In the News

• KSL Friday, Sep. 25, 2026

  USU gets $1.6M grant to expand mental health support for dementia caregivers

  LOGAN — Nearly 7 million Americans live with dementia, with that number expected to double by 2060.

  This also means more than 11 million Americans provide unpaid care for loved ones with dementia — a significant emotionally, mentally and physically demanding responsibility. And among the 11 million caregivers are thousands of active-duty service members, military spouses and veterans.

  But a team of researchers at Utah State University is hoping to lend a much-needed hand through a $1.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to expand accessible digital mental health interventions, "tailored specifically for family members caring for a loved one with dementia," an announcement from the university said.

• KSL Thursday, Sep. 24, 2026

  Utah ranks No. 1 for lowest student loan debt burden, new study says

  LOGAN — Utah ranks best in the country for the lowest overall student loan debt burden, according to a recent study from WalletHub.

  The study, released this month, considers both the amount of student loan debt and the proportion of students carrying that debt.

  Utah has a lower cost of higher education compared to other states, according to Utah State University's Craig Whyte, and when combined with scholarships, grants and other resources, it can help students avoid taking on loans and debt.

• KSL Friday, Sep. 18, 2026

  Utah State University names new vice president of USU Extension

  LOGAN — After a nationwide search, Utah State University President Brad Mortensen named Justen Smith vice president of USU Extension.

  Smith has served as interim vice president since March and, prior to that, as department head of the USU Extension Agriculture and Natural Resources Department for nine years. He has worked as an Extension professional for 27 years.

  "Justen understands both the history and the potential of USU Extension," Mortensen said. "He has worked at county, regional and statewide levels, and he knows that our responsibility is not simply to preserve what Extension has been, but to continually ask what Utah needs from its land-grant university today and into the future, and how we can work together to meet those needs."

• The Salt Lake Tribune Thursday, Sep. 17, 2026

  Utah's coldest place may hold key to combating Utah's suffocating inversions

  Logan Canyon • In 1985, the second-coldest temperature ever recorded in the Lower 48 was reached in Utah.

  The frigid air, collected at the basin of Peter Sinks in Logan Canyon, had dropped to 69.3 degrees below zero before Zane Stephens, then a Utah State University meteorology student, hiked into the sinkhole to collect the reading.

• The Herald Journal Saturday, Sep. 12, 2026

  Community honors 9/11 1st responders with stair climb at Maverik Stadium

  Maverik Stadium lacked its usual crowd of screaming Aggie fans Friday evening. Instead, the stadium was filled with bells ringing and the whistles of air tanks as the community gathered for the annual 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb. For the 25th Anniversary of Sept. 11, Utah State University held its annual stair climb at Maverik Stadium, a tradition that’s been open to the public for the last three years.  The stair climb at USU pays specific homage to that day’s first responders, especially the firefighters. Many stairclimbers wore heavy fire uniforms with air masks and air tanks strapped to them. Each had a picture of a first responder who passed that day taped to their helmets.

  Each participant also wore a lanyard with the story of one of the 441 first responders who died that day. Community members of all ages climbed the stairs. Some families were spotted carrying their small infants, as others wanted to honor those who died by understanding what they went through by wearing what they did. The number of steps in Maverik Stadium is nearly equivalent to that of the towers, which is why the community returns there every year for the stair climb.

• Popular Science Saturday, Sep. 05, 2026

  Scientists define a new category of heat wave: 'Snow eaters'

  Matthew LaPlante doesn’t have to go to a lab to see his research in action. On some mornings, he can just look out his own window in the mountains high above Salt Lake City. After a warm night when the temperature stays above freezing, he’ll wake up and see that the snow level has dropped by inches, revealing more of the aspens he taps for syrup.

  “It feels like a monster came and just in the middle of the night, took a bite out of a snowpack,” said LaPlante, a journalist and climate scientist at Utah State University.

  So it’s fitting that scientists have started calling these kinds of heat waves, marked by unusually high temperatures in the spring and early summer, “snow eaters.” 

• ABC 4 News Friday, Aug. 28, 2026

  New USU facility doubles capacity for Utah's only Veterinary School

  LOGAN, Utah (ABC4) — Utah State University (USU) celebrated the grand opening of the Thomas and Patricia Willis Veterinary Medical Education Building, a state-of-the-art facility designed to advance veterinary education and training in Utah.

  According to USU, the new building will serve as a hub for the College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM), home to Utah’s only veterinary degree program, helping expand educational opportunities and prepare the next generation of veterinarians.

• Fox 13 News Monday, Aug. 24, 2026

  A USU sprinkler experiment could help farms save labor and water

  VERNAL, Utah — Farmers and ranchers from all over the Uintah Basin gathered at the Bar Lazy TL Ranch to hear the pitch from Utah State University's Extension Service.

  A demonstration of the sprinklers was taking place in an alfalfa field. Soon, the farmers and ranchers were joined by other USU researchers, politicians and reporters who walked around the edge of the field to see the sprinklers in action.

