Q&A with ASTE faculty member Debra Spielmaker

1. Where did you grow up? My family moved from Southern California when I was 11. I have lived in Utah (I am an alumni of Bingham High School), all but two years since then.

2. What Universities did you get your degree(s) from and why did you choose to go there? Both graduate and undergraduate USU.

3. What got you interested in Ag? My high school ag teacher

4. What do you want to achieve while here at Utah State University? I think everyone wants to make a difference. I work in the area of agricultural literacy, it would be great if everyone understood the importance of agriculture and how agriculture affects ones quality of life, but until then I have some job security.

5. What are some of your hobbies? Playing hockey, mountain biking, gardening, and cooking.

6. What is your favorite food? Anything ethnic, really.

7. Who has had the biggest influence in your life? High school debate teacher

8. Where is your favorite vacation spot? Hawaii followed by almost any other sunny beach.

9. What is your favorite season? Summer

10. Do you have a favorite quote, if so what is it? It changes from time to time; right now I would say “Cooking is the great divide between good eating and bad.” Barabara Kingsolver

Q&A with ASTE faculty member Brian Warnick

1. Where did you grow up? Lyman, WY

2. What Universities did you get your degree(s) from and why did you choose to go there?
BS – USU – 1994 – I chose Utah State because it is a family tradition. I am a 4th generation Aggie. My great-grandfather graduated from USU in agriculture in 1915.
MS – USU – 1998 – I chose to do my master’s degree with Gary Straquadine in secondary/post secondary agricultural education. This was a great choice!
PhD – Oregon State University – 2004 – I had the opportunity to work with some great people and to have a faculty position in agricultural education while working on my degree. We really enjoyed the Corvallis area and the Oregon Coast.

3. What got you interested in Ag? I always enjoyed the time I spent working on my grandparents’ farms and we always had livestock when I was growing up, but a career in agriculture was not on my radar screen initially. My bachelor’s degrees are in biology teaching and special education. During my first teaching job at Box Elder High School I was given an opportunity to teach agriculture classes and help advise the FFA chapter. I absolutely loved it!!! I was hooked and have never looked back.

4. What do you want to achieve while here at Utah State University? My goal is to fully prepare my students to become successful agriculture teachers and extension educators so they can make a positive difference in the lives of the next generation of agriculturists.

5. What are some of your hobbies? I enjoy golfing, gardening, Aggie basketball and football, and spending time with my family.

6. What is your favorite food? My wife’s chocolate chip cookies!

7. Who has had the biggest influence in your life? There are many great people who have influenced my life, but I would say my parents, my wife, and my kids have had the greatest influence in my life.

8. Where is your favorite vacation spot? Oregon Coast

9. What is your favorite season? Aggie Basketball Season! I also enjoy spring and fall in Cache Valley.

10. Do you have a favorite quote, if so what is it? I have lots of favorite quotes, but my current favorite quote is “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.”

Groundbreaking for new building set for tomorrow

The College of Agriculture at Utah State University will break ground on a new building located on the east side of the University’s historic quad that will be the center for 21st century agriculture research and teaching. The prestigious location highlights the continuing commitment of Utah State University to agriculture research, the agricultural industry and USU’s land-grant mission. The $43 million building will take two years to complete.

A groundbreaking ceremony is Tuesday, May 4, and begins at 2 p.m. at the building site. All are invited.

News of the groundbreaking follows the passage and signing of House Bill 282, sponsored by Sen. Lyle Hillyard and Rep. Fred Hunsaker of the Utah legislature. The bill released bond funds for the building approved by the legislature in the 2008 legislative session.

The 125,000-square-foot building will feature two main sections. The first will be comprised of three stories of high-tech laboratories and research space to be used by students and faculty. It will also house a new university-operated computer lab, lecture and classroom space and public areas. The second section is a four-story structure that will face south and house the faculty and administrative offices, replacing the existing Ag Science Building finished in 1955.

