By THOMAS A. KVAMME                                                                                ALUMNUS: Dr. Arvid Boe ‘70

January 15, 2009

Moving from one field to another, Dr. Arvid Boe now finds himself firmly planted in the research fields of South Dakota State University at Brookings, SD. As Professor of Grass Breeding, he works in a field where the planting and growing never stop.

BEGINNINGS
More than 40 years ago, Arvid Boe worked many hours in the fields of his family’s farm in Outlook, Montana. He graduated from Outlook High School in 1968 and continued his studies at the University of North Dakota-Williston.

TO THE FIELD OF ATHLETICS
“At that time I didn’t know what I wanted to do and UND-W was close to home,” said Boe. He had admired his high school coaches and loved sports, so he began to pursue a career in physical education and coaching.

Boe joined the Tetons on the field for baseball in the spring and on the hard court for basketball during the winter. He asserted, “I was lucky enough to be able to play baseball and basketball for Phil [Rabon].”

Boe recalls that it was through team sports at Williston that he had the great pleasure of developing valuable friendships many of which are still intact today.

FIELDS OF CHANGE
Boe graduated from UND-W in 1970 with an associate’s degree and prepared to advance his education attending Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA. After one semester of majoring in physical education at PLU, he turned his attention to biology.

“Boe recognizes that it was biology instructor Irene Eide who motivated him to study the field of living things. I was always interested in birds and plants but never thought this would be an area of study I would pursue,” he said. “There had been something inspiring about her and the way she taught.”

He told us that he was an average student, but at PLU he had to “buckle down” and turn things up a notch. “I didn’t know I had a notch to turn up,” he chuckled.

OFF TO GRAD SCHOOL
Boe collected his degree in biology from PLU in 1972, and returned to the fields of Outlook. He applied for federal biology-related jobs, but got no response. He also kept in touch with his advisor from PLU who encouraged to think about graduate school, something he hadn’t even pondered.

After applying to graduate schools throughout the upper Midwest, Boe was offered an assistantship at the University of South Dakota in Vermillion. He spent some more time growing his education and Boe reaped his master’s degree in biology in 1976.

Boe was offered an assistantship in agronomy South Dakota State University where he then earned his Ph.D. and became an assistant professor at SDSU in 1980.

EVOLUTION OF RESEARCH
Professor Boe’s area of research is forage breeding. His research started out for use with livestock and conservation. His program has developed and released native legume cultivars and involves studying the reproductive biology of native legumes. Boe’s major focus is the evaluation and breeding of switchgrass for biomass/biofuel. Switchgrass is widely considered an ideal raw material for a new generation of biofuels made from non-food crops.

Now he performs research that may prove valuable in the field of energy and eliminate our country’s dependence on foreign oil.

Boe said he spends a lot of time in the lab, but also gets his hands dirty in the research fields across the state. “We’re trying to produce Ethanol from the leaves and stems of switchgrass,” he said. The USDA has set a high goal of 10 tons per acre and Boe is very optimistic. He added, “I think we’re getting pretty close.”

CULTIVATING A CAREER
Boe’s research has him interacting with many individuals on the SDSU campus. He has support staff and graduate students helping him grow thousands of plants, seeking out the “best plants.” “We work with all levels in an integrated effort,” he said. The first funding he received to work on switchgrass came from the U.S Department of Energy in 1999.

With a major national effort underway to find a new source of fuel, Boe’s decades of experience in switchgrass have resulted in his being regarded as a leading expert in upland types. He has a growing that is recognized by the entire biofuels industry. He humbly credits his success with being in the right place at the right time.

Boe reflected on his decision to attend UND-W. “It was the right decision for me, as I did a lot of growing up at that junior college and it was very important for me. I have nothing but fond memories,” he said. He cited the direction given him by Phil Rabon and Irene Eide. They planted the seeds from which Arvid Boe grew a career — a career that may well impact the future of energy in the United States.