Chancellor Burnett was a man of agriculture. The former dean of the College of Agriculture, Burnett clearly was biased to the agricultural feats. “-“The students who go from this college have been successful in the practical operation of land, in community service as county agents, in teaching agriculture or home economics in the local schools, in the supervision and promotion of boys’ and girls’ club work and in many other community enterprises where a knowledge of up-to-date methods is essential to individual success” (Burnett). He emphasized that the College of Agriculture really helped the state, providing a lot of work and research in wheat and animals.

He also viewed the University as being the best way to provide service to the people of Nebraska. The University educated men and women to “take their places effectively in the industrial or civic life of the state” (Burnett). “I consider now the University as a service institution. Citizens of the state have come to depend upon the University in many ways. They are constantly placing responsibilities of a service nature upon it. The demand for such service constantly increases” (Burnett). Burnett later mentions in this speech the importance of the agricultural side of the assistance, but never mentions the impact of the other subject areas.

The Agricultural Extension of the University of Nebraska was hard at work during the Depression, helping farm families to survive the droughts and lack of funds. All 93 counties of Nebraska were surveyed and records were kept. These records included things such as number of farms per county and per town, maps of soil areas and types of farming areas, land utilization (i.e. crops, animals), and yields and profits. The Extension would hold field days with experimentation stations that included testing of plants, breeding work, and many experiments related to food. They also provided pamphlets of information about the Extension’s work and helpful tips. The Extension took pictures of different methods of farming and working and documented them for future reference. Things such as erosion management, explosives, and farm buildings and tools were captured to find new ways to approach farming. The Agricultural Extension was clearly dedicated to helping the poor farming families of Nebraska and their work did so much for the state (Agricultural Extension).