Meet Doc McNeal, USU's newest Carnegie professor

OFFICE OF THE 'DOC': Lyle McNeal says teaching is a passion, not a job. / Photo by Riki Richards

By Riki Richards

December 4, 2007 | Dr. Lyle McNeal describes his students as family members.

McNeal, known as "Doc" to all of his students, is on call 24 hours a day, particularly when it is lambing season at the USU South Farm. His students can call him at any time, and if he is not in his office he is available at home.

McNeal just won the Carnegie Professor of the Year award after teaching for 28 years at USU in the animal, dairy and veterinary science department. He was nominated by students and fellow faculty members.

"They all wrote such nice letters, it really makes you take a step back and look at your life and wonder, am I deserving of this?" said McNeal.

McNeal is one of 40 professors honored Nov. 15 in Washington, D.C., as a Carnegie Professor of the Year. The awards recognize outstanding professors for their influence on teaching and their outstanding commitment to teaching undergraduate students. USU is home to eight of the last 13 Carnegie Professors of the Year in Utah.

McNeal grew up working on his grandparents' ranch, and he said the desire to produce food was engrained in him at a very young age. He said he never really intended to go into teaching after completing his USU doctorate, while working at Cal Poly.

"I wanted to go back into ranching because I felt like it was a calling," said McNeal.

McNeal describes agricultural producers and people who serve in the military as close to God. He said those are the two most honorable professions anyone could have. McNeal served as a member of the Air Force and says that his two favorite things are flying and riding horses.

McNeal said he realized he needed to continue teaching after receiving the Distinguished Teaching Award at Cal Poly. He said he had only been teaching there for three years and it was the fastest that anyone had ever received the award. He said his wife told him not to give up teaching because that award proved he was good at it. He said he decided teaching people to grow food was just as good as growing it himself.

"I feel like it's more than a job, it's a passion," McNeal said.

McNeal was the first person in his family to go to college, and his parents weren't able to help him much financially. He said he worked his way through college as a ranch hand for 35 to 75 cents per hour. He lived in barns and traveled to the nearest gas station to clean up before class. He typically woke up around 3:30 a.m. to clean manure out of stalls before going to class. He said he even had a few professors who refused to let him into class because of his odor.

While working on a dude ranch, he met his wife, Nancy. Their dates usually consisted of riding around to check livestock, and since there were no restaurants nearby they would go to the local mercantile and he would ask her to choose what she wanted to cook since he wasn't very good at cooking. They celebrated their 45-year anniversary last summer.

McNeal said he is most proud of the Navajo Sheep Project. McNeal started a privately funded project to help the Navajo people bring back their sacred breed of sheep, the churro. The churro provides the Navajos with meat and the wool to produce their famous and valuable woven rugs. The breed was near extinction, down to only 400 head, when McNeal took on the task of saving the sheep.

McNeal used USU students to run the project, giving them the opportunity to learn about breeding practices and also learn about a different way of living. The project continues today, 30 years after its creation, and McNeal still plays a leading role in it. McNeal said the churro sheep population is nearly 5,000 head now.

"The students touch my life. They're part of my family. The Navajos are the same way, part of my family," he said.

McNeal also worked heavily on another sheep breeding project to create a new breed of sheep called the polypay. This breed combines traits from four breeds and can lamb twice a year. It is the only breed with this trait, said McNeal.

He said all other breeds only lamb once a year and will typically only produce one lamb. The polypay will typically produce two lambs but he said he has talked to some producers who will get three to four lambs per lambing. He said many people thought he named the sheep after Cal Poly, where he received his doctorate, but he said it is named because poly means multiple and owners will have multiple paychecks from the lambs.

McNeal says his intent is to never stop teaching, and he worries what will happen when he is not around to be on call 24 hours a day.

"I won't quit teaching," he said. "You never know who you will influence."

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