The Auburn University Agriculture Alumni Association will induct three new members Feb. 23, 2010.
The Hall of Honor/Pioneer Award gallery honors living Alabamians for the achievements in the agricultural sector.
"It's probably the greatest honor I've received as a member of Auburn's faculty," said William Hardy, former College of Agriculture dean for instruction and a professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology.
Hardy will be honored alongside William Powell, executive director of the Alabama Cattlemen's Association, and Raymond Jones, Huntsville cattleman and businessman.
"I've said this a thousand times," Hardy said. "I measure my success through the success of my students."
Hardy puts great emphasis on his role as an educator.
"I think an important part of teaching is staying abreast of the material," Hardy said.
The professor saw a need for an agricultural law instructor and decided it was time to work on getting his law degree.
He graduated cum laude from Jones School of Law in 1997, at the age of 51, and was admitted to the Alabama Bar Association in 1998.
Hardy said that just like the rest of the economy, agriculture faces a hard time.
"General Motors can set a price for a car, but a farmer can't set a price for his wheat," Hardy said.
In his time at Auburn, Hardy was a leader of the War on Hunger, along with Harriet Giles from the College of Human Sciences.
Fellow inductee Powell is concerned about the future of the agricultural industry.
"I've got a real concern we could lose our food production to a lot of other countries," Powell said.
But Powell believes Auburn will play a strong role in the future of the sector.
"The key developments over the years have come from land grant colleges," Powell said. "But I'm concerned funding for these programs has become a low priority."
Powell received his bachelor and doctorate degrees from Auburn, both in animal sciences.
After his formal education was complete, he joined Auburn's faculty for several years as a food science specialist.
Powell has been involved with the Alabama Cattlemen's Association in Montgomery since 1983.
Jones, another honoree, said he believes the future of the industry is based on its past.
"You have to go back in history to see where you're going to end up," Jones said.
He said when he graduated from Auburn, 38 percent of Americans were involved in the agricultural sector.
Now, Jones said, the percentage has dropped to 1.8.
"Now, most of the work is being done on improving genetics," Jones said. "That's definitely playing an important part."
The businessman is CEO of G.W. Jones and Son, a real estate, engineering and insurance company in Huntsville.
He and his son, Raymond Jr., operate cattle farms in Madison, Marshall and Jackson counties.
"Hopefully, Auburn and other agricultural schools will keep us at the forefront of this field," Jones said.
Pioneer Awards are given posthumously to Alabama agricultural leaders.
Recipients are Jamey Clary, former Alabama Cooperative Extension System coordinator for Hale County, and Ross Debter, poultry producer and founder of Debter Hereford Farm.
Clary and Debter passed away in 2007 and 2001, respectively.
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