In Memoriam: Jim Hicks

Jim Hicks, a longtime supporter of agricultural education and the Huntley College of Agriculture, died on Sept. 13. He was 83.

Martin Sancho-Madriz, interim dean of the Huntley College of Agriculture, praised Hicks for his generous support towards ag education and the college.

“Jim was a true advocate for agriculture and an ardent supporter of agricultural education and our college,” Sancho-Madriz said. “His generosity will have a lasting influence on generations of Cal Poly Pomona students and schoolchildren in Southern California.”

Hicks was the president and CEO of Jim Hicks and Co. in Brea, a wholesale distributor of commercial fertilizers that serves the agricultural industry in the Western United States and Mexico.

He served on the board of the California Ag in the Classroom program, which educates Californians —and schoolchildren in particular— on agriculture and food production.

Starting in 2009, he provided scholarships for students in the agriculture program at Cal Poly Pomona.  

For his stalwart support for agricultural education and his accomplishments within the industry, the Huntley College presented Hicks with its first Agricultural Achievement Award in 2015.

“Jim has a passion for teaching future generations the connection between agriculture and food, for showing the links between farming and science, engineering, biology, and so many other industries,” said Mary Holtz-Clause, the dean of the College of Agriculture.

The college gave the award to Hicks at its’ first Spring Harvest Farm to Table Dinner. The award was subsequently named in honor of Hicks.

In 2015, the university also inducted Jim and his wife, Neta, into the Founders’ Society, an exclusive membership society that recognizes Cal Poly Pomona’s pinnacle-level donors who have contributed lifetime gifts of $250,000 or more.

The following year, Jim and Neta Hicks donated $800,000 to the Huntley College of Agriculture to expand educational outreach programs at AGRIscapes and created an endowment to support plant science and agribusiness students. At the time, it was the largest single gift ever given to the college.

“We depend on agriculture to provide our food, and we must not take that for granted,” Hicks said at the time. “We must continue to educate the public on the importance of agriculture so future generations will continue to have stable and sufficient food supplies.”

The bulk of the donation served as the lead gift toward improving the “heritage discovery farm” at AGRIscapes. The farm promotes agricultural literacy through field trips for schoolchildren, who learn about farming and food through fun, interactive and hands-on activities.

The donation also supported facilities that include a barn, windmill, and outbuildings that serve an on-site petting farm, crops, and house antique tractors and farming implement displays. It also supported staffing for administration, marketing, animal care, garden farming, and the creation of student and docent programs for tours and school outreach programs.

The Hicks’ gift also created an endowment to provide financial support to plant science and agricultural business students for tuition, books, housing, and travel to internships.

Jim Hicks was born on Aug. 9, 1939, in Illinois and raised in Indiana. He earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture economics from Purdue University in 1961.

He is survived by his wife, Neta; children Pat, Grady, Steve, Jennifer, and daughter-in-law Marlene.