Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
Department of Soil and Crop Sciences

Department Celebrates Spring 2023 Graduation

The Department of Soil and Crop Sciences congratulates twenty-six of our newest graduates for the spring 2023 semester!

A total of 11 undergraduates were celebrated during the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences commencement ceremony on Thursday, May 11, and 15 total graduates during the master’s degree commencement and doctoral hooding ceremony on Saturday, May 13.

We are very proud of you for the efforts you have made throughout your time with the department and wish each of you the very best in the next phase of your life!

Undergraduate Students:

  • Sophia Arista: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis
  • Piper Hansen: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis
  • Tyler Jamerson: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis
  • Ty Jansky: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis
  • Ryan Schronk: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis
  • Gabrielle Scott: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Soil and Water Emphasis
  • Scott Bacon: Bachelor of Science, Turfgrass Science
  • Thomas Hauser: Bachelor of Science, Turfgrass Science
  • Jean-Marie Holmes: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis
  • Chadwick Watters: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis
  • Micaela Murphy: Bachelor of Science, Plant and Environmental Soil Sciences, Crops Emphasis

Graduate Students – Master of Science:

  • Kisman Bhattarai: Master of Science, Agronomy. Bhattari is supervised by Nithya Rajan, Ph.D.
  • Gustavo Camargo Silva: Master of Science, Agronomy. Silva is supervised by Muthu Bagavathiannan, Ph.D.
  • Jose Diaz: Master of Science, Agronomy. Diaz is supervised by Ben Wherley, Ph.D.
  • Jonathan Huynh: Master of Science, Plant Breeding. Huynh is supervised by Russ Jessup, Ph.D.
  • Mitchell Kent: Master of Science, Plant Breeding. Kent is supervised by Bill Rooney, Ph.D.
  • Fabian Leon: Master of Science, Plant Breeding. Leon is supervised by Bill Rooney, Ph.D.
  • Morgan McCulloch: Master of Science, Agronomy. McCulloch is supervised by Regan Noland, Ph.D.
  • Alexis Schultz: Master of Science, Plant Breeding. Schultz is supervised by Steve Hague, Ph.D.

Graduate Students – Doctoral:

  • Catherine Danmaigona Clement: Ph.D., Plant Breeding. Clement is co-supervised by Steve Hague, Ph.D., and Jane Dever, Ph.D.
  • Will Dodge: Ph.D., Plant Breeding. Dodge is supervised by Steve Hague, Ph.D., and Jane Dever, Ph.D.
  • Jake Gendron: Ph.D., Plant Breeding. Gendron is supervised by Wayne Smith, Ph.D.
  • Sarah Kezar: Ph.D., Agronomy. Kezar is supervised by Muthu Bagavathiannan, Ph.D.
  • Rahul Raman: Ph.D., Agronomy. Raman is supervised by Nithya Rajan, Ph.D.
  • Sayantan Samanta: Ph.D., Water Management and Hydrological Science. Samanta is supervised by Cristine Morgan, Ph.D., and Julie Howe, Ph.D.
  • Shilpa Singh: Ph.D., Agronomy. Singh is supervised by Muthu Bagavathiannan, Ph.D.

Students recognized at 2023 spring banquet

Dr. Sam Feagley speaking to the audience

Sam Feagley, Ph.D. speaks to the audience at the 30th Annual Department of Soil and Crop Sciences Awards and Recognition Banquet. Photos by Beth McClosky.

The Department of Soil and Crop Sciences congratulates all our students who received scholarships and awards during its annual Awards and Recognition Banquet held on Thursday, April 13 at the Annenberg Presidential Conference Center.

Former professor Sam Feagley, Ph.D., delivered the keynote address.

The 2022-2023 Soil and Crop Sciences Outstanding Students were recognized. The recipients of the Outstanding Plant and Environmental Soil Science Student Awards are:

  • Hallie Cook: Outstanding Freshman
  • Jenna Mark: Outstanding Sophomore
  • Chris Barron: Outstanding Junior
  • Ryan Schronk: Outstanding Senior

The recipients of the Outstanding Turfgrass Science Student Awards are:

  • Cabot Ellis: Outstanding Freshman
  • Brandon Moczygemba: Outstanding Sophomore
  • Megan Muesse: Outstanding Junior
  • Canute Janish: Outstanding Senior

Scholarships were also awarded during the evening to several students, including:

