Faculty and Staff Awards

June CALS Employee of the Month

Winner: Melissa Wright

Food Innovations Program Assistant Director and Chemistry Lab Manager Melissa Wright was selected as the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Employee of the Month for June 2019. She was nominated by Food Innovations Program Director Joell Eifert, who praised the wide variety of tasks Melissa handles to maintain the lab spaces of HABB1 and her development of a laboratory information management system that has helped increase the Food Innovations Program’s clientele capacity 46%. 

VCE Winter Conference Poster Competition

Winners: Renee Boyer, Melissa Chase, Laura Strawn, Tommy Saunders, Rob Williams, Joell Eifert, Lily Yang, Lester Schonberger

FST swept the Virginia Cooperative Extension Winter Conference Poster Competition in February, with posters FST faculty worked on winning 1st place in three out of four award categories and 2nd place in two award categories. See the full list of winners and poster titles here. 

January CALS Employee of the Month

Winner: Alex Hood

FST Communications Associate Alex Hood was selected as the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences' Employee of the Month for January 2020. He was nominated by Laboratory Manager Kim Waterman and Executive Assistant Terry Rakestraw for his work overhauling the department's web presence, spreading awareness of the program in Virginia, and supporting departmental functions. 

2020 CALS Alumni Awards

The 2020 CALS Alumni Award Ceremony was postponed indefinitely as a result of Virginia Tech's COVID-19 response, but that doesn't mean we can't celebrate our two award recipients. FST Food Safety Extension Associate Tommy Saunder was awarded Outstanding Recent Alumni in Academia, and FST Pilot Plant Manager Brian Wiersema was awarded Distinguished Alumni in Academia. The awards ceremony is expected to be held sometime this fall. 

ICTAS Junior Faculty Awards

Winner: Reza Ovissipour - Understanding effects of microplastics on fish health, growth and population ecology

The Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science Junior Faculty Awards aim to support projects led by researchers at the beginning of their academic careers to advance research at Virginia Tech by fostering interdisciplinary collaborations. FST Assistant Professor Dr. Reza Ovissipour and his collaborator Dr. Holly Kindsvater of the Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation received this award for their research on how microplastics affect rainbow trout health. Read more here. 

Successful Student's Top 10 Food Science and Nutrition Programs

Winner: All of FST!

Last fall, Successful Student, an online degree ranking resource that helps students make informed decisions about their college education, announced that FST had placed ninth on its list of the 10 best bachelor’s in food science and nutrition programs in the country and eighth on its list of best master’s in food science programs. “It is a clear expression of our department’s long-standing goal to give each student an excellent experience and a high-quality education,” said Joe Marcy, head of the department. Read more here.