MSU ag faculty, staff, students honored at annual awards reception
Contact: Vanessa Beeson
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擲everal 幺力视频 faculty, staff and students are recipients of awards in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station for dedication and ingenuity during a challenging year.
鈥淲hile the global pandemic exponentially changed how we approach teaching, our faculty and staff rose to the occasion to deliver a quality education to our students,鈥 said Scott Willard, interim dean of MSU鈥檚 College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. 鈥淲ith many of our classes and laboratories requiring hands-on delivery, our faculty taught more sections and provided additional opportunities for students while working within the CDC guidelines for physical distancing.鈥
Wes Burger, associate director of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, spoke to the commitment of the Experiment Station鈥檚 researchers and staff.
鈥淲hile there were disruptions in 2020, MAFES scientists were still able to secure over $37 million in extramural funding, representing over 14 percent of the university鈥檚 total grants awarded,鈥 Burger said. 聽
This year鈥檚 honorees include:
鈥擜ssociate Professor Darrell Sparks, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology (BCHEPP), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) Teacher of the Year and CALS Excellence in Teaching Award 鈥 Upper Division Level. Sparks taught four classes across 10 sections including General Biochemistry II with about 80 students, and Senior Seminar with approximately 40 students. As undergraduate coordinator for the department since 2013, he mentors over 500 students per year. Sparks also chaired the committee that helped the BCHEPP achieve American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology accreditation, becoming only the third SEC program to receive this honor.
鈥擜ssistant Professor Daniel Chesser, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, CALS Excellence in Teaching Award 鈥 Lower Division Level. Chesser, as a three-time MSU grad, has been with the university in some capacity for nearly 20 years. His main teaching goal is to help students succeed in the highly technical and competitive job market by developing applied engineering problem-solving skills. Colleagues note his dynamic learning environment where students excel and are energized to learn to the fullest and do their best.
鈥摈谤辞蹿别蝉蝉辞谤 Shien Lu, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology, CALS Excellence in Teaching Award 鈥 Graduate Level. Lu teaches plant bacteriology, principles of plant pathology and plant disease management. For 17 years, Lu has achieved an average of 4.63 in course evaluations, using hands-on techniques to introduce complex plant disease issues to students. He also created a first-year seminar course titled 鈥淭he Hungry Planet: Plant Disease Stories鈥 to provide a survey of plant pathology and communicate the discipline鈥檚 importance to undergraduate students.
鈥擜ssistant Professor Shecoya White, Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion, CALS Excellence in Teaching 鈥 New Faculty Award. White mentors graduate and undergraduate research scholars, and serves as faculty advisor for MSU鈥檚 newly-formed Pipetting Club, which gives students a hands-on opportunity to hone laboratory skills, including pipetting. She also served as faculty advisor for the MSU team placing third nationally in the Research Chef Association鈥檚 2021 National Student Culinology Competition.
鈥摈谤辞蹿别蝉蝉辞谤 Fred Musser, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology, CALS/MAFES Outstanding Faculty Service Award. Musser represents CALS/MAFES on the Holland Faculty Senate and has served on three committees, including as chair of the Student Affairs committee. He also has served on the DAFVM faculty senate and departmental committees in BCHEPP and PSS, and assisted on several MSU search committees. Musser has been treasurer of the Mississippi Entomological Society for the past 14 years as the longest-serving member of the MEA Executive Board. He鈥檚 held several leadership roles in the Entomological Society of America and is the field and forage crops editor of the Journal of Economic Entomology.
鈥擜ssociate Professor and MSU Extension Service State Health Specialist David Buys, Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion, CALS/MAFES Faculty Diversity Award. During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Buys began examining data on racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 outcomes and publishing the results through social media, news and virtual events with community experts. He co-facilitated the 鈥淎llyship and Action Roundtable鈥 in the summer of 2020 and was asked to join the faculty of the African American Studies program. He addresses equity issues in teaching, research and outreach. Buys is a member of the NAACP Oktibbeha County branch and the Starkville Oktibbeha Unity League. He serves on the advisory board for Five Horizons Health Care, the Institute for the Advancement of Minority Health, and is a taskforce member for a statewide initiative called Creating an Age-Friendly Public Health System, all of which are organizations that seek to serve marginalized and minority communities.
