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CEAC 25th Anniversary Celebration

Join us for the CEAC 25th Anniversary Celebration on Friday, October 23rd!

25 Years CEAC

Details

Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (CEAC) is celebrating 25 years of learning, growing, and inspiring the future of agriculture. On Friday, October 23rd we have a full day filled with seeing where we were, looking at where we're at, and glimpsing the future of where we are going in the world of controlled environment agriculture. Please join us for a walk down memory lane as well as helping to support the future of our program so we can continue these incredible programs future impact in the world and also among the stars. 

 

Gala Dinner: Rekindling memories and supporting the future of the CEAC program

5:30PM - 6:30PM 

Check in and happy hour 

6:30PM - 8:30PM 

Gala dinner and alumni speakers to share their past experiences with the CEAC program. 

 

Mini Symposium: Cultivating the Future: Education, Research, and Innovation in CEA (Included only with purchase of Gala Dinner ticket) 

9:00AM - 11:30AM

This portion of the day will include presentations focusing on the past, present, and future of the CEA program. We will highlight past and current faculty, current graduate students, and future industry leaders. We will close things off with a discussion panel where everyone is encouraged to participate. 

11:30AM - 12:30PM

A light lunch and social time will follow the morning symposium. 

12:30PM - 2PM 

Tours of current CEAC projects and greenhouses will close out the CEAC facilities portion of our 25th Anniversary Celebration. 

 

RSVP for event tickets here: 

Cost per person: $150.00

Tickets include Mini Symposium, CEAC facilities tour, light lunch, Gala dinner, and two drink tickets. (Additional drinks can be purchased at bar) 

RSVP

 

Consider donating to the CEAC here: 

Please indicate how you would like to allocate your funds in the comment box on the donations page: 

Examples: 

  • Student support (projects, graduate students, scholarships): Investing in students builds the next generation of scientists and industry leaders while accelerating research, innovation, and hands-on learning in controlled environment agriculture.

     
  • CEAC facilities: Modern facilities enable year-round, climate-resilient research and demonstration in food production, serving as hubs for innovation, workforce training, and community engagement.

     

  • Hardware and equipment: Advanced equipment enables cutting-edge research and precision-growing systems, allowing faculty and students to develop scalable, efficient solutions for food production in water- and resource-limited environments.

     

Recurring gifts—especially monthly contributions—are impactful because they provide a steady, predictable funding stream that CEAC can rely on to plan, help students, sustain programs, and respond quickly to emerging needs. Over time, these consistent gifts add up to significant support, creating lasting impact.

Donate Here

If you have any questions about giving or would like to explore these opportunities further, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the College of Agriculture, Life and Environmental Sciences Director of Development, Nick Pierson, at npierson@arizona.edu or 520-621-9018.

He can provide additional information, discuss options, and assist you in identifying the giving approach that best aligns with your interests and goals, whether through cash, appreciated stocks or securities, estate and planned gifts, or another approach.

Accommodations

We recommend staying at the hotels listed below.

Recommendations

As we are celebrating the 25th anniversary over the University of Arizona Homecoming weekend, we recommend joining us for the CALES breakfast meetup the following morning and the Homecoming football game on 10/24/26. Further details to come. 

Homecoming website

Questions?

If you are interested in attending or sponsoring or have any questions about the annual CEAC Short Course, email or call us.