Up Close & Somewhat Personal
An informal Q&A with
Mykel Taylor
Mykel Taylor
- ALFA Endowed Eminent Scholar since 2021
- Associate professor at Kansas State University
- Assistant professor at Washington State University
MT: When we look at the ag industry and agribusiness, there are not enough ag business majors to fill all the jobs that are out there. They are pulling non-ag, just regular business majors to fill those jobs. So, as an economist, I look at that as a supply and demand issue. Our students have a much higher probability of getting a job out of school because of that opportunity. It really is a way to differentiate yourself from a business major where you’re able to say, ‘I understand an industry with a little more depth, and I have the ability to be able to work in that field and understand — from input providers to farmers, to processors, to consumers — the entire supply chain.’ It is a way of differentiating yourself that can be very beneficial.
MT: I would learn how to speak other languages. I am — very selfishly — motivated to travel to other places to eat their food. I love to travel. I love to meet people, and I love to eat their food. I mean, I’m sure it’s frustrating for them when you can only speak English and then you can’t really engage on a deeper level. So I think being able to speak another person’s language would be very beneficial.
EW: What is one accomplishment in your life, personal or professional, that you are proud of?
MT: On the professional level, it was transitioning from Extension — where I was working primarily with producers and farmers — into the classroom here at Auburn. You know, the average age of our farmers I think is in the late 50s, while the average age of a student here at Auburn is 19 or 20. So it was a completely new experience for me. But it’s gone very well, and I’m very proud of that. I really enjoy the students, I enjoy the interaction, and I enjoy the opportunity to have a positive influence on their lives. And then my personal accomplishment would be my three kids. That’s one of those things that you can’t put on your resume, but you’re very proud of it.
EW: How have you found the transition from a professor to department head?
MT: That’s been very interesting. Because I think as a professor, you see the students, you see your research, you see your stakeholders, in the three areas that we work in as professors with teaching, research and extension. But when you transition to department head, you really get the opportunity to kind of see how the whole university works. You know, it sort of takes you out of your comfort zone and says, ‘Here’s an opportunity to see how the leadership works together, how we approach different problems.’ And then how those things kind of work their way down to the departments and the faculty. So, it’s been very eye-opening for me to see how the whole university operates and works together. And I know I’ve only been doing this for a little while, so there’s a lot to learn and that will come, but already it’s been eye-opening.
EW: Not everyone thinks of business when they think of agriculture. So, what drew you to business and economics in the ag industry?
MT: Okay, so that’s a good question. I actually started my freshman year in animal science and was perfectly happy to be in that major. As part of that curriculum, you take an ag econ or an ag business class. So I took my first Ag Econ 1000 class and that was — it just made sense, right? It made sense that you would have to think about farming as a business, that you would have to understand management concepts, that you would have to understand the interactions between cost of production and revenue and where that kind of plays out in terms of your overall profitability. I have a lot of respect for farmers and ranchers because they are agronomists and animal scientists and engineering specialists. They are all the things that we have departments for in this college, including business and economics — farmers have to be all of those things to run their business.
I think that even if you don’t think of it right away when you think of studying ag, you come to it very quickly because you realize that, whether you’re making decisions about what to plant or what feed ration to put your animals on, these are all things that have costs, and farmers get into the business side of things very quickly. I think that is important for our students. I have met more than a few students who majored in a major across the college. and then got out into the field and thought, ‘Well, I wish I’d had a few more business classes.’ Anytime I have non-ag econ majors in my classes, I appreciate that they are trying to diversify their skill set.
EW: So, from Montana to North Carolina to Kansas and now to Auburn, you’ve lived in a lot of places. Do you have a favorite? And why or why not?
MT: I think that where we’re at today is always going to be my favorite. It’s where I’m raising my kids. It’s where I’m enjoying a lot of good things with my career. I have found in all the places that I have lived that people in agriculture have a lot in common. You can be in Kansas, you can be in Montana, or you can be in Alabama, and you can still have a common language and a common set of ideas about things. That’s what I’ve appreciated about living in lots of different places.
But we are very much in love with Auburn. Montana will always be home, but I’ve actually lived outside of the state longer than I lived in it. I’ve really enjoyed my life and giving my kids the opportunity to live in different places. I think that has been very beneficial for them to be able to see life in different places and experience cultural differences across this country. And through all of that, they all know that mom works in agriculture, and they know that that’s our bread and butter.