“What an exciting moment in the history of the College of Agriculture,” said Noelle Cockett, vice president for Extension and Agriculture. “We appreciate so much the support that was provided in securing the building’s funding. The research, education and outreach of those within the building will continue to make a significant contribution to Utah, and their outcomes will span the globe.”

100 Years Later.....

If one were to pass Phyllis Smith on campus at Utah State University, he or she probably wouldn’t notice anything unusual about her. She appears to be just another student pursuing an Ornamental Horticulture degree in USU’s College of Agriculture. But if one were to take a minute to get to know her, they might find out that she has an interesting story to tell. Smith will be graduating in May from the College of Ag exactly 100 years after her grandfather, Robert Haslam Stewart, did in 1910.

“I didn’t realize that I would be graduating exactly 100 years after my grandfather did until he was inducted into the College of Ag’s Hall of Honor in 2008,” she said with a smile. “It was then that I thought to myself, ‘this is pretty cool.’”

After spending the last few years in pursuit of her degree at USU, Smith is finally seeing the light at the end of a very long tunnel. The road to graduation is a process that has taken some 30 plus years for her to complete. After growing up in a small southern Idaho town and graduating high school, she pursued a degree from the College of Southern Idaho, eventually finishing with Associate of Arts degree. While attending school, though, she struggled in deciding what to do for a career. Then as she began to raise a family, the thought of continuing her education faded away. After moving many times throughout Utah, Smith ended up in Cache Valley when her husband accepted a job at USU. Once her kids were grown, she began auditing classes on campus and enrolled in an annuals and perennials class, which immediately sparked her interest.

“The rest is history from there,” she exclaimed. “It’s funny that I started my education pursuing a fine arts degree and ended up doing this. This is the last thing in the world that I would have expected to have done with my life 30 years ago. I grew up on a farm and I swore that I would have nothing to do with farming or agriculture, but look at me now.”

Although Smith interacted with her grandfather regularly during his life, she didn’t connect him with USU until she received a book that he published about his life and the experiences he had.

“When I started to really pursue my degree here, I remember thinking, ‘this is where Grandpa went,’” she said with a chuckle. “I sure hope he is proud of me.”

Stewart had a large impact on Utah agriculture during his life. After graduating from the College of Ag in 1910, he became Utah’s first county agriculture Extension agent. He began his work in 1913 in the Carbon and Emery counties, and eventually headed north to lead Extension efforts in Box Elder County. Always involved in the community, he started 4-H clubs early on, which were known then as Boys and Girls Clubs. With the backing of the Farm Bureau leaders, he promoted the county fair in Tremonton and Dairy Days and Peach Days in Brigham City. He also promoted community beautification projects such as the Main Street tree lining in Brigham City. In addition, he also organized rabbit extermination drives and helped establish a dental cooperative so farm families could afford adequate dental care. Throughout his agricultural career, Stewart encouraged use of superior livestock breeds, grains and fruit varieties, and emphasized weed control and soil conservation.

Although Smith is unsure what she will do with her Ornamental Horticulture degree once she graduates, she is very proud to graduate from the same college that her grandfather did 100 years ago.

“I am thinking of maybe doing some graduate work,” she explained. “No matter what I end up doing, this experience has been really cool.”

Silvana Martini Awarded College of Ag Faculty Researcher of the Year

Silvana has amassed a most impressive record of research productivity and achievement during her four and a half years at USU.

The central focus of Silvana's research program is to understand mechanisms involved with lipid crystallization and how these processes can be controlled to improve food quality and nutrition. This unique area of research has great potential al1d importance to the food industry. For example, Silvana is looking at how ultrasonic processing effects crystallization of unsaturated fats so to mimic characteristics observed with saturated fats. This is an unexplored area that will be key to developing alternative processing strategies for production of healthy food products with good physiochemical and sensory characteristics.

