May 1, 2009

Two faculty members in UNL's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources have received awards for outstanding teaching, research and outreach.

William Booker, UNL extension educator in Box Butte County, and Stephen Wegulo, extension plant pathololgist and assistant professor in plant pathology, received the 2008 Dinsdale Family Faculty Award during a presentation April 20. Both are frequent contributors to CropWatch.

The awards honor untenured faculty who have demonstrated commitment to academic excellence in teaching, research and outreach.

Booker joined extension in 2004 after working as an agricultural producer and sunflower seed representative. His primary focus is dryland and irrigated crops such as sunflower, corn, sugar beats, dry beans, alfalfa and wheat. He also is responsible for the agronomics and market development for biodiesel and human consumption of alternative crops including sunflower, canola and camelina. From 2004 to 2005, the number of sunflower acres planted in Nebraska increased 168%.

Wegulo, who joined IANR in 2005, is a field crop pathologist responsible for detecting and managing diseases affecting small grains, forages and ornamentals. In his applied wheat research, his findings on application rates and timing of fungicides to control foliar diseases and on integrated management of Fusarium head blight will save producers about $10 million annually. He and his collaborators have obtained more than $1.1 million in research grants.

The Dinsdale awards are named after Roy Dinsdale, a 1948 graduate of the University of Nebraska College of Business Administration who worked in a family farming and cattle operation. Dinsdale made a gift to the NU Foundation to create the awards in support of his alma mater and his family's interest in agriculture.

IANR News Release