Texas A&M AgriLife personnel honored with Vice Chancellor’s Awards of Excellence
Texas A&M AgriLife faculty and staff received the Vice Chancellor’s Awards in Excellence honors during a ceremony Jan. 8 on the Texas A&M University campus in College Station.
The awards, established in 1980, recognize the commitment and outstanding contributions displayed across Texas A&M AgriLife and celebrate those contributions and achievements of faculty, students and staff members.
The awards and names of recipients are:
Teaching Awards
Graduate Student Teaching – Brogan Horton, graduate teaching and research assistant, Department of Animal Science, College Station.
Teaching – Jennifer Herman, Ph.D., associate professor, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, College Station.
Research Awards
Early Career Research – Holli Leggette-Archer, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication, College Station.
Research – Luis Tedeschi, Ph.D., professor, Department of Animal Science, College Station.
Graduate Student Research – Melissa Meierhofer, research associate, Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute, College Station.
Extension Education Awards
County Agent – David Rodriguez, AgriLife Extension horticulture agent, Bexar County.
Extension Specialist or Program Specialist – Larry Stein, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension horticulturist and associate department head, Department of Horticultural Sciences, Uvalde.
Service Awards
Diagnostic Services – Holley Ernst, diagnostic services assistant section head, Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, College Station.
Public Service in Forestry, Jordan Herrin, district forester III, Texas A&M Forest Service, Lufkin.
Special Services – Alfred Nelson, agricultural research superintendent, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, College Station.
Staff Awards
Business and Operational Staff – Jenny Ponzio, business administrator I, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, College Station.
Office and Administrative Staff – Stephanie Merrell, administrative coordinator II, Diagnostic Services, Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, Amarillo.
AgriLife Services Staff – Faren Franklin, human resources generalist III, AgriLife Administrative Services and Human Resources, College Station.
Technical and Programmatic Staff – Richard Epting, technical laboratory coordinator, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, College Station.
International Involvement Awards
International Involvement – Guy Fipps, Ph.D., professor and AgriLife Extension specialist, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, College Station.
Partnership Awards
Partnership – Texas Panhandle Vegetable Production Team: Charlie Rush, Ph.D., AgriLife Research plant pathologist, Amarillo; Kevin Crosby, Ph.D., horticulture plant breeder in the Texas A&M Department of Horticulture, College Station; Russ Wallace, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension vegetable specialist, Lubbock; Kay Ledbetter, AgriLife Research media relations specialist, Amarillo; and Jimmy Gray, AgriLife Research farm foreman, Amarillo.
Team Collaboration Awards
Wheat Genomics Team: Jackie Rudd, Ph.D., AgriLife Research wheat breeder, Amarillo; Amir Ibrahim, Ph.D., AgriLife Research wheat breeder, College Station; Shuyu Liu, Ph.D., AgriLife Research wheat geneticist, Amarillo; Chenggen Chu, Ph.D., AgriLife Research research scientist, Amarillo; Charles Johnson, Ph.D., director of the Center for Bioinformatics and Genomic System Engineering, College Station; Shichen Wang, Ph.D., bioinformatic scientist, College Station; and Richard Metz, Ph.D., scientist, College Station.
Texas A&M AgriLife Advanced Leadership Program Cohort V
The Texas A&M AgriLife Advanced Leadership Program is a two-year
course that cultivates AgriLife leaders with a national and state outlook.
The program focuses on the development of leadership skills and greater understanding of The Texas A&M University System and the land-grant
mission. Participants interact with administrators, leadership professionals, and their peers, gaining experiences and tools that enhance their effectiveness as leaders. For more information, visit AgriLife.org/leaders.
Peter A. Y. Ampim, Ph.D., assistant professor, Cooperative Agricultural Research Center, Prairie View A&M University.
A. Catherine “Cat” Barr, Ph.D., diagnostic toxicologist, Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory.
Melissa Berquist, Ph.D., director, Institute for Infectious Animal Diseases Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
T. Allen Berthold, Ph.D., senior research scientist, Texas Water Resources Institute, Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
Guadalupe Castro, extension agent, 4-H Youth Development, Prairie View A&M University.
Craig D. Coufal, Ph.D., associate professor and extension specialist, Department of Poultry Science, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.
Brandon K. Dukes, Ph.D., district extension administrator, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.
Juan Enciso, Ph.D., associate professor, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
Julie G. Gardner, extension specialist II–Texas 4-H Youth Development, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.
Lucas F. Gregory, Ph.D., senior research scientist and quality assurance officer, Texas Water Resources Institute, Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
Steve Hague, Ph.D., professor, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
John L. Jifon, Ph.D., professor, Department of Horticultural Sciences, Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
Melanie K. Karns, financial accountant, Texas A&M Forest Service.
Gretchen Riley, partnership coordinator, Texas A&M Forest Service.
Lee Tarpley, Ph.D., professor, Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M AgriLife Research.
