Cresco and its surroundings had a large, hard-working Norwegian ancestry population whose lifestyles reflected experiences with hunger and privation that led them to migrate to the New World. The importance of careful planning and hard work in order to survive came home to Borlaug at an early age. In Cresco, he attended the grade school and high school, where he was the captain if the football team. Harry Schroeder, a teacher of agriculture at Cresco High School, recalled that Borlaug showed considerable interest in crop and soil management. Schroeder rewarded his interest by supplying Borlaug with supplementary teaching on different aspects of agriculture.
In 1932, Borlaug graduated from high school, and, instead of becoming a farmer, entered the University of Minnesota to satisfy his grandfather's wish that he get a college education. Working his way through college, Borlaug earned a B. S. Degree in forestry in 1937. During his freshman year, he attended a lecture by the head of the plant pathology department, Elvin Charles Stakman, an authority on crop research. Stakman's lecture had such an impact on Borlaug that he decided to study plant pathology under the professor's direction. At Stakman's urging, Borlaug remained at the University for post-graduate study.
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