  • Aliyah Abdur-Razzaq: Nathan R. Boles ’63 Norman Borlaug Endowed Scholarship
  • Gabriel Baguso: Dr. Cleveland and Frances Gerard Scholarship
  • Christopher Barron: H&H Ranch Scholarship, Luther Jones Outstanding Junior Scholarship, Milton and Carolyn E. McDaniel ’75 Scholarship, Pat and Ed Runge Future Leaders Endowed Scholarship
  • Brandon Bei: Milton and Carolyn E. McDaniel ’75 Scholarship, Dean Ide P. Trotter Sr. Memorial Scholarship
  • Meredith Clay: Luther Jones Outstanding Junior Scholarship, Milton and Carolyn E. McDaniel ’75 Scholarship, and Olin and Thelma Smith Scholarship
  • Hallie Cook: H&H Ranch Scholarship, Morris G. Merkle Endowed Scholarship, Henry Jean Mills Memorial Scholarship, Billie B. and Gloria S. Turner Production Scholarship
  • Emily Cox: McAfee Memorial Scholarship
  • Cabot Ellis: Texas Turfgrass Research Education Extension Scholarship, Jack Hulgan Memorial Scholarship, Sequor Foundation Endowed Turfgrass Scholarship
  • Arturo Espana: Warren and Helen Church Scholarship, Candelario ‘Cande’ Gonzalez ’74 Scholarship, Kenneth Lindsey Memorial Scholarship
  • Alex Gage: James Hubert Foster Scholarship, Kenneth and Marion Porter Endowed Scholarship, Billie B. and Gloria S. Turner Production Scholarship
  • Brook Isbell: J.C. and Judy Blue Undergraduate Scholarship, Ezra “Ezzy” Leschber Memorial Scholarship, Milton and Carolyn E. McDaniel ’75 Scholarship
  • Stadler Kirsten: Billie B. and Gloria S. Turner Production Scholarship
  • Ted Machacek: Paul Drummet Texas Turfgrass Scholarship, Sequor Foundation Endowed Turfgrass Scholarship
  • Alejandro Macias: Dean Ide P. Trotter Sr. Memorial Scholarship, Billie B. and Gloria S. Turner Production Scholarship
  • Andrew Marchetti: James Hubert Foster Scholarship, H&H Ranch Scholarship, Dick Holland Endowed Scholarship, Olin and Thelma Smith Endowed Scholarship, Texas Seed Trade Association Scholarship
  • Jenna Mark: Milton and Carolyn E. McDaniel ’75 Scholarship, Billie B. and Gloria S. Turner Production Scholarship
  • Brandon Moczygemba: Sequor Foundation Endowed Turfgrass Scholarship, Joseph D. Whitaker ’63 Scholarship
  • Megan Muesse: A.W. Barbara Crain Scholarship and the Keith Ebanks Memorial Scholarship
  • Paige Patel: J.F. Mills Endowed Scholarship
  • Dillon Petri: Charles A. Schneider ’70 Memorial Scholarship and the Charles ’63 and Lynann ’66 Simpson Endowed Scholarship
  • Maverick Raesz: Martha F. and Albert Novosad ’47 ’54 Scholarship
  • Gabriel Ramthun: Allen and Joan Wiese Endowed Scholarship
  • Carson Reed: Sequor Foundation Endowed Turfgrass Scholarship
  • Elliott Sankus: Sequor Foundation Endowed Turfgrass Scholarship, Texas Turfgrass Association Scholarship
  • Takanori Someya: Cecil and Ola Beasley Goodman Undergraduate Scholarship, Sunoco Energy Development Endowed Scholarship
  • Joshua Swaringen: J.C. and Judy Blue Undergraduate Scholarship
  • Reed Terrell: Billie B. and Gloria S. Turner Production Scholarship
  • Rute Tesfay: Billy, Gloria and Gerry Conrad Scholarship, Billie B. and Gloria S. Turner Production Scholarship
  • Ren Uyehara: Bill McLaughlin Texas Turfgrass Scholarship, Sequor Foundation Endowed Turfgrass Scholarship
  • Caden Vick: Frances and Miles Hall ’39 Endowed Scholarship, Allen and Joan Wiese Endowed Scholarship
  • Pedro Villanueva: Nathan R. Boles ’63 Norman Borlaug Endowed Scholarship
  • Logan Vincent: Joe S. Campise Memorial Scholarship, Dick Holland Endowed Scholarship
  • Heston Vollmering: Allen Mengers Memorial Scholarship, Sunoco Energy Development Scholarship

Banquet attendees also learned about the department’s student organization activities and accomplishments and departmental activities and accomplishments throughout the academic year.

