Andy Cole of Amarillo, Texas, is an internationally recognized scientist whose contributions have impacted the beef cattle industry and furthered the understanding of animal health and livestock-environment interactions.

 

He received a bachelor’s degree in agriculture with an animal science option and a minor in biology from West Texas State University in 1971, followed by a master’s degree in animal science and a doctoral degree in animal nutrition with a minor in biochemistry from OSU in 1973 and 1975, respectively.

 

During his time at OSU, Cole received a National Science Foundation Fellowship and was named the OSU Outstanding Graduate Student in Animal Nutrition.

 

Following a one-year teaching appointment at Texas Tech University, Cole accepted a position at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Conservation and Production Research Laboratory in Bushland, Texas, as a research animal nutritionist in 1976. He was promoted many times before becoming laboratory director in 2011. Even after retiring in 2015, Cole remains active in research around the U.S.

 

Cole supports students and programs in OSU’s Department of Animal and Food Sciences. He created the Dr. N. Andy Cole Graduate Professional Development Scholarship in Animal Science, a travel scholarship for graduate students in animal nutrition. He also has committed to establishing the Dr. N. Andy Cole Endowed Professorship in Animal Nutrition and funding a student huddle room in the New Frontiers Agricultural Hall.