Achievements

• Penn State placed well at the 2009 Collegiate Weed Science Contest. The Graduate Team (Franklin Egan, Benjamin Crocket, Ryan Bates, and Nelson Debarros) placed first against thirteen other teams. Nelson Debarros finished in second place in the Graduate division while Ryans Bates placed third in the Graduate division. (10/2009)
• Zack Larson, Mandeep Sharma, Jason Kaye, Enid Martinez, and Max Schlossberg were inducted into Gamma Sigma Delta, the Ag. Honor Society. (4/2009)
• Sara Oyler, Agroecology, received the Penn State Outstanding Senior Award sponsored by the CSA student recognition program. (3/2009)
• Clare Wagner, Agroecology, will be the Student Marshall at spring commencement. (3/2009)
• Penn State Turfgrass Students took first and third place in the 4-year competition and second place in the 2-year competition at the 2009 Sports Turf Manager Association Annual Meeting held in San José, CA in January. (1/2009)
• Curtis Dell and Sarah Goslee were promoted to the rank of Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences. (1/2009)
• Jason Kaye, assistant professor of soil biogeochemistry, was named the Honor Alumnus of Ecology at Colorado State University. (1/2009)
• Dr. George Hamilton was recognized by the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America for distinguished service to the golf profession. (1/2009)
• Dr. Andrew McNitt, associate professor of soil science, was recently awarded the College of Agricultural Sciences Community of Teaching Excellence Award. (10/2008)
• Jing Dai, Ph. D. Candidate in Soil Science, won second place in the C5 graduate student poster session (10/2008)
• The Penn State Turfgrass Club took back the trophy from Michigan State at the annual Cutter Cup Golf Tournament. (10/2008)
• Penn State teams placed well at the 2008 Northeast Collegiate Weed Science Contest. The Graduate Team placed first while the Undergraduate Team placed second. In the individual competition, Matt Ryan finished in first place in the Graduate division while Cory Chelko placed second in the Undergraduate division. (9/2008)
• At the 2008 Northeastern Branch of the Crop Science Society of America meetings, Kulbushan Grover, Ph. D. candidate in Agronomy, was presented the Outstanding Graduate Student Award. Ashlee Dere, M.S. Candidate in Soil Science, was presented the award for Outstanding Student Oral Presentation. (9/2008)
• Jing Dai, Ph. D. Candidate in Soil Science, received the NACTA Graduate Student Teacher Award at the Annual Conference of the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture held at Utah State University, June 2008. (8/2008)
• Dave Mortensen, Professor of Weed Ecology/Biology was the recent recipient of the Ecology IGDP Edward Bellis Award. (4/2008)
• Wayne Haas, Research Suppport Assistant, was recently recognized by the Professional Dairy Producers of Pennsylvania for his role in the success of the corn silage project. (12/2007)
• Tom Serensits, a M.S. candidate in Agronomy, was awarded 1st place in the graduate student oral presentation in Turfgrass Management in the Division C-5. (12/2007)
• John LaMantia, a Ph.D. candidate in IBIOS, was awarded 1st place for his oral presentation for Turfgrass Genetics and Breeding in C-5. (12/2007)
• David Moody, a recent graduate, was awarded 3rd place for his poster presentation in Division C-5. (12/2007)
• Katya Bazilevskaya, Ph. D. candidate in Soil Science won the Joe and Martha Dixon Award for her oral presentation among students participating in all sessions sponsored by the Division S-9 (Soil Mineralogy) of the Soil Science Society of America in New Orleans. Katya’s talk was titled: Crystallization and phase transformation of co-precipitated Fe-Al hydroxide nanoparticles: combined infrared and XRD studies. (12/2007)
