UA’s Bumpers College presents student awards
April 17, 2009Contact Information:
Howell Medders or Fred Miller, U of A Division of Agriculture Communications
479-575-5647, hmedders@uark.edu / fmiller@uark.edu
To download photos of individual award winners, see http://bumperscollege.uark.edu/vision/extra/awards.spring09.html
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Interim Dean Lalit Verma presented awards recognizing accomplishments of students in Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas during an awards banquet Thursday, April 16, in the Arkansas Union’s Alltel Ballroom.
Ashley D. Jones and Jason Davis received the John W. White Outstanding Student award.
Jones, the daughter of James and Jan Jones of Lincoln, is an agricultural business major with a minor in global agricultural, food and life sciences. She participated in a summer service project to develop a garden for St. Matthew’s School in Pomona, Belize, for two years. She will begin graduate studies in agricultural economics this fall at Kansas State University.
Davis, the son of Allen and Karen Davis of Paragould, is an agricultural education, communication and technology major. He has served as a state FFA officer and works for the national FFA presenting conferences. He will begin a master’s degree program this fall in agricultural systems and technology.
Two human development and family science majors, Kacie Liana Schack and Brittany L. Peyrot, are receiving the First Ranked Senior Scholar award, which signifies a 4.0 grade point average during four years as a Bumpers College student.
Schack, the daughter of Bernard and Tammy Schack of Edmond, Okla., contributed to two research projects in psychology and human development as an undergraduate. She plans to study social work in a master’s program at the University of Georgia.
Brittany Peyrot, the daughter of Nicky and Kathy Peyrot of Kingston, plans to pursue a career in secondary education. She conducted an undergraduate research project for which she received a Student Undergraduate Research Fellowship grant from the Arkansas Department of Education and presented her findings at the National Council on Family Relations.
Holly Minard, the daughter of Harry Minard and Susan Lott of Shreveport, La., received the Senior Scholar award, which signifies a 4.0 grade point average with some credit hours from other colleges. She is an animal science major in the pre-veterinary medicine program and was a summer intern at the Royal School of Veterinary Studies in Edinburgh, Scotland.
The Dale Bumpers Distinguished Scholars award is presented to an outstanding undergraduate transfer student and outstanding master’s and doctoral students.
The undergraduate transfer scholar award recipient is Levi Hudson, the son of Richard and Anita Hudson of Mount Judea and a graduate of Jasper High School. Hudson transferred from North Arkansas College in Harrison and is a food, human nutrition and Hospitality major with a concentration in dietetics.
Two students were selected for the master’s scholar award, Vivian F. Aguiar and Garris T. Hudson.
Aguiar, a poultry science M.S. student, came to the U of A from McGill University in Canada where she was a molecular biology research assistant. Her thesis research is on the use of probiotics against pathogens that cause food safety concerns in poultry.
Hudson, the son of Nathan and Raelene Hudson of Siloam Springs, is pursuing a master’s degree in agricultural education, communication and technology. He plans to pursue a career as a high school agriculture teacher.
The doctoral scholar award went to Lakshmi Kannan, the daughter of Vasantha Kannan of Chennai, India. Her career goal is to develop biomedical applications through research in immnology, biotechnology and proteomics.
The Spitze Public Policy Legislative Internship recipient is Fendley Ragland, the son of Gerald and Yvonne Ragland of Harrison and a graduate of Harrison High School. His major is agricultural business. The award includes funding for an internship with a member of Congress in Washington, D.C.
The Presidential Scholar Award recipient was Betsy Barnard as the student with the highest grade point average after having earned at least 45 credit hours. The daughter of Charlie and Laura Barnard of Wichita Falls, Texas, is a junior majoring in human development and family sciences with a concentration in child development.
The Bumpers College Alumni Society sponsors the Greg Weidemann Scholarship and names two Ring Scholars who each receive a class ring when they graduate.
The Weidemann Scholarship recipient is Amanda Simpson, the daughter of James and Linda Simpson of Cave Springs. A junior agricultural business major with a minor in global agricultural, food and life sciences, she is president of Collegiate Farm Bureau and will be an Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service intern in Tulsa County in the summer of 2009.
The two Ring Scholars are Julie E. Reavis and Christopher L. Hunt.
Reavis, the daughter of David and Karen Reavis of Texarkana, is a foods, human nutrition and hospitality major with a concentration in dietetics and plans to complete a dietetics internship upon graduation. She is active in Sigma Phi Lambda service sorority, the Dietetics Student Association and Baptist Collegiate Ministries.
Christopher Lee Hunt, the son of James and Peggy Hunt of Paragould, is an agricultural education, communication and technology major. He has been active in Arkansas FFA, Collegiate FFA/4-H, AEED REPS, and the UA Livestock Judging Team. He plans to pursue a career as either an agricultural science Instructor or in the Cooperative Extension Service.
Departmental Honors
Outstanding seniors and graduate students named by each academic department in Bumpers College were as follows.
Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness: Ashley Jones, Senior; Corey J. Fortin, M.S.
Agricultural and Extension Education: Jason A. Davis, Senior; Garris Taylor Whiteside Hudson, M.S.
Animal Science: Amy R. Guernsey, Senior; Matt Rowe, Outstanding Transfer Student; Jana Reynolds, M.S.; James D. Caldwell, Ph.D.
Biological and Agricultural Engineering: Rebecca Anne Logsdon, Senior; Julie Abbott, M.S.; Naresh Pai, Ph.D.
Crop, Soil, and Environmental Sciences: Keshia M. Koehn, Senior; Landon Linn Ries, M.S.; Vinod Shivrain, Ph.D.
Entomology: Sandra Sleezer, M.S.; Laurel J. Haavik, Ph.D.;
Food Science: Christopher F. Peluso, Senior; M. Graves, M.S.; Fernanda de Oliveira Onofre, Ph.D.
Horticulture: Cody Howard, Senior; Jon M. Trappe, M.S.; J. Chris Stiegler, Ph.D.
Plant Pathology: Terry Neil Spurlock, M.S.; Peter Horevaj, Ph.D.
Poultry Science: Betsy Conner, Senior; Vivian Ferraroni Aguiar, M.S.; Lakshmi Kannan, Ph.D.
School of Human Environmental Sciences: A. Caroline Prenger, Senior; Alicia D. McLelland, M.S.