NDSU faculty assume ag leadership roles

Friday, August 29, 2008 12:15 PM CDT

The North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station and North Dakota State University's College of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Natural Resources have appointed two faculty members to administrative positions.

Catherine Logue, associate professor in the Department of Veterinary and Microbiological Sciences, has agreed to accept a partial appointment as assistant director of the North Dakota Agricul-tural Experiment Station.

With her 30 percent appointment, Logue will be responsible for reviewing North Dakota Agricultural Experiment Station and federal Hatch Act-funded project proposals and Current Research Information System reports. She takes over that role from Don Kirby, now the director of NDSU's School of Natural Resource Sciences.

Dwain Meyer, professor in the Department of Plant Sciences, has agreed to serve as interim chair of the department. Meyer began his duties on Aug. 1 and will remain in the position until a national search for a permanent head is completed successfully.

Mott Grain & Agronomy wins national Environmental Stewardship Award

Mott Grain & Agronomy of Mott, N.D., was named the national winner of the 2008 Environmental Respect Awards, announced recently on Capitol Hill.

The company was one of five U.S. regional award winners in the running for the national award presented by Global Marketing Manager of DuPont Crop Protection Rik Miller, and K. Elliott Nowels of CropLife magazine.

The Environmental Respect Awards, sponsored by CropLife magazine and DuPont Crop Protection, are the agricultural industry's highest recognition for environmental stewardship among U.S. agricultural retailers, those who serve farmers and ranchers with the nutrients, pest control and agronomic information and services critical to effective crop production.

Mott Grain & Agronomy won the award based on excellence in site design, in-plant storage and handling procedures, proper application and leadership in safety and stewardship among customers and employees.

According to Todd E. Kautzman, president of Mott Grain & Agronomy, the company has worked hard to create and maintain a workplace that is safe for the employees, the community, and the environment.

Representatives from Mott Grain will also have the opportunity to visit one of the 2008 Environmental Respect Award international winner's locations on an agricultural tour early next year. For more information on the Environmental Respect Awards, visit  www.environmentalrespect.com.

Berzonsky leads SDSU winter wheat breeding program

BROOKINGS, S.D. - Bill Berzonsky will take charge of the South Dakota State University winter wheat breeding program Sept. 2, 2008.

Berzonsky comes to SDSU after serving as an associate professor at North Dakota State University, where he led the specialty spring wheat breeding program. He also served as a leader with the Ohio State University's winter wheat breeding program and as a research agronomist in the winter wheat and oat breeding program at Purdue University.

After he received his bachelor's degree in botany from the University of Maryland, Berzonsky completed a master's degree in plant sciences at the University of Delaware. He received his doctorate in agronomy at the University of Missouri in 1988.

He is the co-author of two book chapters, and has co-authored or authored the release of 23 wheat germplasm lines. Berzonsky was a member of the U.S. Wheat Associate breeding teams that toured Asian and Latin American countries to assess the wheat quality requirements of buyers of U.S. located in those countries.

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