• Paul Rebarchak, was presented with the 2007 Outstanding Staff Award at a recent department function. Atila Deak was awarded the 2007 Outstanding Student Service Award. (9/2007)
• Dwight Lingenfelter, was presented with the 2007 College Trailblazer Award at the spring college staff meeting by Dean Robert Steele. (9/2007)
• David Moody, placed second in the GCSAA Student Essay Competition. (9/2007)
• Dr. Marvin Hall, was recently presented with the NEBCSA Research Award. (9/2007)
• Dr. Douglas Beegle, professor of agronomy, has been designated Fellow of the Soil Science Society of America, the highest honor the society bestows on its members. Dr. Beegle was selected through an intense nomination and review process that analyses nominees’ achievements in education, research, service, and leadership. (6/2007)
• Dr. Mary Ann Bruns recently received the WISE Outstanding Service Award. (4/2007)
• Dr. Sridhar Komarneni of the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences has been selected by the President and Provost to receive the title of University Distinguished Professor. (2/2007)
• At the recent NorthEastern Weed Science Society annual meeting, two of the three top paper awards were awarded to Joe Dauer and Bryan Dillehay. (1/2007)
• At the Sports Turf Management Association meeting, Tom Serensits was named outstanding graduate student. The Penn State Team was awarded 3^rd place. This members of this years team were Mathew Naedel (captain), Patrick Ellis, Ryan Hills, and Blake Hertzog. (1/2007)
• Joseph Dauer, David Mortensen, and Robert Humston were awarded The Outstanding Paper Award by the Weed Science Journal for their paper, “Controlled experiments to predict horseweed (Conyza canadensis) dispersal distances. (1/2007)
• American Society of Agronomy — 2006 Educational Materials Contest. Doug Beegle and Sjoerd Duiker received the Certificate of Excellence in recognition for the development of outstanding agronomic educational material in the Publications: “The Mid-Atlantic Nutrient Management Handbook”. (1/2007)
• Jonathan LaMantia recently received the Turfgrass Breeder’s Association Student Award. (12/2006)
• The Penn State Agronomy Club recently won second place in CSA Bowl Quiz. Students competing were Genny Christ, Ben Hartman, Alicia Spangler, and Sarah Tuttle. (12/2006)
• The online turfgrass certificate/BS program was selected as the “Most Outstanding Online Teaching & Learning Program” by the Sloan Foundation. (9/2006)
• This summer, Doug Beegle received the SSSA Fellow Award, Ed Ciolkosz, the NEBASA Teaching Award, and graduate student Chuck Walker, second place in the NEBASA Graduate Student Competition. (8/2006)
• Al Turgeon, Professor of Turfgrass Management, recently received the CAS Harbaugh Scholar Award, for contributions to using technology for curricular innovation. (8/2006)
• Turfgrass Science Grad Helps Prepare PNC Park For Major League Baseball All-Star Game. Andrew Bartley, a graduate of the Turfgrass Science program at Penn State helps to prepare PNC Park for Major League Baseball's annual All-Star game. (7/2006)
• Penn State Turfgrass Science Students Receive Awards at National Meeting. The Foundation for Safer Athletic Field Environments has awarded scholarships to 10 students who are pursuing a degree that will prepare them to become sports field managers. Three Penn State students were honored with scholarships. (6/2006)
• Surinder Chopra, Sjoerd Duiker, Henry Lin, and Andrew McNitt were offered tenure in the College of Agricultural Sciences and promotion to the rank of associate professor. (5/2006)
• Jill Thomas received the Williams Soil Conservation Scholarship offered through the Soil and Water Conservation Society. (5/2006)
• Barbara Fricks, Summer fellowship from Ctr Environmental Chem and Geochem (CECG). (5/2006)
• Dr. David Sylvia announced that Keisha Johnson will receive the Outstanding Student Service Award and Scott Harkcom will receive the Outstanding Staff Award. (4/2006)
