UT Institute of Agriculture Presents Top Faculty and Staff Awards for 2024
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture celebrated the accomplishments of some of its top faculty, staff, researchers and Extension experts at UTIA’s annual awards and promotions luncheon. This year’s ceremony was held in the newly-opened Agriculture and Natural Resources Building on the UTIA campus in Knoxville on August 14, 2024. Many of the awards are gifts made possible by faculty, alumni and friends of the Institute.
UT Institute of Agriculture Senior Vice Chancellor and Senior Vice President Keith Carver hosted the award winners and praised them for their work. “I continue to be amazed by the dedication, enthusiasm and expertise demonstrated by the impressive work of our UTIA faculty and staff,” says Carver. “The awards are well deserved, and the impacts of these accomplishments are seen across the state and will benefit Tennesseans for generations.”
Established by the late Dutch Cavender, former director of UTIA Marketing and Communications, and his late wife, Marilee, the Cavender Outstanding Award for Best Publication recognizes excellence in the development of peer-reviewed material produced by the UT Institute of Agriculture. This year, 16 authors are being recognized for their contributions to two different publications.
Welcome Home: Gardening in Tennessee, UT Extension publication PB 1919, provides a practical introduction to Tennessee for new residents or to gardens and landscapes for new homeowners. A team of 15 Extension professionals led by Natalie Bumgarner, an associate professor in the Department of Plant Sciences and statewide coordinator of the Master Gardener program, combined their talents to produce this online publication that addresses Tennessee’s climate and soils. Topics include growing vegetables, fruits and turfgrass as well as adding trees to your landscape, getting started with home food production, small-space gardening, and how you can become a Master Gardener.
Bumgarner’s coauthors are Bob Ary, program assistant (retired) UT Extension Robertson County; Anna Duncan, Extension specialist, Department of Plant Sciences; John Gunter, county director, UT-TSU Extension Fentress County; Andrea Ludwig, professor, Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science; Mitchell Mote, agent, UT-TSU Extension Rutherford County; Taylor Reeder, agent, UT-TSU Extension Williamson County; Melody Rose, agent, UT Extension Greene County; Lee Rumble, agent, UT-TSU Extension Knox County; Celeste Scott, horticulture Extension specialist, Department of Plant Sciences; Justin Stefanski, agent, UT-TSU Extension Rutherford County; Virginia Sykes, associate professor, Department of Plant Sciences; Haley Treadway, agent, UT-TSU Extension Hamilton County; Gregg Upchurch, agent, UT Extension Cumberland County; and Seth Whitehouse, county director, UT-TSU Extension Anderson County.
Fundamentals of On-Farm Retail, UT Extension publications SP 938 A-D, is a series of four booklets designed to help agri-businesses with product assortment and to develop a plan to appeal to customers. The series also addresses brand image and customer shopping patterns, explores the use of retail space, and developing signature, seasonal and complementary products. Coauthors for the series include Megan Leffew, marketing specialist with the UT Center for Profitable Agriculture; Christopher Sneed, associate professor and consumer economics specialist with the UT Department of Family and Consumer Sciences; and Michelle Childs, associate professor, UT Department of Retail, Hospitality and Tourism Management.
The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture is comprised of the Herbert College of Agriculture, UT College of Veterinary Medicine, UT AgResearch, and UT Extension. Through its land-grant mission of teaching, research and outreach, the Institute touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. to Tennesseans and beyond. utia.tennessee.edu.