U of A System Division of Agriculture Recognizes Outstanding Work by Faculty, Staff

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Kristofor Brye (center), professor of crop, soil, and environmental sciences, receives the John W. White Outstanding Teaching Award from Mark Cochran (left), UA System vice president for agriculture, and Mike Vayda, dean of the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural Food and Life Sciences.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Research in molecular computation and engineering geospatial solutions for agriculture are among the outstanding faculty and staff projects honored Friday, Jan. 10, by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture in partnership with the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences.

“The work done by our faculty and staff really does make a difference, not only in equipping students with the tools for successful careers, but also in the discoveries being made on our campuses that will ripple into every aspect of our lives from our farms and forests to the grocery stores to our doctor’s office,” said Vice President for Agriculture Mark Cochran.

The award recipients represent some 1,500 faculty and staff members on five university campuses, at research and extension centers and stations throughout Arkansas, and in all 75 counties. See pictures from the award ceremony at the Division of Agriculture Flickr page.

The Division of Agriculture includes the Cooperative Extension Service and the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station. In addition to conducting research and delivering information and educational services on agriculture and forestry, it also promotes public health and nutrition; opportunities for youth, families and communities; safe and secure food systems; and environmental sustainability.

The Robert G.F. and Hazel Taylor Spitze Land Grant University Faculty Award for Excellence was presented to Navam Hettiarachchy, University Professor of food science. She has made significant contributions in the advancement of research, education and service programs at the university. Her research program has been multi-faceted with a central focus on developing fundamental knowledge and applied technologies associated with specific food proteins.

Leslie Edgar, associate professor of agricultural education, communications and technology, received the Jack G. Justus Award for Teaching Excellence. Edgar has developed an industry internship program and provided leadership that led to the creation of a minor in agricultural communications. She has developed exchange programs with government and academic institutions in Belgium to accommodate summer experiential learning opportunities. She has developed 13 courses and taught 16 courses in the department.

G. Scott Osborn, associate professor of biological and agricultural engineering, received the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences Alumni Society Advising Award. Osborn has provided leadership in developing the department’s honors requirements. He mentors undergraduates, advises Honors College thesis projects, supervises funded undergraduate research projects and advises senior design projects.

John W. White Awards

John W. White awards for outstanding teaching, research and extension service are named for the U of A System's first vice president for agriculture when the Division of Agriculture was made a statewide unit of the U of A System in 1959.

The John W. White Outstanding Teaching Award, jointly awarded by the Division of Agriculture and Bumpers College, was presented to Kristofor Brye, professor of crop, soil, and environmental sciences. Brye has taught eight courses since joining the faculty in 2001. Three of those courses were additional loads he volunteered to teach to fill gaps left by retiring professors. Outside the classroom, he works with the Soil Judging Team, which has finished in first place in regional competition for each of the past two years and has proceeded to national competition.

The John W. White Outstanding Research Award went to Jin-Woo Kim, professor of biological and agricultural engineering. Kim has made significant contributions in nano-biotechnology for device development, molecular computation and molecular biological engineering. He has established an internationally recognized research program in bio/nanotechnology engineering.

Dharmendra Saraswat, associate professor of biological and agricultural engineering, received the John W. White Outstanding Extension State Faculty Award. Saraswat manages an extension program focused on developing geospatial technologies for managing natural resources. His applied research enables him to investigate and share engineering solutions with policymakers, state and federal agencies, farmers and agricultural consultants.

The John W. White Outstanding County Extension Educator Award winner was Columbia County Extension Agent Shirlye Hopkins. She has served the Division of Agriculture for 36 years and is assigned to Family and Consumer Sciences and 4-H. She has worked with local leaders to plan and conduct programs in nutrition, resource management, health and youth development.

The John W. White Outstanding Team Award was presented to a group of faculty and staff that developed and executed the Modeling Agriculture for Spatial Implications of Adoption of Dedicated Bioenergy Crops, Greenhouse Gas Policies and Reduced Irrigation Capacity project. The project is a county-level crop production model that provides an approach for analysis and integration of carbon emission and sequestration into standard economic models of farm cropping decisions. Team members are Kristofor Brye, professor of crop, soil, and environmental sciences; Lanier Nalley, associate professor of agricultural economics and agribusiness, and Michael Popp, professor of agricultural economics and agribusiness.

The Division of Agriculture Non-Classified Support Personnel Award went to Judy Robison, grants officer in the Cooperative Extension Service State Office. Robison helps Extension employees at all levels through the grant writing process and provides a high level of customer service. She developed tools for employees and a Grants.gov application guide that she is converting to an online course.

The Classified Support Personnel Award for the Cooperative Extension Service was presented to Sherry Funderburg, administrative support supervisor for the Ozark District. She assists with operations in 25 counties by providing support to county agents. She maintains records, budgets, travel requests, reimbursements and performance evaluations. She also communicates with the staff in the counties to solve problems and answer questions.

The Classified Support Personnel Award for the Agricultural Experiment Station went to Chris Pruitt, skilled tradesman at the Lon Mann Cotton Research Station. Pruitt is known as a valuable and highly versatile employee. He uses his carpentry and trades skills to maintain all station structures and to meet specialized construction needs.

Patents Recognized

The Division also recognized several faculty for patents that were issued on their projects. The faculty and their patented projects are:

• A Capillary-Column-Based Bioseparator/Bioreactor With An Optical/Electrochemical Detector for Detection of Microbial Pathogens
  Yanbin Li (Biological and Agricultural Engineering)
  Yongcheng Liu (Biological and Agricultural Engineering)
• System and Method for Dissolving Gases in Fluids and for Delivery of Dissolved Gases
  G. Scott Osborn (Biological and Agricultural Engineering)
  Marty D. Matlock (Biological and Agricultural Engineering)
• Apparatus and Method for Predicting Meat Tenderness
  Jean-Francois C. Meullenet (Food Science)
• In Vivo Test-System to Monitor Tissue Responses in Birds
  Gisela F. Erf (Poultry Science)
• Process of Extracting Procyanidins by Alkaline Hydrolysis
  Luke R. Howard (Food Science)
  Brittany L. White (Food Science)
• System and Method of Determining Nitrogen Levels from a Digital Image
  Larry C. Purcell (Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences)
  Robert L. Rorie (Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences)
  Douglas E. Karcher (Horticulture)
• Method of Bacteriophage Delivery and Amplification
  Billy M. Hargis (Poultry Science)
  Lisa Bielke (Poultry Science)
  Guillermo Tellez (Poultry Science)
  Gerardo Nava (Poultry Science)
  Daniel J. Donoghue (Poultry Science)
• Rice cultivar CL 142-AR, Rice cultivar CL 181-AR, Rice cultivar Roy J, Rice cultivar CL 171-AR, Rice cultivar Taggart and Rice cultivar Templeton
  Karen A. K. Moldenhauer (Rice Research and Extension Center)