Department announces awards during annual meeting

Ambika Chandra, Ph.D. (center) with her award. Standing with Chandra is B.B Singh, Ph.D. (left) and David Baltensperger, Ph.D., professor and department head.

Ambika Chandra, Ph.D. (center) receiving the B.B. Singh Award for Outstanding Research in Crop Sciences. Standing with Chandra is B.B Singh, Ph.D. (left) and David Baltensperger, Ph.D., professor and department head.

Congratulations to all our faculty, staff and students who received awards during the Soil and Crop Sciences’ annual meeting held on January 14 in College Station.

The department recognized the retirement of Dr. Jaroy Moore, Director, Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Lubbock. Moore has been with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service for 53 years. He served as the station leader in Pecos in 1977, then became resident director in El Paso in 1995 before he became the director in Lubbock in 1998.

Fifteen faculty, staff, and students were also recognized and presented with the following awards:

Special Award

B.B. Singh Award for Outstanding Research in Crop Sciences: Ambika Chandra, Ph.D.

Administrative

Administrative Support: Alisa Hairston

Extension Awards

Extension Faculty Award: Scott Nolte, Ph.D.

Collaborating County Extension Agent: Shane McLellan, Ph.D.

Technical/Extension Staff Support: – Field Support: Kyle Turner

Special Service/Recognition: Texas Wheat Producers Board and Association, Amarillo, TX
Rodney Mosier, Executive Vice President and Ms. Steelee Fischbacher, Director of Policy

Research Awards

Research Faculty: Paul DeLaune, Ph.D

Graduate Student Research – Agronomy: Chengsong Hu

Graduate Student Research – Plant Breeding: Zhen Wang

Graduate Student Research – Soil Science: Harrison Cocker

Research Support – Field Support: Dale Mott

Research Support – Lab Support: Chantel Scheuring

Technical Staff Support: Vicki Gergeni

Postdoctoral Research: Heng-An Lin, Ph.D.

Teaching Awards

Teaching – Faculty: William (Bill) Rooney, Ph.D.

Graduate Student Teaching: Andrew Osburn

Department Celebrates Fall 2022 Graduation

Congratulations to all our students who are expected to graduate this December! We are very proud of you for the efforts you have made throughout your time with the department and wish each of you the very best in the next phase of your life!

Undergraduate Students:

  • Silas Chase: Bachelor of Science – Plant and Environmental Soil Science –  Crops Emphasis
  • Keegan Crawford: Bachelor of Science – Plant and Environmental Soil Science – Crops Emphasis
  • Connor Destefano: Bachelor of Science – Plant and Environmental Soil Science – Crops Emphasis
  • Alexis Gomez: Bachelor of Science – Plant and Environmental Soil Science – Crops Emphasis
  • John McCurdy: Bachelor of Science – Plant and Environmental Soil Science – Crops Emphasis
  • Tristan Suggs: Bachelor of Science – Plant and Environmental Soil Science  – Crops Emphasis
  • Trenton Sulak: Bachelor of Science – Plant and Environmental Soil Science – Crops Emphasis
  • Casey Harman: Bachelor of Science – Turfgrass Science

Graduate Students:

  • McKenzie Barth: Master of Science, Agronomy
  • Cassie Reed: Master of Science, Agronomy
  • Kayla Beechinor: Master of Science, Plant Breeding
  • Ozge Ekinci: Master of Science, Plant Breeding
  • Tyler Malone: Master of Science, Plant Breeding
  • Tyler Reese: Master of Science, Plant Breeding
  • Noah Winans: Master of Science, Plant Breeding
  • Jackson Nielsen: Ph.D., Agronomy
  • Rohith Vulchi: Ph.D., Agronomy
  • Mustafa Cilkiz, Ph.D., Molecular and Environmental Plant Sciences
  • Christian Hitzelberger: Ph.D., Plant Breeding
  • Karina Morales: Ph.D., Plant Breeding
  • Joseph Burke: Ph.D. Soil Science
  • Bidemi Fashina: Ph.D. Soil Science

Congratulations August 2022 Graduates!

The Department of Soil and Crop Sciences would like to congratulate our newest graduates for the Spring 2022 semester! We are proud of you for the efforts you have made throughout your time with the department and wish each of you the very best in the next phase of your life!