• The poster award winners for the recent Center for Environmental Chemistry and Geochemistry Student Symposium have been announced. Rupinder Randhawa and Mary Kay Lupton in the Agricultural & Soils Sciences Category, Matthew McCoy in the Biogeochemistry ↦ Microbiology Category, and Loren Byrne in the Environmental Engineering & Ecology Category. (3/2006)
• The Gamma Sigma Delta Award recipients from the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences are Jing Dai (advisors David Huff and Douglas Archibald), Farag Ibraheem (advisor Surinder Chopra), Rajandeep Sekhon (advisor Surinder Chopra), Rupinder K. Randhawa (advisor Douglas Archibald), Loren Byrne (advisor Mary Ann Bruns), and Lindsay Spangler (advisor Surinder Chopra). (3/2006)
• Atila Deak Ph.D. candidate in Agronomy, was recently selected to receive the 2006 Gerald O. Mott Meritorious Graduate Student Award. (2/2006)
• Lindsay Spangler undergraduate student in Agroecology, was selected to receive the Tri-Society National Student Recognition Program award. (2/2006)
• Joseph M. Duich professor emeritus of turfgrass science, was selected to receive the 2006 Old Tom Morris Award from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America. The award is to be presented during the opening session of the group’s 2006 Education Conference in February. (11/2005)
• Rick Day received the 2005 Outreach and Cooperative Extension Vice President's Award for Entrepreneurship and Drew Mather received the Department's Outstanding Student Service Award. (10/2005)
• Shridhar Komarneni is co-principle investigator on a recently funded NSF grant ($1,247,250), “Moving to Sustainability: Improving and Valuing Materials Flow of the Metal Casting Industry.” (9/2005)
• Rob Dickerson, Database Administrator/Webmaster, recently received the Outstanding Support Staff Award from the Northeastern Branch of the American Society of Agronomy (NEBASA) and Soil Science Society of America. (8/2005)
• Sridhar Komarneni, Professor of Clay Mineralogy, will receive the Soil Science Research Award at the ASA-CSSA-SSSA 2005 International Annual Meetings in November. (8/2005)
• Greg Roth, Professor of Agronomy, recently assumed the position of President of the Northeastern Branch of the American Society of Agronomy (NEBASA). (8/2005)
• Jason Kaye, Assistant Professor of Soil Biogeochemistry, received an Andrew Mellon Foundation award to support ecological research and training. (4/2005)
• Marvin Hall, Professor of Forage Management, was recently awarded a Higher Education Challenge Grant for the Development of Interactive, Computer-Based Teaching Modules for Undergraduate Forage Courses. (4/2005)
• Robert Raley recently received the 2005 NA Colleges and Teachers of Ag (NACTA) Graduate Student Teaching Award. (4/2005)
• Penn State Team Wins Student Competition. Penn State Turfgrass students win inaugural Student Collegiate Challenge at the national Sports Turf Manager's Conference in Phoenix. (3/2005)
• Penn State Turfgrass Science Students Receive Awards at National Meeting. The Foundation for Safer Athletic Field Environments has awarded scholarships to 13 students who are pursuing a degree that will prepare them to become sports field managers. Five Penn State students were honored with scholarships. (3/2005)
• The following individuals were recent NEBASA/SSSA award recipients. Michael Kochuba - Outstanding Senior Student Award. Ann Wolfe - Extension Award. Atila Deak - Graduate Student Award. (9/2004)
• Hugo Castillo received a grant to pay expenses to atend the Pan-American Advanced Studies Institutes Workshop on Techniques for Biofilm Community Anaylysis in Chile. The focus of the workshop is the interdisciplinary study of biofilms using biochemical, microbiological and engineering techniques.