鈥The Muscle Foods and Sensory Lab, CALS/MAFES Team Diversity Award. The team includes faculty, staff and students in the Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion and the Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences. The team is led by Wes Schilling, a professor of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion. Other department team members include Yan Campbell, research associate III; Xue Zhang, postdoctoral associate; and graduate students Shalyndria Dortch, Jasmine Hendrix, Hunter Hessler, Hannah Holley, Sadie White, Wenjie Shao and Kezia Virellia To. Thu Dinh, associate professor in Animal and Dairy Sciences, also is on the team.
鈥摈谤辞蹿别蝉蝉辞谤 Sam Chang, Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion, Mississippi Land Bank-sponsored MAFES Excellence in Research Faculty Award. Since 2017, Chang has been awarded three national competitive research grants from USDA-NIFA-AFRI totaling approximately $1 million, and he has published 42 refereed journal articles. Chang is director of the Mississippi Center for Food Safety and Post-Harvest Technology and the MAFES Experimental Seafood Processing Laboratory. He also serves as scientific editor for the Journal of Food Science.
鈥摈谤辞蹿别蝉蝉辞谤 Brian Baldwin, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, MAFES Grantmanship Award. The award recognizes the scientist who garners the most in competitive grant funds. During his tenure at MSU, Baldwin has attracted 88 grants for a combined total of more than $10.5 million. From these research funds, he has published two book chapters, 75 refereed journal articles, two plant patents, and two Plant Variety Protection certifications. He has advised and mentored 29 graduate and 160 undergraduate students.
鈥擜ssistant Professor Amanda Stone, Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences, MAFES Outstanding Publication Award for her article 鈥淧redicting dairy cattle heat stress using machine learning techniques,鈥 published in the Journal of Dairy Science.
鈥摈谤辞蹿别蝉蝉辞谤 Raja Reddy, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, MAFES Most Impactful Publication Award for his article 鈥淒eveloping functional relationships between temperature and soybean yield and seed quality,鈥 published in the Agronomy Journal.
鈥Beverly Catchot, research associate I, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology, and Plant Pathology, MAFES Outstanding Research Staff Award. For the last six years, Catchot has managed the department鈥檚 Insect Rearing Lab, where she supervises a small staff, supplies insects for graduate student programs and performs insecticide bioassays and general lab maintenance. Catchot鈥檚 care and commitment resulted in no insect colony losses during the COVID-19 shutdown. In addition to her role, she mentors students and is a student herself, working toward a master鈥檚 and publishing two peer-reviewed publications.
鈥Charles 鈥淗unt鈥 Walne, doctoral student, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, Graduate Research Award. Earning his bachelor鈥檚 degree in agronomy from MSU, Walne began working under the direction of Raja Reddy in 2016 as an undergraduate research scholar. By 2017, he had accepted a graduate research assistant position to begin working toward a doctoral degree. Walne鈥檚 research focuses on the interaction between plant genetics, environmental stressors and management practices across a variety of crops. He has published three refereed publications, with another three submitted. He has presented eight oral and 17 poster presentations.
鈥Trevor Garrett, facilities coordinator, Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station, CALS/MAFES Outstanding Professional Staff Award. For more than 20 years, Garrett has helped increase research capacity for projects ranging from common grain and fiber crops to specialty areas. In the last five years, he has helped publish more than 30 journal articles, 31 presentations, 16 technical bulletins and helped to generate more than $1 million in grant funding.
鈥Sharon Vaughan, business coordinator, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology, CALS/MAFES Outstanding Support Staff Award. With MSU for 27 years, Vaughan is known as a go-to person for administrative support and an exemplary example of efficiency, with a strong work ethic and commitment to the department and university.
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