Celebrating its partnership with First Financial Bank, SAU breaks ground for new poultry education center
Emphasizing the importance of strong partnerships as well as the future of education in south Arkansas, Dr. Trey Berry, president of Southern Arkansas University, led the groundbreaking ceremony of the First Financial Bank Poultry Education Facility on Monday, October 1, 2018.
Berry welcomed leaders of regional poultry industries as well as SAU alumni, Magnolia community leaders, and representatives of First Financial Bank of El Dorado, to the ceremony on the north side of the Agriculture Center.
“This is an exciting day for SAU, for our students, and for the poultry industry in south Arkansas,” he said. “This day is about our students, and it is also about partnerships. We are truly blessed to have such a great partner in First Financial Bank of El Dorado.”
First Financial Bank is one of the nation’s largest poultry lenders and is proud to partner with SAU in the revitalization of its poultry studies program. The curriculum will improve instruction in poultry in south Arkansas and create more job candidates for the field. The new complex, which consists of three phases, will allow students to observe and interact with different aspects of poultry production – from breeder to hatchery, from broiler to processing. It will contain a feed storage room and a classroom/laboratory.
