Bumpers College Students Receive Research Grants

Bumpers College students who earned research grants, from left, top row: Paige Acklie, Madison Brown, Olivia Caillouet; bottom row: Sarah Hallett, Dylan Milholen and Elliott Pruett. Steven Thao not pictured.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Student research projects focusing on the characteristics of Arkansas women in agriculture and the restoration of a streambank at the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks are among five to receive grant funding from the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas.

Five projects and seven students from the Bumpers College have been chosen for funding by the college's Undergraduate Creative Projects/Research Grants Program.

The students are Paige Acklie, Madison Brown, Olivia Caillouet, Sarah Hallett, Dylan Milholen, Elliott Pruett and Steven Thao. Acklie, Brown, Caillouet and Pruett are also members of the Honors College.

Acklie's research is "The Changing Face of Agriculture: Characteristics and Perceptions of Arkansas Women in Agriculture." The agricultural economics and agribusiness major is working with professor Jennie Popp.

Acklie, who is from Highland Village, Texas, and was recently honored as a U of A Senior of Significance, received a $600 grant.

Brown, Milholen and Thao are collaborating on "A Streambank Restoration at the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks: Aiming to Improve Hydrology and Habitat, While Promoting Public Education on Riparian Zones." The trio, all in crop, soil and environmental sciences, is working with assistant professor Lisa Wood.

Brown, from The Colony, Texas, Milholen, from Royal, and Thao, from Gentry, received a $750 grant.

"We are excited to learn and grow from this project while putting our efforts into family and environmental enrichment for the NWA community," said Milholen. "We are grateful for this opportunity."

Caillouet is a horticulture major working with agricultural economics and agribusiness associate professor Lanier Nalley. Her project is "Risk Mitigation Through Holistic Sustainable Agricultural Production: The Case of Poultry in Northern Mozambique."

Caillouet, from Cammack Village, received $900 in funding.

"This upcoming year will be another fruitful experience at the U of A, especially with the opportunity to complete the proposed project," said Caillouet. "This research will focus on the diversification of crops at a small poultry farm in Nampula, Mozambique. Best management practices will be adapted back to
Arkansas and help increase food stability at the local level in addition to internationally. As a major in horticulture and minor in sustainability, I have a desire to increase food security with my knowledge and skill sets. This dream is becoming a reality with the help of the Bumpers College and the Honors College."

Hallett, an environmental, soil and water science major, is being mentored by assistant professor Thad Scott. Her research is on "Estimating Nitrogen Fixation in Lakes with Cyanobacteria Densities."

Hallett, from Prairie Grove, earned a $1,000 grant.

Pruett, a student in crop, soil and environmental science, is working with professor Vibha Srivastava. He is researching "Efficiency of ISCEI Nuclease in Excising DNA Fragments from the Arabidopsis Genome."

Pruett, who is from Summers, received $1,000 support.

Select Bumpers College faculty reviewed proposals and made recommendations to Assistant Dean Leslie Edgar. Dean Mike Vayda approved the funding, which is for one year.

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 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.