Mizzou Celebrates Scholarship Established By Kertz Family
Representatives from the University of Missouri’s College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources (CAFNR) celebrated Dr. Alois “Al” Kertz and his family for their generosity in Ste. Genevieve on April 6 at the DuBourg Centre.
The Kertz family has a scholarship named in honor of their father, Alois, that provides funds to support a student studying animal sciences or food sciences, preferably to students graduating from Valle Catholic High School or Ste. Genevieve High School.
Family, friends and community members from Ste. Genevieve joined faculty and staff from the University of Missouri to celebrate the Kertz award.
Kertz had a unique education experience. One of seven children, his parents took on a significant financial burden to send all of their children to Valle Catholic High School. His education at Valle Catholic served as a spark that encouraged him to continue on, completing two degrees at the university: a B.S. in agriculture focused on dairy husbandry in 1967 and a master of science studying dairy cattle nutrition in 1968.
After serving several years in the military, he attended Cornell University, where he completed his Ph.D., focusing his work on animal nutrition.
In 2018, he received a Citation of Merit Award from the CAFNR Alumni Association, recognizing his career and research.
Professionally, Kertz has had a significant impact in his field, traveling extensively both inside and outside the U.S. to consult on the nutrition, feeding and management of dairy cattle. He worked for many years for Ralston Purina/Purina Mills and is currently the founder and principal of Andhil LLC Consulting Services.
Kertz has four children, three of whom are University of Missouri graduates, and nine grandchildren.
Scholarships in CAFNR are an essential part of the recruitment and retention strategy for the college.
Thanks to generous donors like the Kertz family, CAFNR is able to offer $1.5 million in scholarships each year; 83 percent of eligible continuing students who applied received a CAFNR scholarship. CAFNR is home to 12 undergraduate degree programs, 12 graduate degree programs, and many research opportunities and real-world laboratory experiences.
(Information in a release from the University of Missouri’s College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources.)
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