Graduation

Fellows Honored at APLU Meeting

The Food Systems Leadership Institute Fellows Honored by Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU)

Twenty-six Fellows of the Food Systems Leadership Institute (FSLI) were honored during a ceremony at the annual meeting of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) in San Diego, CA. The Fellows were recognized for their accomplishments in completing the FSLI executive leadership development program and for contributions they have made to their individual organizations and the broader higher education and food systems.

The FSLI is a 2-year program designed for experienced leaders in academia, government, and industry. Through a dynamic curriculum that includes three executive style residential sessions, individual coaching, mentoring, and personal projects, the FSLI seeks to enhance personal leadership ability, develop skills and knowledge for organizational change, and broaden perspectives on integrated food systems.

Fellows report that the FSLI experience has had a significant impact on their leadership abilities. Leadership growth can be measured in many different ways, and more than forty percent of all Fellows who have come through the program have experienced promotions, selection to lead high-profile initiatives, election to university-wide leadership posts, and other recognition. Other Fellows are using their enhanced leadership and broader food systems perspectives to lead change from their current positions.

The FSLI is a program of the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities. It was created with financial support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and is operated in a partnership between North Carolina State University, The Ohio State University, and California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.

The FSLI Fellows honored, Cohort 13 include: 

Olga Bolden-Tiller, Professor of Animal Science; Department Head – Department of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; Asst. Dean of Development – College of Agriculture, Environment and Nutrition Sciences, Tuskegee University.

A. Richard Bonanno, Associate Dean, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Director, North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, North Carolina State University

Jake Bowman, Department Chair and Professor, Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology, University of Delaware

Ashli Brown, State Chemist, Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology, and Plant Pathology, Mississippi State University

Michael R. Burchell II, Professor and Department Extension Leader, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, North Carolina State University

Graham Cochran, Associate Dean for Operations, College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences, The Ohio State University

John Cranfield, Associate Dean for External Relations, Ontario Agricultural College, University of Guelph

Juan Marcos Fernandez, Associate Dean and Director of Academic Programs, College of Agriculture, Purdue University

David Fernandez, Interim Assistant Dean of Academic Programs, School of Agriculture, Fisheries and Human Sciences, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

Bryan Garton, Senior Associate Dean and Director of Academic Programs, College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, University of Missouri

Amy Grunden, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor, Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University

Vanessa Jackson, Chair, Department of Retailing and Tourism Management, University of Kentucky

Carolyn J. Lawrence-Dill, Professor of Genetics, Development and Cell Biology, Chair of Graduate Interdepartmental Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, Iowa State University

Terry Niblack, Senior Associate Dean, College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences, The Ohio State University

Vara Prasad, University Distinguished Professor and Director of Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Collaborative Research Sustainable Intensification, College of Agriculture, Kansas State University

James P. Prince, Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Programs, College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Robert Roberts, Professor and Head, Department of Food Science, The Pennsylvania State University

Clinton W. Rowe, Ph.D.,  Manager, Research and Development, Perdue Foods

Katie Thrush, Section Manager, Clinical Development and Compliance, Abbott Nutrition, Columbus, OH

Anne Veeger, Vice Provost, Academic & Faculty Initiatives, University of Rhode Island

John R. Vreyens, Director, Global Initiatives, University of Minnesota Extension

Curt Weller, Head, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska -Lincoln

Hazel Wetzstein, Head, Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University

Todd Winters, Dean, College of Agriculture and Applied Sciences, University of Tennessee at Martin

Jeff Young, Director for Urban Extension, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Kentucky