Undergraduate Students

  • Joshua Kostroun, B.S., Plant and Environmental Sciences
  • Ross Mikolajczyk, B.S., Plant and Environmental Sciences

Graduate Students

  • Conlan Burbrink, Master of Science, Agronomy
  • Jamshaid Junaid, Ph.D., Plant Breeding
  • Ammani Kyanam, Ph.D., Plant Breeding
  • Xiaoqing Shen, Ph.D., Agronomy
  • Homa Zarghami, Ph.D., Molecular and Environmental Plant Sciences

Congratulations Spring 2022 Graduates

The Department of Soil and Crop Sciences would like to congratulate our newest graduates for the Spring 2022 semester! We are proud of you for the efforts you have made throughout your time with the department and wish each of you the very best in the next phase of your life!

Undergraduate Students

  • Steven Accrocco – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Grace Bodine – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Soil and Water Emphasis
  • Steven Botello – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Jaycie Braune – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Cameron Colvin – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Aaron Cormier – B.S. Turfgrass Science
  • Eduardo Jose De La Garza – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science
  • Koehler Doucette – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Keaton Emerson – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Lane Grymes – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Hanna Insley – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Soil and Water Emphasis
  • Mackenzie Jeter – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Kurt Korenek – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Ty Korenek – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Ariana Lazo – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Soil and Water Emphasis
  • Jessica Loera – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Andrew McFarland – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Soil and Water Emphasis
  • Christopher O’Brien – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Soil and Water Emphasis
  • Ty Riley – B.S. Turfgrass Science
  • Cosme Rodriguez – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Brody Schmalriede – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Andrew Stolte – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Crops Emphasis
  • Kathryn Watkins – B.S. Plant and Environmental Soil Science, Soil and Water Emphasis

Graduate Students

  • Alper Adak – Ph.D. in Plant Breeding advised by Dr. Seth Murray.
  • Ilse Barrios Perez – Ph.D. in Molecular Environmental Plant Sciences, advised by Dr. Dirk Hays.
  • Sudip Biswas – Ph.D. in Plant Breeding, advised by Dr. Endang Septiningsih
  • Aya Bridgeland – M.S. in Plant Breeding, She is advised by Dr. Endang Septiningsih
  • Annalee Epps – M.S. in Soil Science. She is advised by Dr. Julie Howe and Dr. Peyton Smith.
  • Aditi Pandey – Ph.D. in Soil Science. She is advised by Dr. Paul Schwab.
  • Bishwa Sapkota – Ph.D. in Agronomy. He is advised by Dr. Muthu Bagavathiannan
  • Megan Shawgo – M.S. in Plant Breeding – Non Thesis option
  • Nicholas Shepard – M.S. in Plant Breeding – Non Thesis option
  • Nicole Shigley – M.S. in Soil Science. She is advised by Dr. Peyton Smith
  • Rajan Shrestha – Ph.D. in Agronomy. He is advised by Dr. Curtis Adams and Dr. Nithya Rajan.
  • Binita Thapa – Ph.D. in Soil Science. She is advised by Dr. Jake Mowrer.
  • Braden Tondre – M.S. in Agronomy. He is advised by Dr. Steve Hague.

 

Redmon, Adak Receive Vice Chancellor’s Awards in Excellence

Congratulations to Larry Redmon, Ph.D. and Ph.D student Alper Adak who received Vice Chancellor Awards in Excellence this year. These awards recognize the commitment and outstanding contributions displayed by faculty, students and staff members across Texas A&M AgriLife.

Extension Education Awards

The Extension Specialist or Program Specialist Award was presented to Larry Redmon, Ph.D., professor and associate department head and AgriLife Extension program leader. Redmon’s educational presentations and seminars bring participants into the conversation, along with his expertise and ability to entertain audiences. The Ranch Management University, which draws participants from around the world, is one example. Evaluations have proven the annual event is highly effective in helping people adopt ranch management practices and land stewardship with an economic impact of $84 million. Redmon also spearheads the Bennett Trust programs. One of these programs caters specifically to women, providing them with the knowledge needed to make land stewardship and natural resource management decisions. Many attendees are new landowners and have little knowledge of where to begin with land ownership.

