Morningside College will host a panel discussion titled “Field of Nightmares: The Farm Crisis of the 1980s and its Impact on Iowa” at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 30, in the Weikert Auditoirum in Buhler Rohlfs Hall.

Cheryl Tevis	Steve Schmidt

Morningside College will host a panel discussion titled “Field of Nightmares: The Farm Crisis of the 1980s and its Impact on Iowa” at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 30, in the Weikert Auditoirum in Buhler Rohlfs Hall, 1701 Morningside Ave.

Panelists will be Cheryl Tevis, a retired farm journalist and long-time writer and editorial staff member for Successful Farming magazine, and Steve Schmidt, vice president and chief credit officer for Security National Bank in Sioux City.

The issue is timely for two reasons, according to Tom Paulsen, associate professor and chair of applied agricultural and food studies at Morningside.

This year One Book One Siouxland is focusing on the book “Shoeless Joe,” which was the inspiration for the movie “Field of Dreams.” Set in Iowa in 1982, the main character nearly enters farm bankruptcy before plowing under his cornfield to create a baseball field.

Also, the 2016 Iowa Land Value Survey indicated that the average value of Iowa farmland had declined each of the previous three years.

“This is the first time this has occurred since the farm crisis of the 1980s, when land prices dipped for five straight years,” Paulsen said. “What are the similarities and differences between the current economic conditions and those in the 1980s? These questions set the stage for an informative discussion.”

The event is sponsored by One Book One Siouxland and Morningside College. One Book One Siouxland is a community-wide reading initiative that brings residents together through discussion of one great book; it is sponsored by the Sioux City Public Library in partnership with other community organizations.