Agricultural Communications Documentation Center |
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center |
Ovid U. Bay is a nationally respected agricultural journalist with 40 years of service in private and public sectors. His career included 4 years (1948-1952) as agricultural editor at the University of Missouri, 18 years (1953-1970) as associate editor of Farm Journal magazine and 18 years (1971-1988) as director of communications for the Extension Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture.
A native of Missouri, Mr. Bay earned a bachelor's degree in agricultural journalism from the University of Missouri. While an undergraduate student he was editor of the College Farmer and a member of Alpha Zeta, Blue Key and the Mystical Seven, an honor accorded the top seven students at the University. He then joined the Army and earned the rank of captain in the field artillery, serving in Italy during World War II. As a member of the 88th Division, he was awarded the Bronze Star. Upon release from the service he returned to the University of Missouri and earned a master's degree in extension and journalism.
Within the U. S. Department of Agriculture, Mr. Bay coordinated nationwide information programs of the Department in support of the Cooperative Extension Service. He was a member of teams that worked on agricultural projects in Egypt and Syria, and received the USDA Superior Service Award. In 1983 he was awarded the ACE Professional Award, highest recognition given by the American Association of Agricultural Communicators in Education.
His contributions added to several dimensions of the ACDC collection, especially involving introduction of new electronic information technologies during the 1980s. "Are you ready for the information age?" he asked fellow agricultural communicators in 1983. He and his Extension Service associates pioneered in electronic delivery of news releases. In 1987 he was providing nationwide leadership in envisioning the land-grant information office of the future.
The Bay Collection includes these documents written by Ovid U. Bay, along with others he contributed.