  "Wheel line systems have been around for several decades, but not much improvement has been made since that time," said Burdette Barker, an irrigation specialist with USU's Extension Service, who is part of the team working on the project.

  The sprinklers are designed to be more efficient, with a different spray pattern. USU also showed off some things it has been working on to automate and modernize wheel line sprinkler systems. USU's researchers took questions and feedback from farmers who are used to moving their lines at all hours of the day.

• ABC 4 News Monday, Aug. 24, 2026

  USU joins forces with Hi Tech Solutions, BC for nuclear research

  BRIGHAM CITY, Utah (ABC4) — Utah State University, Brigham City, Hi Tech Solutions are now working on a proposed nuclear research and training campus in northern Utah.

  On Monday, Hi Tech Solutions, Utah State University, and Brigham City came together to sign a memorandum of understanding for the campus. The Brigham City mayor will sign after receiving approval from the city council.

• The Herald Journal Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026

  New Robotics major partnership with USU and BTECH

  “We’re the future of work in Northern Utah,” said Matt Fuller, automation department head at Bridgerland Technical College (BTECH).

  Fuller is referring to the partnership between Utah State University and BTECH that is allowing students to complete 50 credits worth of their undergraduate degree by gaining two certificates at BTECH that can be applied to a bachelor’s degree in robotics, automation and controls at USU.

  Fuller mentioned he could not emphasize enough the financial opportunity that this partnership brings for prospective students.

• KSL Friday, Aug. 14, 2026

  New building helps complete Utah's first full veterinary medicine program

  A brand new building at Utah State University will bring the final, important touches to the school's veterinary science program, and the first full program for the degree in the state.

  The Thomas and Patricia Willis Veterinary Medical Education Building provides labs, surgery rooms and clinical spaces to help students get a real feel for what it takes to work in the field.

• The Herald Journal Friday, Aug. 14, 2026

  USU education college roles out new name with new degrees

  The former Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services, originally named that in 2008, is now being recognized as the Emma Eccles Jones College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences.

  This name change, although small, is echoing larger changes within the institution itself.

  According to a Utah State Today article, “The revised name and organizational structure better align with the focus and framework of leading national organizations, including the Board on Health and Human Sciences within the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, while reflecting broader organizational trends among peer research-intensive (R1) institutions.”

• KSL Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026

  'A huge win': USU, technical colleges partner to bolster robotics workforce

  Utah State University is expanding access to robotics and automation education through a new degree program that turns hands-on experience and training into college credits.

  Announced last week, the program allows students who have earned specific certificates at the participating technical colleges throughout the state to apply up to 50 credits toward a degree that would normally be a four-year degree program at USU.

  "This degree demonstrates what is possible when higher education and technical education work together," Chenese Boyle, an education specialist for the USU School of Professional and Technical Education, said in a release. "Students don't lose credit, they don't repeat coursework, and they gain a clear pathway into high-demand careers."

• KUER Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026

  Utah teens are growing up city slickers. Cowboy Camp is a cure for that

  There’s a stereotype about how teenagers spend summer vacation — watching TV, playing video games, endlessly scrolling or relaxing by the pool.

  But this year, around three dozen kids chose to trade their screens for the back of a mule at Utah’s annual Cowboy Camp. Or in some cases, it may have been chosen for them.

  “I didn't really, like, want to come, but my mom was, like, ‘I signed you up for Cowboy Camp,’” 15-year-old Hadlie King said with a laugh. “So, I was along for the ride.”

• The Herald Journal Thursday, Aug. 06, 2026

  "Welcome Home, Aggies": USU launches new moving day tradition

  With another year of Utah State University traditions ahead, the school has decided to add one more tradition to the calendar before the academic year even starts.

  The event is called “Welcome Home, Aggies” and will take place Aug. 22, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

  The intention of this event is to celebrate move-in day for incoming students living on campus, many of which who will be beginning their first-year at Utah State.

• Utah Public Radio Monday, Jul. 20, 2026

  Emmy-winning documentary features USU research beneath Greenland's ice

  "The Memory of Darkness, Light, and Ice" follows the story of Camp Century, a Cold War military base built beneath the Greenland ice sheet. Before the base was abandoned, researchers drilled 1.3 kilometers through the ice and continued drilling into the sediment below.

  Tammy Rittenour is a professor at Utah State University and director of the USU Luminescence Laboratory. She and her lab are featured in the documentary, though their role in it is a bit different than others.

  “What I worked on wasn’t actually the ice. It was the sediments underneath the ice, which is what makes it unique," Rittenour said.

• Utah Public Radio Friday, Jul. 17, 2026

  New study reveals additional health risks from Great Salt Lake dust

  New research shows two additional routes that toxic metals in dust blown off of the Great Salt Lake could move into soils, plants, and human bodies.

  "No, it's definitely not just an inconvenience," said Janice Brahney, associate professor of environmental biogeochemistry.

