Awards and rankings

Brian Bailey, an assistant professor in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of California, Davis, has been recognized by the National Science Foundation, or NSF, with a CAREER award.

The prestigious award – part of NSF’s Faculty Early Career Development Program – is granted to assistant professors or those in equivalent faculty positions who have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization.

Patrick Brown, distinguished professor in the Department of Plant Sciences, has received the American Society of Plant Biologists’ Dennis R. Hoagland Award and the Leo M. Walsh Soil Fertility Distinguished Lectureship from the Soil Science Society of America, or SSSA.

The Dennis R. Hoagland Award is awarded once every three years to an individual making outstanding contributions to agriculture through plant research, with funds provided by the Monsanto Agricultural Products Company. 

“Ice cream in the making” – this is the unusual designation given to alfalfa by Dan Putnam, a Cooperative Extension Specialist in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of California, Davis.

Alfalfa is often overshadowed by California’s more famous vegetable and fruit crops, like nuts and wine, despite the key roles it plays for our food systems. It’s a highly productive crop that serves as the basis for milk, cheese, leather, honey and wool production. In other words, what lies behind the carton of ice cream on the refrigerator shelf is a field of alfalfa.

Troy Magney, assistant professor in the Department of Plant Sciences, has received the Early Career Award from the American Society of Plant Biologists. The award recognizes outstanding research from scientists who are still within the first seven years after receiving their doctorate degree and who have made exceptionally creative, independent contributions in their field.

Jennifer Funk, an associate professor in the Department of Plant Sciences, has received the inaugural Barbara D. Webster Scholar Award. The award provides a $20,000 grant to support the scholarship of a tenured or tenure-track faculty member who represents excellence in their field, exhibits the leadership abilities to impact their discipline, presents a unique and transformative perspective, and works to advance the representation of women in plant sciences. 

Gail Taylor, professor and chair of the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of California, Davis, has been awarded the John B. Orr Endowed Chair in Environmental Plant Sciences. Taylor broke ground when she became the first female chair of the department in 2017, and is proud to be adding to the small number of women who hold endowed titles just four years later. 

“Because few women hold endowed chairs, even at UC Davis,” said Taylor, “I hope this helps inspire other professorial women to apply for awards like this one.”

Diane Beckles, associate professor in the Department of Plant Sciences, has been named an inaugural recipient of the Chancellor’s Fellowship for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Awarded by UC Davis Chancellor Gary S. May and the Academic Senate, the fellowship recognizes faculty with an “abiding commitment to reducing opportunity gaps for underrepresented students and/or students from underserved communities.”