As a doctoral student and post doctoral associate she published frequently before coming to USU including 18 refereed papers, one book chapter and 21 presentations at scientific meetings. She has built on that record since arriving at USU. Her remarkable intellectual and research productivity at USU includes 15 refereed articles in very good journals, four invited book chapters (plus two other submitted), a provisional patent, and 27 presentations.

Silvana has received over $1.8 million in research funding since becoming a faculty member. Most of that funding was through nationally competitive mechanisms and this confirms her ability to compete for extramural funding on a national scale. On those grants where Silvana was co-PI, she had well defined roles that were key to the success of the overall projects. On those grants where Silvana was PI, she both contributed her individual scientific expertise and demonstrated an ability to motivate, organize and coordinate interdisciplinary teams of researchers.

The College of Ag Welcomes Earl Creech

The College of Agriculture at Utah State University welcomes Earl Creech as assistant professor and extension agronomist in the plants, soils and climate department. Creech’s scientific background is in corn and soybean production, weed science and agronomy.

Creech comes back to his roots in Cache Valley where he was born and raised. He attended USU receiving a bachelor’s degree in chemistry with a minor in agronomy (2001) and a master’s degree in weed science (2003). He headed to West Layfette, Ind. to attend Purdue University graduating with a doctorate in weed science specializing in soybean production (2007).

Creech spent the last two years working for the University of Nevada, Reno as an Extension weed specialist. He worked on a variety of projects helping agriculture professionals increase production output while lowering production costs.

He is excited to be back in Cache Valley and to start working with farmers around the state to improve agricultural production.

“This is my dream job,” he said. “Since I was little I always wanted to have this job. It’s wild that it has actually happened.”

Some of the challenges that Creech for sees for Utah farmers are finding ways for them to make a living. With the rising costs of fertilizers, seed and equipment farmers are forced to find new and improved ways to produce more at a lower cost.

“I will be spending a lot of time on the road,” he said. “I need to see first hand the problems that Utah farmers are facing.”

Creech will be reaching out to agriculture community through workshops, meetings, field tours, publications and Web based communications.

Crook Awarded College of Ag Undergraduate Researcher of the Year

Jeremy began to learn about plants by working in landscaping and collecting house plants. At one point he had over 250 house plants which he cared for and studied. Utah State University was a logical place where he could continue developing this passion for plants. During his time at USU, he has worked as a landscape manager, an aquatic plant propagator, a nursery manager, and a chokecherry researcher. In 2008 and 2009 Jeremy was awarded an Undergraduate Research and Creative Opportunities (URCO) grant to research chokecherries with Dr. Brent Black. There have been many opportunities to present this research at a national level. His research has been presented at the National Controlled Environment NCERA – 101 meeting in Park City, the USU Undergraduate Research Symposium, the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) national conference in St. Louis, MO, and Research on Capitol Hill in Salt Lake City.

Jeremy has been actively engaged with several national horticulture groups including the International Plant Propagators Society (IPPS), where he is a Bruce Briggs Scholar; the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS), where he is the National President for the undergraduate Association of Collegiate Branches (ACB); and is a member of the floriculture, propagation, and graduate working groups. He is also involved with the OFA, an Association of Horticulture Professionals whose focus is in floriculture, and he hopes to be an OFA Scholar in Ohio this summer. His leadership experiences on campus at USU include being voted as president of the National Honors Society in Floriculture, Phi Alpha Xi, Alpha Nu chapter and also working as the President of the Plant Science Club. Jeremy has shared his passion with those around him and helped others involved in horticulture see the many opportunities that exist in this field.

This summer Jeremy will begin a PhD in Plant and Environmental Science at Clemson University in South Carolina. At Clemson he will be working on water conservation in propagation of floriculture crops and studying the fluxes of water through propagules during the propagation rooting stages. His goal is to become a professor, educator and mentor to students all over the world. He looks forward to continued learning and research on plants and sharing that passion and knowledge with those around him.