  Brahney supervised new research led by Molly Blakowski at Utah State University this spring.

  “The Great Salt Lake is a terminal basin with multiple millions of people that live in the catchment, lots of industry, lots of activity in the catchment," she said, "so everything that we do, everything that we create, all the toxins we produce, all the different compounds, they all flow into the Great Salt Lake."

• The Washington Post Thursday, Jul. 02, 2026

  These glaciers are becoming critical climate havens

  If you have ever hiked in the high peaks of Colorado, the Wasatch Range in Utah or the Tetons in Wyoming, you’ve almost certainly seen a rock glacier, perhaps without even knowing it.

  Rock glaciers are slow-moving masses of rock debris and ice that flow downhill the same way that glaciers do, but they are covered by a thick layer of rock and boulders that can easily be mistaken for stable ground.

  There are at least 1,500 active rock glaciers across the western U.S., and they’re important. That’s because while the icy white glaciers people typically picture have been shrinking and even disappearing, our new study shows that rock glaciers and their frozen water are remaining mostly stable despite rising temperatures.

• Fox 13 News Wednesday, Jul. 01, 2026

  USU mows its 'Quad' into an American flag design ahead of July 4th holiday

  LOGAN, Utah — This week, Utah State University is continuing an annual tradition of turning "The Quad" into a giant American flag.

  USU's landscaping crew mowed the flag design into the four sections of grass adjacent to the iconic Old Main building. They also used white paint to accentuate the 50 stars, with the 13 stripes cut into contrasting dark and light green.

• The Herald Journal Monday, Jun. 29, 2026

  USU Pres signs hunger initiative as extension launches Food Systems Alliance

  As food insecurity continues to rise across Utah, Utah State University Extension’s Create Better Health Hub recently hosted leaders from across Utah’s agriculture, food manufacturing, government, higher education and community sectors to launch the USU Extension Food Systems Alliance. The new collaboration brings stakeholders together to strengthen food systems, reduce waste and increase community access to nutritious food.

  As part of the event, USU President Brad Mortensen signed the Presidents United to Solve Hunger (PUSH) Commitment, joining university leaders nationwide in pledging support for efforts that address hunger, poverty and food insecurity through research, education, partnerships and action. PUSH institutions work collectively toward achieving zero hunger across campuses, communities and nations.

• Fox 13 News Thursday, Jun. 18, 2026

  Utah State University researchers look for creative ways to save water

  OGDEN, Utah — Utah State University researchers are looking for ways for gardeners to save on their water bills as the Summer gets hotter and drier.

  Ogden's Utah State University Extension assistant professor of horticulture, Andrea Pettit, heard from the community for solutions to keep their gardens this summer.

  "We hear so many people asking about water conservation and we're trying to help find solutions for it,” said Pettit.

  That was when some colleagues, like assistant professor of agriculture and natural resources Maggi Mathews, saw if they could use the wool sheared from sheep by a Weber County 4-H group could be put to good use.

• ETV News Wednesday, Jun. 17, 2026

  USU Eastern welders strike gold at National SkillsUSA competition

  ATLANTA, GA — Utah State University Eastern’s welding program once again proved itself among the nation’s best, earning top honors at the 2026 SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference (NLSC) in Atlanta.

  Associate Professor of Welding Austin Welch praised the accomplishments of the students following the event.

  “I am very pleased to inform you that our welding students swept their respective contests at the 2026 SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference last week in Atlanta,” Welch said.

  Leah Cannon earned a gold medal in the Welding competition, giving USU Eastern its fourth consecutive national championship in the event. Cannon competed against more than 30 contestants in the postsecondary division.

• The Herald Journal Wednesday, Jun. 10, 2026

  USU, CAPSA host conference on ending domestic violence

  One in three women in Utah experience domestic violence at some point in their lives, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. This makes Utah one of the top 20 states in the nation for domestic violence.

  To combat this statistic, the fifth annual Northern Utah Conference to End Violence: A Call for Collaborative Leadership was held on June 9.

  Hosted by Utah State University in collaboration with Cache Valley’s Citizens Against Physical and Sexual Abuse (CAPSA), this event “aimed to explore solutions to prevent domestic and sexual violence,” according to a USU press release.

• Utah Public Radio Friday, Jun. 05, 2026

  Could cave bacteria help cure cancer? A USU discovery suggests they might

  Utah State University scientists recently unveiled a new type of CRISPR biotechnology with the ability to selectively target and shred the DNA of cancerous cells.

  “The immune system of cave bacteria holds the cure for cancer," said Ryan Jackson, an associate professor of biochemistry at USU.

  “Did I know that we were going to discover this?" Jackson continued. "Absolutely not, but I did know when I started working here at Utah State that bacterial immune systems could hold new biotech.”

  He’s referring to a new breakthrough in biotechnology that he and his team discovered. It’s called Cas12a2 and it’s a type of CRISPR nuclease. But first off, what is CRISPR anyway?