Jerry D. Volesky, professor and range management specialist in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture, retires June 30, 2026, after a 31-year career at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Volesky will be recognized alongside Daren Redfearn and Rhae Drijber at a joint retirement celebration from 2 to 4 p.m. on May 8 at the Goodding Learning Center in Plant Sciences Hall. Anyone who wants to share their thoughts, stories, best wishes and photos to celebrate his retirement can sign his online guestbook.
Volesky grew up on a small farm and ranch in Belfield, North Dakota, an experience that sparked his love for ecology and science. His early experiences in college as a biology major further piqued his interest in these areas, leading him to focus his graduate studies in rangeland ecology and ultimately pursue a career in research and extension.
He earned his bachelor’s degree in biology from Dickinson State University in 1980. Then Volesky completed his master’s degree in range science from North Dakota State University in 1982 and graduated with his doctoral degree in range science from South Dakota State University in 1986.
Volesky started his position at Nebraska in 1995 with a 50% research and 50% extension appointment. He was granted tenure and promoted to associate professor in 2001 and was promoted to professor in 2008.
His research was primarily conducted in western Nebraska’s vast rangelands and plains, where he frequently collaborated with his colleagues. Some of his research projects focused on the effects of droughts and wildfires on Sandhills plants, while others investigated grazing by concentrating on its different elements, like the stocking rate, stocking density and season of grazing.
“I was very fortunate to be able to conduct my research in the beautiful outdoor laboratory of the Nebraska Sandhills,” Volesky said. “The Gudmundsen Sandhills Lab and Barta Brothers Ranch were excellent sites for conducting grazing and rangeland ecology research and both facilities had the resources to support research and graduate students.”
Volesky also conducted research at the West Central Research, Extension and Education Center in North Platte, where he led trials on annual and perennial forages in both irrigated and dryland conditions.
“I am probably most proud of the research that I did and then was able to directly apply to the extension programming that I was doing,” Volesky said. “Additionally, being part of the Nebraska Ranch Practicum since its inception in 1999. I worked closely with Dr. Pat Reece from the Panhandle Research and Extension Center in developing the range management and grazing curriculum that we still use today in the practicum.”
The Nebraska Ranch Practicum is a Nebraska Extension program that teaches ranchers the natural resources, economic and livestock management skills they need to successfully manage a ranch through a hands-on, three-season curriculum. This includes developing a grazing and forage strategy that best serves individual needs and learning to manage market risk.
Each year, the practicum has roughly 30 participants and the knowledge they gain has a major impact on their cattle operations.
“Annually, the participants influenced decisions on about 300,000 acres and 35,000 heads of livestock,” Volesky said. “Participants reported the average value of the practicum to be about $10 per head of cattle owned with a benefit of $6,000 per operation. In addition, over 90% reported improved skills in monitoring vegetation and livestock and nearly all indicated they would make management changes.”
Looking back on his time with Nebraska Extension, Volesky is proud of the connections that he made on the job.
“My extension appointment gave me the opportunity to interact with producers across the state, from which many friendships were made,” Volesky said.
As a researcher and extension specialist, Volesky mentored 18 graduate students. He also published 108 research publications and 136 extension publications. Volesky’s contributions throughout his career were recognized by the university, Nebraska Extension, national organizations and more.
His dedication to extension programming has been commended by Nebraska Extension and the university. Nebraska awarded Volesky the Excellence in Team Programming award in 2002 and the Innovative Extension Specialist Award in 2013. Nebraska Extension gave him the Nebraska Extension Team Award in 2020 for his nitrogen field observations.
Volesky’s research in range and forage sciences has also earned him accolades. In 2003, he earned the Nebraska Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources’ Team Research Award and in 2008, he earned the Outstanding Achievement Award - Research/Academia from the Society for Range Management. The UNL Foundation awarded Volesky the Wendell Burgher Beef Industry Award in 2015 and the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America and Soil Science Society of America gave him the Outstanding Publication Award in Crop, Forage and Turf Management in 2021.
Volesky’s mentorship and service were also recognized from the very beginning of his career, starting in 2009 when Dickinson State University named him a Distinguished Alumni Fellow. He earned the Holling Family Senior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award from Nebraska in 2012, was honored as a Fellow of the Society for Range Management in 2017 and received the Range Service Award from the Nebraska Section of the Society for Range Management in 2019
Following retirement, Volesky plans to spend more time hunting and fishing and help manage family ranches in western North Dakota and central South Dakota. He also has plans to do consulting for a ranch near North Platte.
