This volume includes material by providers and users of technical agricultural assistance on ways to improve the quality of life for clientele served by land-grant colleges and Tuskegee University. The conference theme involved issues emerging for rural Southern farms as they enter the 21st century. In examining alternatives for the future, the conference considered three major issues: (1) production of food and fiber in response to need; (2) changing employment patterns in the rural and urban South; and (3) assessment of the quality of life in the rural South resulting from changing agricultural production patterns. Following an introduction to the conference theme by the conference planning chairman, the first four sections of the proceedings consist of an address by the U.S. Secreatry of Agricluture entitled "The Rural South--Looking to the Twenty-First Century," and three memorial lectures by the Mayor of Birmingham and two Agriculture Department officials entitled respectively: "Emerging Issues in the Rural South for the Twenty-First Century"; "Serving the Rural South in the Twenty-First Century: The Challenges and Opportunities"; and "Agriculture and Education--Partners in Rural Progress." The next seven sections contain paper on the following topics: "Production of Food and Fiber in Response to Need; Food and Fiber: Institution and Agency Approaches; Changing Employment Patterns and the Quality of Life in Rural and Urban Sectors; Changing Employment in the Rural South; Assessment of the Quality of Life in the Rural South Resulting from Changing Patterns in Agriculture Production; Summaries and Recommendations, and Success Stories. The final section provides an announcement and information on the 45th Professional Agricultural Workers Conference to be held in 1987. (TES)