Francesco Di Gioia

Francesco Di Gioia

Dr. Francesco Di Gioia came to Penn State in 2018 following a postdoc at the University of Florida and USDA ARS. His lab at Penn State focuses on addressing the needs of Pennsylvania’s vegetable industry by developing and facilitating the adoption of new technologies and efficient production systems. Immediately on arrival, he invested the first couple of months visiting vegetable farms and meeting growers, industry leaders, colleagues, and professionals to identify the primary challenges, opportunities, and research needs of the industry. This essential groundwork has established a robust framework for him to build a research program that integrates research and extension projects, covering a range of growing systems, production methods, and crops.

As a graduate student, post-doc, and faculty member, he has edited a multilingual book in English, Spanish and Italian and co-authored 73 peer-reviewed publications appearing in highly ranked journals and book series. Of these publications, 45 were produced while here at Penn State with seven of them first authored by his students. His work has been cited on Scopus 1,398 times, resulting in h-index of 23 and an i10 index of 36.

Since joining Penn State, Dr. Di Gioia has secured more than $7 million through 29 contracts and grants from over 9 funding agencies, including from USDA NIFA’s large programs such as OREI and SCRI, from USDA ARS, Open Philanthropy, the Pennsylvania Vegetable Grower Association, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, as well as industry partners.

His research excellence is amplified in the letters of support for his nomination that identify him as an excellent collaborator and outstanding leader so early in his career, building multi-regional networks across research, Extension, and education projects. His service to the college, University, and his disciplinary field are also impressive, having served on four editorial boards and as a special guest editor for several high-profile journals as well as a peer reviewer for manuscripts in a number of high-quality journals. He is also active in the American Society of Horticultural Science, including holding leadership positions in working groups. His service continues as a panel member for grant proposals across several agencies.

An important mission of Dr. Di Gioia’s research is to train the next generation of horticulture scientists and professionals. Overall, he has advised or co-advised five M.S. students who immediately after graduation have been successfully employed in the agricultural industry. He has also mentored a postdoctoral researcher that is now employed as a researcher in a multinational seed company (he is also in the process of hiring a new postdoc), and is currently advising three Ph.D. students, while a fourth Ph.D. student started this the Fall semester. Dr. Di Gioia has taken every opportunity to offer research internships and work opportunities to sixteen undergraduate students (including five minority students) from Penn State and other academic institutions. Notably, every year he has offered minority students the opportunity to do research in his lab through the Pennsylvania Space Grant, the Summer Research Opportunity Programs or through the NSF INCLUDES SEAS Islands Alliance.

In sum, Dr. Di Gioia has already earned the respect and admiration of his colleagues—his recent invitation as the Keynote Speaker for the International Soil Disinfestation Meeting held in Spain is a testament to this.