Identity area
Type of entity
Authorized form of name
Parallel form(s) of name
Berg, Woody
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
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Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
History
Sherwood O. Berg was born and raised near Hendrum, Minnesota, where he actively participated in 4-H and took on responsibilities managing the family farm after the death of his father. He began his post-secondary education at the University of Minnesota's School of Agriculture before transferring to South Dakota State College (SDSC) in 1940, drawn by the strength of its agricultural program. His education was interrupted by military service in World War II, during which he served in the U.S. Army as a field infantryman and later as a Military Government Food and Agricultural Officer.
Following the war, Berg completed his B.S. degree at SDSC in 1947, earned an M.S. from Cornell University in 1948, and received his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota in 1951. He served internationally as Agricultural Attaché to Yugoslavia, Norway, and Denmark (1951–1957) before returning to academia as Professor and Head of Agricultural Economics at the University of Minnesota. In 1963, he was appointed Dean of the Institute of Agriculture at the same institution and served as chair of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s National Advisory Commission on Food and Fiber.
From 1973 to 1975, Berg directed The Indonesia Project of the Midwest Universities Consortium and later returned to SDSU as its President on August 1, 1975, becoming the first alumnus to hold the role. His presidency was marked by institutional growth, international partnerships in Syria, Botswana, Senegal, and Mauritania, and increasing numbers of international students. He also facilitated the creation of SDSU’s first endowed faculty position—the Ethel Austin Martin-Edward Moss Martin Chair in Human Nutrition. He retired in 1984 as President Emeritus.
Berg married Elizabeth Ann Hall in 1952. They had two children.
Places
Legal status
Functions, occupations and activities
Field of Activity: Agricultural education, Education, Higher
Occupation: College presidents, Agricultural economists
Associated Groups: University of Minnesota, 1957-1973; South Dakota State University, 1975-1984