Texas Tech University

National travel scholarship awarded to PSS graduate student

TTU Department of Plant & Soil Science

August 30, 2020

The Weed Science Society of America has selected the winners of its 2020 Travel Enrichment Experience (TEE) awards, and Delaney Foster – a graduate student in the Department of Plant and Soil Science – is among the honorees.

The TEE award provides select graduate student members of the Weed Science Society of America with an opportunity to visit and learn from weed scientists outside of their home region via a five-day educational experience and $2,000 scholarship.

“Prior recipients have credited the scholarship as a valuable tool in gaining access to a variety of professionals, industry sectors, and technical methods that were previously outside of their wheelhouse.”

Foster is one of only five graduate students chosen for the national award, including students from Texas A&M University, the University of Georgia, the University of Missouri, and Kansas State University. Selection is based not only on a record of academic achievement, but also on applicants' research contributions to the field of weed science. Foster's topic of research at Texas Tech is Herbicide Systems Utilizing Isoxaflutole Preemergence and Early Post Emergence in GLITP Cotton.

Prior recipients have credited the scholarship with significant professional growth and perspective, calling the opportunity a valuable tool in gaining access to a variety of professionals, industry sectors, and technical methods that were previously outside of their wheelhouse.

Applicants for the TEE awards were provided with a list of weed science specialists across a broad geographical, academic, and industrial spectrum. From the list of potential hosts, Foster elected to visit Dr. Christy Sprague, an extension weed scientist at Michigan State University. Dr. Sprague's work focuses on "integrated weed management, biology, and ecology in corn, soybean, sugar beet, dry bean, alfalfa, small grains and potato production."

Although the recipients of the 2020 scholarships were announced in July, the program has been temporarily postponed due to the restrictions and challenges presented by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Foster expects to carry out her visit in summer 2021.

 

CONTACT: Glen Ritchie, Department Chair, Department of Plant and Soil Science, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-4325 or glen.ritchie@ttu.edu