Faculty Expertise
Dr. Leonardo Bastos was awarded the 2026 International Society of Precision Agriculture Teaching Excellence Award at the recent 17th International Conference on Precision Agriculture.
The ISPA Teaching Excellence Award honors an individual who has demonstrated outstanding commitment to education in the field of precision, digital, or smart agriculture. This award recognizes innovative teaching practices, curriculum development, mentorship, and the integration of emerging technologies that advance student learning and industry readiness. The recipient should exemplify leadership as an educator and provide meaningfully global advancement through education.
What works on one farm may fail on another because every operation is affected by different weather, soils, water availability, markets, pests, diseases and countless other variables. If agriculture isn’t one thing, it follows that farmers aren’t, either.
Yet conversations about conservation often assume farmers fall into two camps: those who use good conservation practices and those who don’t.
Professor Brian Schwartz, was named Inventor of the Year and Professor Qingguo "Jack" Huang was named Distinguished Research Professor at the UGA 2026 Research Awards banquet.
Schwartz is recognized for exceptional success in developing commercially impactful turfgrass cultivars that have transformed industry practice. As lead turfgrass breeder at UGA’s Tifton campus, Schwartz plays a central role in one of the world’s premier public warm-season turfgrass breeding programs.
Huang has built a career defined by transformative contributions to environmental research and pollutant remediation. His work has reshaped how persistent contaminants are treated in water and soil, addressing compounds once thought to be nearly impossible to remediate.
Student Life
Students from the UGA Department of Crop and Soil Sciences recently traveled to Knoxville, Tennessee, to compete in the Southern Weed Science Society Weed Contest, where they tackled real-world weed management challenges, identified weeds by common and scientific names, calibrated sprayers, and completed several individual skill events.
Among 14 competing teams, UGA finished in the upper tier and gained valuable hands-on experience in weed science, problem-solving, and field research. The group also toured the University of Tennessee's Mountain Research and Education Center with Ray Covington, giving students a firsthand look at the station's research and extension programs.
On May 15, the Crop and Soil Sciences Department hosted its annual 3-Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition, showcasing the depth and impact of graduate research across the department. Students delivered concise, engaging presentations, highlighting complex research in just three minutes.
Congratulations to all participants for sharing their work with the department community. We are proud of the outstanding research and presentations featured in this year’s competition.
Competition Winners
M.S. Category
- Winner: Alexis Herring
- Runner-up: Benedicta Sintim
- People’s Choice: Abdullah Al Maruf
Ph.D. Category
- Winner: Ujjwal Sigdel
- Runner-up: Wiriyanat Ployaram
- People’s Choice: Amandeep Kaur Dhaliwal
Crop and Soil Sciences graduate students were recognized for their outstanding research presentations at the Southeastern Specialty Crop Technology Conference & Show poster contest.
Master’s student Matteo Listuzzi (advisor: Wes Porter) earned second place for his poster, “Laboratory Comparison of a Seed Tube Optical Sensor and a Vision‑Based Software Measurement System for Assessing Corn Seed Singulation.” Sara Maktabi (advisor: George Vellidis), a Ph.D. student, received third place for her poster titled “Can Predictive Crop Modeling Enable Targeted Harvesting to Reduce Aflatoxin Risk?”
Congratulations to both!
Contact Us
Main Office: 706-542-2461
Fax: 706-542-0914
Miller Plant Sciences Building
120 Carlton Street
Athens GA 30602