Research Awards

The Graduate Student Research Award recipient was Alper Adak, a doctoral student in the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences. Since enrolling in his doctoral program in 2018, Adak has been the primary author of four peer-reviewed research articles, greatly exceeding the standard for students in his department. He has given invited talks at international conferences and been sought out as a peer reviewer for publications in his field. One of his accomplishments was to conceive of and create a way to utilize unmanned aircraft systems data from the corn breeding and quantitative genetics program to predict yield and flowering times. However, his primary project is to identify genes responsible for the late flowering of Texas A&M AgriLife germplasm in northern climates. His poster on that work won first prize in the largest division at the Crop Science Society International Meeting in 2019.

A full list of awards was announced in AgriLife Today.

Soil and Crop Sciences students among new student ambassadors at Texas A&M University

Three students in the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences here at Texas A&M are among the 11 selected to serve as ambassadors for the university.

Christopher Barron, Grace Bodine, Ariana Lazo, and the other ambassadors will share their Aggie pride and experiences as undergraduates with current students, as well as prospective students and their parents.

Read more about it here.

Student recaps summer internship with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension water programs

By: Beth Ann Luedeker

For ten weeks this summer, Chase Murphy, a junior majoring in ecological restoration, participated in a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension internship program in water resource protection and restoration. He recently discussed his experiences with faculty, staff and students via Zoom.

three people by creek with testing equipment

As part of the internship, Chase Murphy (kneeling) collected water samples and conducted tests on the Mill Creek near Bellville with Ed Rhodes and Gabriela Sosa of TWRI. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension photo by Ward Ling).

A main component of the internship, and a favorite part for Murphy, was sampling water quality in the Mill Creek Watershed near Bellville. Through a contract with Texas Water Resources Institute (TWRI), he participated in two sampling runs, and had the opportunity to use the same equipment used by water quality professionals. He took field measurements including transparency, water temperature, conductivity, pH, and dissolved oxygen, to name a few, and helped collect water samples for testing at the analytical laboratory.

Murphy also helped measure water flow in deep and shallow portions of the creeks using a river surveyor. This “boogie board” uses a Doppler flow sensor coupled with GPS to obtain highly accurate flow data.

“The river surveyor is calibrated by waving it around in the air,” Murphy said with a smile. “When they first told me to do that, I thought they were just hazing the new guy.”

young man with small raft covered by electronic equipment

Chase Murphy with the river surveyor used to collect flow data from the Mill Creek. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension photo by Ward Ling)

The internship included much more than the fieldwork. Murphy also received professional trainings, including learning how to manage and update the Texas Watershed Stewards (TWS) and the Mill Creek Project websites. He helped record audio and video clips explaining the basics of a watershed, and posted the video on YouTube. He also served as a “second pair of eyes” to review and proof contracts, press releases, and other documents.

Each week, Murphy met with the specialists to discuss different aspects of watershed management and topics that aligned with his desire to explore environmental consulting as a career. This information could help him stand out among other graduates when he is ready to enter the job market.

“One of the biggest things I got out of this internship is the relationship,” Murphy said. “Everyone worked very hard to help me and I learned a lot about the steps to take after college.”

two men by creek with testing equipment

Intern Chase Murphy keeps an eye on the river surveyor as Ed Rhodes of TWRI records measurements sent by the device. (Texas A&M AgriLife Extension photo by Ward Ling)

“Though there are many benefits to an internship such as this, one unique aspect that comes to mind is our genuine desire to provide applicable, real-world experience,” said Michael Kuitu, AgriLife Extension Program Specialist in the Department of Soil and Crop Sciences and one of the mentors for this internship. “We try our best to task an intern with the same, or similar, work we are doing so they may get applicable experience. Moreover, we try to ensure an environment in which they may ask questions pertinent to a career field they are interested in exploring.”

Murphy is the fourth student to go through the internship program, and while his experiences were similar to his predecessors, his internship was undeniably impacted by the ongoing pandemic.

“For most of the summer I was unable to be on campus, so a lot of the work had to be done from home,” Murphy said. “On the sampling trips, we all had to take separate vehicles.”

“Unfortunately Chase missed out on the conversations that happen in the office and on the way to sampling sites. There is no good substitute for those spontaneous interactions,” said Ward Ling, formerly a program specialist with Soil and Crop Sciences and now with Texas Water Resource Institute.

Chase also missed the opportunity to present to a live audience at a TWS program, but he did get to be part of the video.

“I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to experience the full capacity of the internship due to COVID, but I was able to make the most of the internship because everyone wants you to succeed,” Murphy said. “They answered countless questions and gave me a lot of advice.”

