WT national champions demonstrate their skills for One West steering committee

Michael Cuviello, Amarillo Globe-News

CANYON - West Texas A&M University (WT) spotlighted its national champion meat judging and ranch horse teams Tuesday at its quarterly One West Campaign Steering Committee on campus in Canyon.

Both teams offered demonstrations of their hard work to compete nationally as a return on investment for the donors who support the university. The meat judging team won its first national championship in November by 32 points over second-place finisher Texas Tech at a competition in Dakota City, Nebraska, with a record-high score in the competition.

During the meat judging demonstration, students from the team explained how meat is judged and the importance of categorization of the product's value proposition. The team inspected a meat section to determine grade and yield while explaining the process. Those in attendance sampled four different grades of beef to get a better understanding of the grading system.

Two members of the WT meat judging team explain how beef is graded Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
Two members of the WT meat judging team explain how beef is graded Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.

Todd Rasberry, Vice President for Philanthropy and External Relations at West Texas A&M University, spoke about the need to show donors the fruits of the school's funding programs.

“Today was a meeting of our campaign steering committee, a group of volunteers who serve as ambassadors for the One West Comprehensive Fundraising Campaign, which comprises about 70 people,” Rasberry said. "Today, we wanted to show the campaign's impact. We try to take the money we raise and turn that into results with our students."

Members of the WT meat judging dissect a slab of beef at a demonstration Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
Members of the WT meat judging dissect a slab of beef at a demonstration Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.

Rasberry said that he wants volunteers to take this event and use it to talk to others about how the money raised translates into being directed into student programs, such as the meat judging and ranch horse teams, to excel.

“What we really want to be able to do is create a visual impact and concrete examples for our volunteers of how our donors' dollars translate into doing important things for the university,” he said. “Right here in Canyon, Texas, we are within a 100-mile radius of six million head of cattle that will be on somebody’s table. About 30% of U.S. beef is raised right here. This is a concrete example of ranchers working with cow-calf operations, raising the cattle to bring them to sell, bringing it to the packing plant, and rating it to get it on the consumer table."

A member of the WT meat judging team explains how to grade a slab of beef Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
A member of the WT meat judging team explains how to grade a slab of beef Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.

Kevin Pond, dean of WT's Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, spoke about the demonstration and its importance in its mission.

“Through a lot of developmental efforts, our teams, with scholarship support, have won national championships and are able to compete against other collegiate teams around the country,” Pond said. “Through this, we are able to attract some great students and retain the ones that we have in these fields.”

Members of the WT meat judging team dissect a portion of beef Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
Members of the WT meat judging team dissect a portion of beef Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.

Pond says that due to its location, WT and its programs are important to the area that produces so much food for the world.

“Because of our location and the hard work that we do with our programs, we can make a substantial impact,” Pond said. “If there is a problem in the industry, we are going to try to solve that with our faculty and the development of students. When our students graduate, there is a bidding war over who will be able to hire them, based on what they have already shown in a real-world situation. Today was a day to celebrate some of our successes achieved through our fundraising campaigns.”

Members of the WT meat judging team demonstrate their expertise Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
Members of the WT meat judging team demonstrate their expertise Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
Attendees sample a cut of beef Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
Attendees sample a cut of beef Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
A member of the WT meat judging team shows off a shank of meat Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
A member of the WT meat judging team shows off a shank of meat Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
A WT student shows those in attendee a beef portion Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.
A WT student shows those in attendee a beef portion Tuesday at a One West Campaign Steering Committee Meeting at West Texas A&M.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: WT meat judging, horse teams show campaign's return investment

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