Catchmark receives College of Agricultural Sciences Research Innovators Award

April 5, 2018

Jeffrey Catchmark, professor of agricultural and biological engineering, is a recipient of the Research Innovators Award, given by Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences to recognize faculty and staff who have commercialized technologies generated through Penn State research.

Penn State Ag Sci devotees' gifts endow scholarship, name office in new building

April 5, 2018

With a $30,000 gift matched 2:1 by the University, alumnus John Graham and his wife, Carol, have established the John and Carol Graham Open Doors Scholarship in the College of Agricultural Sciences. With an additional $30,000 contribution, they named the office of the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department chair in the soon-to-be-completed Agricultural Engineering Building at University Park.

Cocoa bean roasting can preserve both chocolate health benefits, taste

April 4, 2018

Manipulating the temperature and the length of time under which cocoa beans are roasted can simultaneously preserve and even boost the potency of some bioactive and antioxidant compounds while protecting desired sensory aspects of chocolate, according to Penn State researchers.

Research opportunities open new doors for biorenewable systems student

April 4, 2018

Janelle Thompson, a junior majoring in biorenewable systems with a minor in sustainable leadership, has found her niche at Penn State with the help of the opportunities she has had through undergraduate research.

College of Agricultural Sciences welcomes landscape contracting professor

April 3, 2018

Margaret Hoffman recently joined Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences as assistant professor of landscape contracting.

Institute for CyberScience announces 2018 ICS Seed Grant recipients

April 2, 2018

The Institute for CyberScience (ICS) has announced the recipients of the 2018 ICS Seed Grant awards. This year, 18 researchers will receive funding from ICS. More than $413,000 is being awarded through this program.

Faculty, student research eyes historic estate forests for preservation

April 2, 2018

A Penn State DuBois faculty-and-student team's research, focused on the estate properties of Thomas Edison, Theodore Roosevelt and Frederick Vanderbilt, is aimed at preserving the historic forest as it was when the estate's original owners inhabited these properties.

Penn State announces 2018 University-wide faculty and staff awards

April 2, 2018

Each year, Penn State recognizes outstanding faculty and staff with annual awards in teaching and excellence. The invitation-only ceremony for the 2018 awards is Tuesday, April 3, at University Park.

Penn State-developed plant disease app recognized by Google

April 2, 2018

A mobile app designed by Penn State researchers to help farmers and others diagnose crop diseases has earned recognition from one of the world's tech giants. PlantVillage, developed by a team led by David Hughes, associate professor of entomology and biology, was the subject of a keynote video presented at Google's TensorFlow Development Summit 2018, held March 30 in Mountain View, California.

Six faculty members receive 2018 Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching

April 2, 2018

Six Penn State faculty members have received the 2018 George W. Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching — Fred Aebli, information sciences and technology program co-coordinator and lecturer at Penn State Worthington Scranton; Elaine S. Barry, associate professor of human development and family studies at Penn State Fayette; Mary Connerty, senior lecturer in English at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College; Dennis Decoteau, professor of horticulture and plant system health in the College of Agricultural Sciences; Fred Fonseca, associate professor of information sciences and technology in the College of Information Sciences and Technology; and Michael Janik, professor of chemical engineering in the College of Engineering.

Read recognized with 2018 President’s Award for Academic Integration

April 2, 2018

Andrew Read, Evan Pugh University Professor of Biology and Entomology in the Eberly College of Science and the College of Agricultural Sciences, has been awarded the 2018 President’s Award for Excellence in Academic Integration.

Mortensen named recipient of 2018 Graduate Faculty Teaching Award

April 2, 2018

David Mortensen, professor of weed and applied plant ecology in College of Agricultural Sciences, has received the 2018 Graduate Faculty Teaching Award.

Six receive Faculty Scholar Medals

April 2, 2018

Six University faculty members have received 2018 Faculty Scholar Medals for Outstanding Achievement -- John M. Carroll, distinguished professor of information sciences and technology; Neil Christensen, professor of pathology, and microbiology and immunology; Bernhard Luscher, professor of biology, biochemistry and molecular biology; Sandra Spanier, liberal arts professor of English; Qing Wang, professor of materials science and engineering; and Fuqing Zhang, professor of meteorology and atmospheric sciences.

Patterson is 2018 recipient of Faculty Outreach Award

April 2, 2018

Paul H. Patterson, professor of poultry science in the animal sciences department in College of Agricultural Sciences, has received the 2018 Faculty Outreach Award.