Murphy highly recommends this internship to other students and offers this admonition – “don’t be afraid to ask questions. Everyone is here to help.”

Two Texas A&M students named Borlaug Scholars by plant breeders association

By: Beth Ann Luedeker
Two students from the Texas A&M University’s Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Tia Dunbar and Ammani Kyanam, were among those named as Borlaug Scholars for 2020 by the National Association of Plant Breeders, NAPB.

“Both Tia and Ammani’s resumes reveal outstanding students with the potential to follow closely in the footsteps of Dr. Norman Borlaug in relieving hunger and poverty through plant breeding,” said Don Jones, chair, NAPB Borlaug Scholars committee.

Norman Borlaug in wheat field

The scholars program is named after Dr. Norman Borlaug, a plant breeder known as the Father of the Green Revolution.


The NAPB Borlaug Scholarship awards are given to exceptional students aspiring to careers in plant breeding and genetics and who have a strong desire to contribute to the improvement of the plants that we all depend upon for our daily needs, according to NAPB.

This is especially critical in this age of continually increasing populations, climate change and uncertain global food security – issues Dr. Norman E. Borlaug, father of the Green Revolution and also a plant breeder, cared about deeply. Plant breeding uniquely addresses these challenges through applied research and improving technologies, according to the association.

Dunbar is a master’s student under Michael Thomson, Ph.D., professor and HM Beachell Rice Chair with Texas A&M AgriLife Research. Kyanam is a doctoral student working with Bill Rooney, Ph.D., AgriLife Research Faculty Fellow and sorghum breeder.

Each wants to help improve agriculture through plant breeding, but they are approaching it from different angles.

Tia Dunbar

Dunbar is working to optimize “in planta” gene-editing techniques using nanotechnologies, while Kyanam is mapping quantitative trait loci, or QTL, for sugarcane aphid tolerance and evaluating a chemical male gametocide.

Tia Dunbar

Tia Dunbar


“Most gene editing methods for crop improvement require time and labor-intensive in vitro tissue culture techniques,” Dunbar said in her application. “Bypassing the in vitro regeneration processes could facilitate gene editing and expand its use.”

“If we are successful, our optimized gene-editing protocol will enable accelerated improvement of rice,” Dunbar said.

While her research currently focuses on rice, Dunbar hopes to pursue a career that applies gene-editing techniques to a broader range of organisms.

“Growing up, my family did not always have access to healthy food, so I chose to major in plant breeding to learn more about crop improvement,” Dunbar said. “I see biotechnology as the key to manipulate agriculture to better serve the growing population and ease the suffering caused by hunger and malnutrition.”

Ammani Kyanam

Kyanam said she chose to pursue agriculture because of Borlaug, “but I chose plant breeding when I learned how direct an impact it had on the livelihoods of farmers, especially small farmers.”

Ammani Kyanam


As an undergraduate at the Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University in Hyderabad, India, Kyanam participated in the Rural Agricultural Work Experience Programme, RAWEP, where she shadowed a small farmer for a crop season.

“My inquiries showed me that farmers had progressive views about purchasing seed, and the boon that was BT cotton,” she said. “It also helped that my father was a seed salesman, and I had learned how important quality seed is to a farming operation.”

Fortunately for Kyanam, she not only loved plant breeding as a subject, but also has a knack for it. Her current focus is streamlining the sorghum breeding process.

“For my doctoral research, I am testing a chemical gametocide, triflouromethanesulfonamide, to assess its potential in generating testcross hybrid seed,” she said. “Hybrid seed production relies on male-sterile seed parents, and the current process to develop those parents is tedious and time consuming.”

Kyanam plans to pursue a career in an applied breeding program, developing new breeding materials and commercial hybrids, as well as evaluating pre-commercial hybrids.

“My secondary goal is to work in science communication and to contribute to clearing up the misinformation that is so prevalent,” Kyanam said.
Students making a difference

Both young women are active outside the classroom as well.

Dunbar is an officer in the Texas A&M Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science chapter and the University’s Women in Science and Engineering organization. She is an active member of Texas A&M’s Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences and was on the organizing committee for the Texas A&M Plant Breeding Symposium in 2020.

Kyanam is a founding member of the Corteva Plant Science Series’ Student Advisory Council and a graduate student liaison for NAPB’s communication committee. She has chaired several plant breeding symposia at Texas A&M and was a founding officer in the Soil and Crop Sciences Graduate Organization.