2026 Spring Retreat
March 9 – 11
Venue
University of Georgia Griffin Campus
Student Learning Center
1109 Experiment Street
Griffin, GA
- Parking is FREE in the Visitor’s Lot, located on University Drive.
- Campus Map
Accommodations
Monday, March 9
| 3:00 – 4:45 PM | Arrival and hotel check-in |
| 4:45 – 6:30 PM | 5K Fun Run sponsored by the UGA IPA Student Club 4:45 - Participants gather at the Mule Barn (UGA Griffin campus) and pick up complimentary Fun Run tshirts 5:00 - Group photo 5:30 - 5K Fun Run begins |
| 7:00 – 9:00 PM | Dinner at the Mule Barn (UGA Griffin campus) Catering by Bert |
Tuesday, March 10
| 8:00 – 8:30 AM | Registration and Light Breakfast Assorted protein bars, granola bars, cookies with coffee, juice, tea, and water |
| 8:30 – 9:00 AM | Introductions & Welcome Jeffrey Dean, Assistant Provost & Director, Griffin Campus |
| 9:00 – 9:30 AM | Update on IIPA Activities/Plans for FY27 George Vellidis |
| 9:30 – 10:00 AM | Graduate Student 3MT® Competition (part 1) |
| 10:00 – 10:20 AM | Coffee Break |
| 10:20 – 10:50 PM | IIPA Industry Advisory Board Tony Llano |
| 10:50 – 11:50 PM | Strategic Plan | Bylaws and Governance IIPA Steering Committee |
| 11:50 – 12:20 PM | Graduate Student 3MT® Competition (part 2) |
| 12:20 – 1:30 PM | Lunch at the Mule Barn Catering by Bert |
| 1:30 – 2:30 PM | Translating Graduate Skills into Careers UGA IPA Student Club -led panel discussion Moderators: Sara Maktabi and Amrinder Jakhar Panelists: - Thirimachos Bourlai, Professor and Faculty Innovation Fellow, UGA School of Electrical & Computer Engineering - Subash Dahal, Senior Statistician and Science Fellow, Bayer Crop Science - Jack Huang, Professor, UGA Department of Crop and Soil Sciences - Brandon Solie, Career Consultant, UGA Career Center |
| 2:30 – 6:30 PM | Forever Young Aquaponics Tour |
| 6:30 – 9:00 PM | Reception | Dinner | Innovation Showcase 6:30 – 7:10 PM: Graduate Student 3MT® Competition (part 3) 7:15 PM: Poster Competition and Dinner/Reception |
Wednesday, March 11
| 8:00 – 8:30 AM | Registration and Light Breakfast Assorted protein bars, granola bars, cookies with coffee, juice, tea, and water |
| 8:30 – 10:20 AM | FY26 IIPA Seed Grant Project Presentations Anderson Alves, Liang Dong, Beiwen Li, Md Sultan Mahmud, Baviththira Suganthan, Xin Zhang |
| 10:20 – 10:40 AM | Coffee Break |
| 10:40 – 11:10 PM | Certificate in Agricultural Data Science Harald Scherm |
| 11:10 – 11:50 PM | Breakout Groups: Strategic Plan | Bylaws and Governance |
| 11:50 – 12:30 PM | Lunch Chick-Fil-A boxed lunchs Lunch speaker: Bethany Harris, Director, Center for Urban Agriculture |
| 12:40 – 3:00 PM | UGA Griffin Campus Tour Center for Urban Agriculture Irrigation Demonstration Site, Controlled Environment Agriculture Greenhouse Facilities, Remote Sensing and High-Throughput Plant Phenotyping, Food Product and Innovation Center Facility |