO and T&C’s documents are coming out soon
   • Research security – additional guidance is supposed to be coming out, a new person from Dept of Defense has been hired to lead this effort
   • MAHA – having an impact on various ag legislation and will continue to do so
   • USDA relocation – should be determined by Spring, they won’t be distributed equally among hubs, most will go back to Kansas City
2. NIFA Update – Brent Elrod, NIFA Chief of Staff
   • On December 30, Secretary Rollins introduced priorities for future USDA-funded research and development. These priorities reflect a focused effort to strengthen national security, protect U.S. agriculture, and support American farmers, ranchers, and consumers.
     • Increasing the profitability of farmers and ranchers.
     • Expanding markets and creating new uses for U.S. agricultural products.
     • Protecting the integrity of American agriculture from invasive species and disease.
     • Promoting soil health to regenerate long-term productivity of the land.
     • Improving human health through precision nutrition and food quality.
   • NOFO’s in future will follow new REE priorities
   • Capacity funds: First Quarter Capacity Program distributions were initiated for five programs in December 2025.
   • Capacity distribution – first quarter distribution was done in late December, everything was delayed due to long government shutdown
   • Due to the lapse in the SBIR/STTR authority, modified calculations were needed for the Research programs. Rather than fully obligating the funding and releasing quarterly amounts, which is standard practice, quarterly obligations and releases are being executed until more information on the status of the reauthorization is known.
   • Due to the current processing time, the remaining three programs will include both QTR1 and QTR2 allocations in a February distribution.
   • Capacity Program distributions are prioritized as follows:
     • 1890 Research – QTR1 90% complete
     • 1890 Extension – QTR1 90% complete
     • Hatch Act – QTR1 81% complete
     • Smith-Lever Act – QTR1 81% complete
     • Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program – QTR1 82% complete
     • Renewable Resources Extension Program – Not yet started; being recalculated for 50% distribution
     • Animal Health and Disease Research – Not yet started; being recalculated for 50% distribution
     • McIntire Stennis Cooperative Forestry Research – Not yet started; being recalculated for 50% distribution
   • Competitive funds: AFRI – Foundational and Applied Science NOFO went out in August and deadlines have closed. We expect to begin making awards in the 3 rd quarter.
   • AFRI Education and Workforce Development is open now and we expect to make awards in the 4 th quarter.
   • AFRI – Strengthening Agricultural Systems NOFO posted last week. $140M is available. We expect to make awards in Q4. NIFA is soliciting applications under two Program Area Priorities:
     • Strengthening Agricultural Systems (A9201) Application: March 26, 2026
       • New Uses and Expanding Markets for Agriculture and Forestry Products
       • Solutions to Pests and Diseases of Plants or Animals
       • Combating Food and Diet-Related Chronic Diseases
     • Artificial Intelligence for K-12 Food and Agricultural Sciences (A9231)
       • Letter of Intent: Feb 26, 2026 Application: April 23, 2026
   • Faculty should be sure any applications are in line with all Executive Orders that have come out since Jan 1, 2025, if not they’ll be flagged for additional review and may not be funded
   • Want to release as many NOFO’s in 2 nd quarter as possible, which will include the Research Facilities Act Program (RFAP)
   • NIFA will host a virtual listening session for RFAP on Feb. 5 at noon ET or you can submit written comments by Feb. 12 at 5 pm ET. Registration information and written comment instructions on the NIFA Website.
   • Civil Rights audits have been modified to fit the EO’s
   • Hoping to expand FNEP to compensate for loss of SNAP Ed, but statute is somewhat different, so need to figure out how to provide the same services as SNAP Ed under those constraints
   • NIFA reorganization is coming and letters should go out soon to DC staff, most of whom will be called to Kansas City to work in office
   • Current remote staff’s relocation is still unknown
3. APLU and FANR Updates – Doug Steele, APLU, FANR Vice President
   • See presentation slides for more information
4. Capacity Funding Initiative Update and Next Steps – Wendy Fink, APLU, FANR Associate Vice President
   • See presentation slides and Capacity Initiative handout for information
5. Issues from Sunday’s SAAS Board meeting – Deacue Fields
   • Participation in conference continues to increase
   • Trying to be more efficient at using meeting room space reserved for SAAS, group leaders will complete survey on space needs prior to next year’s meeting in Oklahoma City
6. Election of New S-AHS Secretary – Deacue Fields
   • Garey Fox (NCSU) was previously nominated for Secretary. No additional nominations from the floor.
   • Garey was elected as Secretary by acclimation
   • After the meeting, Keith Carver became the Chair and Olga Bolden-Tiller Chair-elect; they will also be our representatives on the national AHS Executive Committee.
7. AgInnovation and ECOP Joint Roadmap Next Steps – Gary Thompson and Rich Bonanno
   • See presentation slides and handouts listed below for more information
   • CES-AES Roadmap
   • Roadmap Call to Action
   • Roadmap Communication Plan
8. Updates on Current Situation at Home Institution – All
   • See Institutional Updates handout for more information
9. S-AHS/CARET Summer Meeting – Nick Place
   • The summer joint S-AHS and S-CARET meeting will be July 24 – 26, in Athens, GA, Hosted by UGA and FVSU
   • The schedule will be similar to previous meeting of this type, with an optional tour Friday afternoon, reception Friday evening, business meetings and tour (with dinner) Saturday, and follow up meeting time Sunday
   • Meeting will adjourn by 11:00 Sunday
10. Future Meetings – Eric Young
    • 2027 winter meeting will be in Oklahoma City on Monday, Feb 8, from 11:00 to 3:00
    • 2027 summer joint S-AHS/CARET meeting will be hosted by LSU AgCenter and Southern University in late July or early August
    • 2028 Southern Mini Land-grant will be hosted by Virginia Tech and Virginia State
11. Discussion on “Disappearing Departments” thru Consolidation and Elimination
    • Differed to the summer meeting due to lack of time
    • Topic may be expanded to include administrative services
    • Department Consolidation and Elimination information collected from a few institutions prior to this meeting
    • Additional information will be collected prior to the summer meeting
12. Passing the Gavel and Adjourn – Deacue Fields and Keith Carver
    • Deacue Fields passed the Chair’s gavel to Keith Carver (in absentia)
    • Meeting adjourned at 3:05