To know the crow: Insights and stories from over a quarter century of crow study

April 1, 2018

Researcher, author and educator Kevin McGowan will recount the results of his 30-year study of more than 2,500 individual crows -- including their home and family life, flock life, and crow-human interactions -- at 5 p.m. on April 4 in 112 Forest Resources Building on Penn State's University Park campus.

Greater omega-3 fatty-acid enrichment of eggs, poultry meat is goal of research

April 1, 2018

Research in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences aims to fortify foods people frequently eat — eggs and chicken — with heart-healthy, long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.

More accurate estimates of methane emissions from dairy cattle developed

March 29, 2018

Leading the worldwide effort to get a better handle on methane emissions from animals, an international consortium of researchers devised more accurate models to estimate the amount of the potent greenhouse gas produced by dairy cattle.

Investing in public education earns high marks for greater upward mobility

March 28, 2018

Investing in public education may boost upward economic mobility — and ease income inequality, something that is becoming a big concern for economists and policymakers in the United States.

$2.1 million enables creation of decision-support tools for pollinator health

March 27, 2018

The Center for Pollinator Research at Penn State, in collaboration with researchers at the University of California, Davis; the University of Minnesota; and Dickinson College will receive more than $2 million from the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research and the United States Department of Agriculture to translate basic research into online decision support tools to help beekeepers and land managers maintain and expand populations of managed and wild bees.

41 graduate students earn awards at 33rd annual Graduate Exhibition

March 27, 2018

Forty-one graduate students received awards for their research and creative scholarship in the 33rd annual Graduate Exhibition, held March 23 and 25 on Penn State's University Park campus. A complete list of winners is available below.

$1M gift from Galen and Nancy Dreibelbis to support Pollinators' Garden

March 26, 2018

State College real estate developer Galen Dreibelbis, and his wife, Nancy, have committed $1 million to support construction of the new Pollinators’ Garden in the H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens.

Scholarship will aid Penn State New Kensington student in reaching goals

March 26, 2018

Daniel Stawowczyk, a landscape contracting major at Penn State New Kensington, was the recipient of a scholarship from Pucketos Garden Club that will help support his studies and dream of one day creating his own landscaping company.

Arboretum prescribed burn to be conducted between March 27 and March 30

March 23, 2018

The Arboretum at Penn State, in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy and the Pennsylvania Game Commission, will conduct a prescribed burn on a 12-acre portion of the Arboretum site between March 27 and March 30.

Kaye receives Black Award for excellence in research

March 23, 2018

Jason Kaye, professor of soil biogeochemistry, is the recipient of the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences' 2017 Alex and Jessie C. Black Award for Excellence in Research.

Sexsmith receives Roy C. Buck Award for paper on health care access

March 23, 2018

Kathleen Sexsmith, assistant professor of rural sociology in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, is the recipient of the college's 2017 Roy C. Buck Faculty Award, which recognizes the best article accepted or published by a refereed scholarly journal in the social sciences within the past two years.

Perkins named to National Academies committee on military family well-being

March 23, 2018

Daniel Perkins, founder and principal scientist of Penn State’s Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness and professor of youth and family resiliency and policy, was recently appointed to serve as a member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Committee on the Well-Being of Military Families.

Students explore entrepreneurial spirit of Israel over spring break

March 22, 2018

A group of Penn State students in the Entrepreneurship and Innovation minor traveled to Israel over spring break to explore the entrepreneurial spirit of the country, meet with policymakers, and get a taste of the culture in the Middle Eastern country.

Animal Science student sets her sights on veterinary school

March 20, 2018

Molly Rogus, who is majoring in animal science with an equine science minor in the College of Agricultural Sciences, will be starting veterinary school at Cornell University in the fall.

Penn State researchers tackling mushroom phorid fly infestations

March 19, 2018

Working with mushroom growers and residents in southern Chester County, Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences is ramping up ongoing research efforts to alleviate mushroom phorid fly infestations in southeastern Pennsylvania.

Author and chocolatier to visit College of Agricultural Sciences

March 19, 2018

Greg D'Alesandre, vice president of research and development and chocolate "sourcerer" of Dandelion Chocolate, a bean-to-bar chocolate factory in San Francisco, will be among the panelists for an in-depth discussion on chocolate research.

Media Contacts

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Media Contacts

  • Senior Public Relations Specialist/News Editor
  • Associate Director of Communications
  • Public Relations Specialist/Science Writer
  • Science and News Writer
  • Penn State Extension Writer (Marketing Communications Specialist)