Gale L. Vandeberg was born in Neillsville, Wisconsin, In 1920. He got his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1943, taught school for two years, and then took a position as assistant county agent in Outagamie County, which he held until 1952. A Franklin Pierce Foundation Grant in 1952 enabled him to spend a year at Cornell getting a master's degree in extension education. He was made Outagamie County agent in 1953, but then was persuaded by Henry Ahlgren to come to the UW and teach in the Department of Agricultural and Extension Education while working for a Ph.D. in Cooperative Extension education. On completion of his degree in 1957 he was appointed associate professor in the National Agricultural Extension Center for Advanced Study, which was located on the Madison campus. Mr. Vandeberg?s career in Extension administration began with his appointment in 1960 as assistant director of Cooperative Extension. He served on the Huitt and Thiede committees to plan for the Extension merger in 1965. In 1966 he was made dean of the Division of Economic and Environmental Development, and after the UW System merger in 1973, he became, in addition, assistant chancellor and director of Cooperative Extension. He resigned the assistant chancellorship in 1980, but remained in the other two positions until his retirement in 1983.