Poultry Science Students, Faculty Receive Awards, Honors at Poultry Science Association Meeting

Photo by Fred Miller

Billy Hargis, holder of the Tyson Endowed Chair for Sustainable Poultry Health, was elected second vice president of the Poultry Science Association.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Students and faculty of the University of Arkansas Poultry Science Department received prestigious awards at the 2017 Poultry Science Association annual meeting held July 17-20 in Orlando, Florida. 

There were over 200 student competition oral and poster presentations during the meeting. Five students from the U of A's Center of Excellence for Poultry Science received outstanding presentation honors, leading all the universities in attendance for the number of students with honors.

Students receiving awards for Outstanding Oral Presentation included:

• Katie Hilton, under the direction of poultry nutritionist Craig Coon, for presenting: Comparison of two net energy calculations of two broiler strains with varying levels of metabolizable energy in two different temperatures.
• Basanta Raj Wagle, under the direction of professor Dan Donoghue, for presenting: Phytochemicals reduce biofilm formation and inactivates mature biofilm of Campylobacter jejuni.
• Juan Caldas-Cueva, under the direction of professor Casey Owens, for presenting: Use of image analysis to identify woody breast characteristics in broiler carcasses from 7 and 10 week old commercial broilers.

Students receiving awards for Outstanding Poster Presentations included:

• Craig Maynard, under the direction of assistant professor Sam Rochell, for presenting: Dietary amino acid responses of male Cobb MV × 700 broilers from 0 to 46 d post-hatch.
• Deepti Samarth under the direction of microbiologist Young Min Kwon, for presenting: Proteomic analysis of Campylobacter interaction with amoeba host.

New PSA Fellows

The status of Fellow is one of the highest distinctions a PSA member can achieve. The election to Fellow recognizes members of the Poultry Science Association for professional distinction and contributions to the field of poultry science without concern to longevity. No more than five members may be elected at any one annual meeting. A two-thirds majority vote by the board of directors is required. Four PSA Fellows were named this year, and three are faculty with the U of A's Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, and the System Division of Agriculture:

• Walter G. Bottje, Physiologist
• Steven C. Ricke, Professor, Donald "Buddy" Wray Chair in Food Safety
• Yvonne Vizzier-Thaxton, Director (retired), Center for Food Animal Wellbeing

PSA Extension Award Winners:

Only two PSA Extension awards are given each year and the U of A received both.

• F. Dustan Clark received the Phibro Extension Award. This award is given to a member of the Poultry Science Association for conducting an outstanding program of work in the area of poultry extension and outreach during a five-year period.
• Karen D. Christensen received the Poultry Science Association Early Achievement Award for Extension. This award is given to recognize the achievement of Poultry Science Association members in the early stages of their career in poultry extension.

Additional PSA Honors and Award Winners:

• Billy Hargis, director of the JKS Poultry Health Laboratory and holder of the Tyson Endowed Chair for Sustainable Poultry Health, was elected second vice president of the Poultry Science Association. The PSA presidency is a four-year term beginning with the second vice presidency and ending as past president. Hargis is now in order to become PSA president in three years.
• Malea G. Frank, who received her Ph.D. under the direction of Susan Watkins, received the Tyson Foods, Inc. Early Achievement Award.
• Paul Tillman, who received his Ph.D. under the direction of Park Waldroup, received the USPOULTRY Distinguished Poultry Industry Career Award.
• Keying Zhang, who spent her sabbatical in Park Waldroup's lab, received the Maple Leaf Duck Award.

PSA is a professional organization consisting of approximately 1,300 educators, scientists, extension specialists, administrators and producers who are committed to advancing the poultry industry.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture.

About the Division of Agriculture: The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture's mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation's historic land grant education system. 

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.