• Dr. David Mortensen, associate professor of weed ecology, was recently appointed program chair for two national integrated pest management competitive grant programs run by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
• Dr. David Sylvia, professor of soil microbiology and head of the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, was among four Penn State faculty members recently elected to the rank of Fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). (12/2003)
• Dr. Heather Karsten and Dr. Andrew McNitt were recipients of Community of Teaching Excellence Awards at the College of Agricultural Sciences' 2003 Scholarships and Awards Banquet held on October 21, 2003 at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel. (10/2003)
• Dr. Mary Ann Bruns, recently served as President of the Allegheny Branch of the American Society of Microbiology. (10/2003)
• Kate Butler, recently received the Outstanding Young Alumni Award from the Dubois Campus of The Pennsylvania State University. (10/2003)
• Marvin H. Hall, professor of Agronomy, was named a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy. (11/2002)
• A. J. Turgeon, professor of turfgrass management, received the Fred V. Grau Turfgrass Science Award from the Crop Science Society of America. (11/2002)
• The Penn State Soil Judging Team, coached by Mike Callahan, has qualified to go to nationals next spring with their third place finish in this year's Northeast Regional Soil Judging Contest. Five students competed from PSU, three of which placed in the top ten, the most of any school. Those students were Mike Kochuba (2nd place), Tim Daubert (5th place), and Keith Shadle (10th place). Mike missed first place by only 1 point, an astonishing performance amongst a group of very talented soil judgers from across the Northeast. Mary Kay Krasinski and Patrick Kelly also both competed and did very well in their first soil contest.
  
  The top three teams were the University of Maryland (coached by former Penn Stater Brian Needelman), Ohio State University (coach Neil Smeck), and Penn State. Delaware Valley College (coach Joe Valentine) from Southeast PA placed fourth, only 4 pts away from 3rd place. PSU, Maryland and OSU will be heading to Texas A&M next April to compete with around 20-25 other teams from across the nation for the coveted national championship. (10/2002)
• Richard Stehouwer, Assistant Professor of Environmental Soil Science, accepted the Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence, given to Penn State Cooperative Extension’s Backyard Composting Program. Read more. (9/2002)
• Sridmar Komarneni, professor of clay mineralogy, received the Marion L. and Chrystie M. Jackson Midcareer Clay Scientist Award at the annual meeting of the Clay Minerals Society in Boulder, Colorado, this June. (9/2002)
• At the recent Northeast Branch ASA-SSSA meetings, several Department of Crop and Soil Sciences personnel were honored with awards. Dick Fox was awarded the Career Service Award. Ellen Seconi and Bryan Dillehay placed first and third, respectively in the Graduate Student Paper Competiton. (7/2002)
• David Mortensen, associate professor of weed ecology, received the Outstanding Teacher Award at the Weed Science Society of America annual meeting in Reno, Nevada. (4/2002)
• Thomas L. Watschke, professor of turfgrass science, received the Distinguished Member Award in January at the 56th Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Weed Science Society in Philadelphia, PA. The Distinguished Member Award is the highest award given by the society. (4/2002)
• Douglas Beegle, Professor of Agronomy, was named a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy at the 2001 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Agronomy, Soil Science Society of America and Crop Science Society of America in Charlotte, North Carolina. (1/2002)
• William Curran, professor of weed science, graduated with Class 10 of the ESCOP / ACOP Leadership Development Program. As part of the nine-month program, Curran surveyed College of Agricultural Sciences involvement in sustainable agriculture activities and developed a plan to help enhance the college's presence in this area. (10/2001)
• At the 2001 Northeastern Weed Science Society’s Collegiate Weed Science Contest, Penn State’s graduate team, coached by Dwight Lingenfelter, assistant extension agronomist, received the second place award in the team category. The team was represented by Brian Clark, agronomy, Matt Myers, agronomy, and Brad Park, turfgrass. Matt Myers also received a first place award in the graduate individual category. Eleven graduate teams competed in the event, held at the University of Connecticut, Plant ScienceResearch and Teaching Facility at Storrs. (10/2001)
• Andrew McNitt, assistant professor of soil science, received the 2000 Dr. William H. Daniel Award from the Sports Turf Managers Association at their annual conference in January in Tampa, Florida. (7/2001)