Newswise — The Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) will continue a time-honored tradition this year with the presentation of the following individuals as 2009 CSSA Fellows at a special Awards Ceremony during their Annual Meeting on Nov. 1-5 in Pittsburgh, PA, www.acsmeetings.org.

Members of the Society nominate worthy colleagues based on their professional achievements and meritorious service. Only .3 percent of the Society’s active and emeritus members may be elected Fellow. The 2009 class of CSSA Fellows are:

• Glen E. Aiken – USDA-ARS, Lexington, KY. Glen E. Aiken is a research agronomist and animal scientist with USDA-ARS Forage-Animal Production Research Unit, Lexington, KY. He is also adjunct professor at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Aiken received a B.S. and M.S. from Texas A&M University and Ph.D. from University of Florida. His research focuses on forage and grazing management. He served as a technical editor for Crop Science, and is active in ASA and CSSA.

• Philip J. Bauer – USDA-ARS, Florence, SC. Philip J. (Phil) Bauer is a research agronomist with USDA-ARS, Florence, SC. He received a B.S. and M.S. from University of Wisconsin and Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. His research program focuses on cotton production and water management. Dr. Bauer has served as associate editor for Crop Science, Agronomy Journal, and the Soil Science Society of America Journal. He has also been active in the Beltwide Cotton Conferences.

• John L. Cisar – University of Florida. John L. Cisar is a professor of turfgrass management and water at University of Florida. He received a B.A. from Rutgers University, M.S. from Cornell, and Ph.D. from University of Rhode Island. His research and extension responsibilities focus on the environmental impacts of turfgrass management on pesticide fate, nutrient leaching, soils, and water. He has held leadership roles in Division C-5 and International Turfgrass Society. He is an ASA Fellow and recipient of the Florida Turfgrass Association’s Wreath of Grass Award.

• Marvin H. Hall – Penn State. Marvin H. Hall is a professor in the Crop and Soil Sciences Department at Penn State. He received a M.S. from Ohio State and a Ph.D. from University of Minnesota. His program focuses on forage crop management and utilization. Dr. Hall has served as an associate editor for Crop Science and the Journal of Natural Resources and Life Science Education. He has also served as president of the Northeast Branch and on the CSSA Membership and Awards committees.

• Zhonghu He – Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Zhonghu He is a principal scientist at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center and a research professor at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. He received a B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. from the China Agricultural University. His program focuses on developing quality testing methods and molecular markers in wheat, development of new cultivars, and training. Dr. He has been active in establishing scientific collaboration with major wheat producing countries.

• Robert B. Mitchell – USDA-ARS, Lincoln, NE. Robert B. (Rob) Mitchell is a research agronomist with USDA-ARS, Lincoln, NE and adjunct associate professor, University of Nebraska. He received a B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. from University of Nebraska. His research focuses on bioenergy and grassland management. Dr. Mitchell serves on the ASA board of directors, as an associate editor for Crop Science, technical editor for Forage and Grazinglands, and senior editor for Bioenergy Research.

• Gary A. Pederson – USDA-ARS, Griffin, GA. Gary A. Pederson is a supervisory geneticist and research leader, USDA-ARS, Plant Genetic Resources Conservation Unit, Griffin, GA. He received a B.S. from University of Minnesota, and M.S. and Ph.D. from Penn State. He curates the annual Trifolium and Vigna germplasm collections and coordinates the sorghum collection. He served as president of the American Forage and Grassland Council, chair of Division C-8, and is active in ASA, CSSA, and Crop Germplasm Committees.

• John Ryan – ICARDA, Syria. John Ryan is soil scientist at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), based in Syria. He received a B.A. and Ph.D. in soil science from University College, Dublin, Ireland, and M.S. in agricultural education from University of Arizona. His research is on dryland soil fertility, nutrient dynamics, fertilizer use efficiency, and laboratory management and quality control. He serves on the editorial board for the European Journal of Agronomy and is the recipient of numerous international awards, including ASA and SSSA Fellow.

• Hari D. Upadhyaya – ICRISAT, India. Hari D. Upadhyaya is principal scientist and genebank head at International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, India. He is also adjunct professor, Kansas State University. He received a M.S. and Ph.D. in plant breeding from G.B. Pant University of Agriculture & Technology, India. His research focuses on assessing genetic diversity in crops and identifying germplasm lines for use by breeders in the dryland crops using core and mini-core collection approaches.

• Maarten Van Ginkel – ICARDA, Syria. Maarten Van Ginkel is deputy director general for research at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA). He previously worked as a wheat breeder at the International Center for the CIMMYT. He received a B.S. and M.S. from Wageningen University, the Netherlands, and Ph.D. from Montana State University. He contributed to breeding more than 100 bread wheat varieties and co-authored more than 70 refereed journal articles. Van Ginkel will also be awarded the 2009 International Service in Crop Science Award at the CSSA Annual Meeting.

For more information on the 2009 awards presented at the ASA-CSSA-SSSA Annual Meetings, please visit www.crops.org/awards/award or contact Sara Uttech, 608-268-4948, [email protected]

Photos of the recipients receiving their awards will be posted to our News & Media webpage following the Annual Meetings: www.crops.org/news-media

The Crop Science Society of America www.crops.org/ (founded in 1955) is a scientific society comprised of 5,000+ members who advance the discipline of crop science by acquiring and disseminating information about crops in relation to seed genetics and plant breeding; crop physiology; crop production, quality, and ecology; crop germplasm resources; and environmental quality.