Sonny Ramaswamy, the Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences at Oregon State University, is leaving. President Obama has appointed him as the new director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). NIFA replaced the Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES) in 2009 and oversees all federally-funded agricultural research. Ramaswamy arrived at OSU in 2009 and has been noted for his ability to build support for programs, according to an article published by The Oregonian (Portland, Ore.). Officials at OSU said they would announce their plans for finding a successor in a few weeks.