2013 Agricultural Achievements
* Casey Droddy, junior in agricultural communications and journalism, and Jake Erceg, sophomore in animal sciences and industry, were selected members of the 2013-2014 Agriculture Future of America leadership team. Droddy was named a student advisory team member and Erceg was named a campus ambassador. May 2013
* Cathie Lavis, associate professor and extension specialist of landscape horticulture, received the American Horticultural Society 2013 Teaching Award. This national award is given to an individual whose abilities to share horticultural knowledge with others has contributed to a better public understanding of the plant world and its importance on society. May 2013
* Jim Drouillard, professor of animal sciences and industry, was named a recipient of the the 2013 American Feed Industry Association Award in Ruminant Nutrition Research. May 2013
* Teresa Douthit, assistant professor of animal sciences and industry, and Scott Schaake, associate professor of animal sciences and industry, been named teacher fellows for 2013 by the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture. May 2013
* Kaitlin Morgan, sophomore in animal sciences and industry and agricultural communications, Deerfield, and Barret Wellemeyer, sophomore in civil engineering, Derby, are among the 50 honorable mentions selected nationally for the 2013 Morris K. Udall Undergraduate Scholarship.
* Three students from the College of Agriculture, all members of the university's chapter of Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences, won awards in the photo or speaking contests at the national society's 28th annual Career Fair and Training Conference. Lonell Brown, senior in animal sciences and industry, received first place in the photo contest; Simone Holliday, sophomore in animal sciences and industry and chapter president, received second place in the photo contest; and Taneysha Howard, junior in agricultural communications and journalism, received second place in the public speaking contest. April 2013
* Damien Downes, plant pathology-based doctoral student in the interdepartmental genetics graduate program, won a Student Poster Prize at the 10th International Aspergillus Meeting. The prize was sponsored by the industrial biotechnology company Novozymes. Downes also won a Genetics Society of America-sponsored Best Student Poster Award in the Functional and Comparative Genomics and Gene Regulation category at the 27th Fungal Genetics Conference. April 2013
* Randall Phebus, professor of food safety in the animal sciences and industry department and core faculty in the K-State Food Science Institute, was the 2013 recipient of the International Association for Food Protection Elmer Marth Educator Award. The award recognizes an active member for dedicated and exceptional contributions to the educator profession. April 2013
* Terry Houser, assistant professor of animal sciences and industry, was the recipient of the American Meat Science Association's 2013 Achievement Award. April 2013
* Robert Weaber, K-State Research and Extension beef breeding and cow/calf specialist, received the 2013 American Dairy Science Association/American Society of Animal Science Midwest Section Outstanding Young Extension Specialist Award. His work focuses on cow-calf production and shows producers how to use certain genetic selection tools. By selecting animals with certain genetic traits, cattle producers can improve meat production and animal health. Weaber also encourages cattle producers to collect data and track genetic progress in their herds. March 2013
* Jennifer Minick Bormann, an associate professor of animal sciences and industry, received the 2013 American Dairy Science Association/American Society of Animal Science Midwest Section Outstanding Young Teacher Award. The award is given to educators who make significant contributions early in their careers. The 2013 award is sponsored by the American Society of Animal Science Foundation. Bormann teaches six classes and advises 60 undergraduate students at K-State. She is also the primary adviser to the K-State Pre-Vet Club. March 2013
* Chuck Rice, university distinguished professor of agronomy, has been appointed to the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, or CIAT, board of trustees for his expertise on soils and climate. The center’s mission is to reduce hunger and poverty, and improve human health in the tropics through research aimed at increasing the eco-efficiency of agriculture. Rice is one of 10 board members. March 2013
* Christine Wilson, assistant dean for academic programs in the College of Agriculture, was accepted for the 2012-2014 Food Systems Leadership Institute, an executive leadership development program for academia, industry and government. The institute enhances personal and professional development by emphasizing leadership competencies, skills for organizational change and a broad, interdisciplinary perspective of food systems. The institute experience prepares scholars for upper-level leadership roles in food system programs, and to assume broader leadership responsibilities within their organizations. February 2013.
* The Meats Judging Team won reserve high team overall at the Iowa State Invitational Meats Judging Contest. K-State was the high team in pork judging, specifications, cured ham and total placings. February 2013.
* Jim Drouillard, professor of animal sciences and industry, developed a technique that enriches ground beef with omega-3 fatty acids -- fatty acids that have been shown to reduce heart disease, cholesterol and high blood pressure. The enriched ground beef is named GreatO Premium Ground Beef and is being sold through Manhattan-based company NBO3 Technologies LLC. February 2013
* The U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded $5.08 million to a team of researchers, led by Xiuzhi "Susan" Sun, university distinguished professor of grain science and industry, to study the potential of the oilseed camelina as an environmentally-friendly commercial biofuel feedstock, particularly for biodiesel and jet fuel. The overall goal is to make oilseed camelina a cost-effective bioenergy and bio-based product feedstock. January 2013
* Ismael E. Badillo-Vargas, doctoral student in plant pathology, was awarded a predoctoral fellowship grant of more than $71,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture for his research on the tomato spotted wilt virus and its relationship to thrips. The competitive scholarship is for agricultural students who have two more years to complete their doctoral degree programs. Recipients receive two years of funding for research expenditures, tuition, a graduate research salary and conference travel. January 2013
* Entomology doctoral student Shelly Wiggam-Ricketts won the award for best student presentation by the Kansas chapter of The Wildlife Society at the 2013 Kansas Natural Resources Conference. Her poster presentation was "Pollinator Resource Use in Rangelands that Utilize Patch-burn Grazing." Wiggam-Ricketts is working under the mentorship of entomology professors Gregory Zolnerowich and David Margolies. January 2013