World Food Prize Foundation Announces 30 Students Selected for USDA Wallace-Carver Fellowship

(Des Moines, IA) - July 13, 2018 -- The World Food Prize and The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) have announced the selection of 30 university students for the prestigious Wallace-Carver Fellowship. Students will collaborate with world-renowned scientists and policymakers through paid fellowships at leading USDA research centers and offices across the country.

“The Wallace-Carver Fellowship provides unparalleled research opportunities for university students to explore agricultural issues and become the next generation of agricultural leaders and innovators,” Ambassador Kenneth Quinn, President of the World Food Prize, said. “These outstanding students are some of the most highly qualified and motivated students in America. This program gives them the opportunity to be inspired to pursue careers and future leadership positions in food, agriculture and science.”

While stationed at USDA, students will analyze agricultural and economic policy; assist in the management of food, nutrition and rural development programs; and take part in groundbreaking field and laboratory-based research.

The Fellows will also participate in the week-long Washington Leadership Symposium, hosted by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. While attending the Symposium, students will participate in briefings, tours, discussions and group activities with key government leaders.

Today, 815 million people face hunger worldwide, and more than 40 million Americans are food insecure. With experts predicting a world population of 9 billion people by 2050, food security remains a high-priority issue among global leaders.

The United States Department of Agriculture and the World Food Prize Foundation partnered to create the Wallace-Carver Fellowship in 2011. Named for American agriculture leaders Henry A. Wallace and George Washington Carver, the Wallace-Carver Fellowship seeks to inspire and train the next generation of agricultural leaders and scholars for the 21st century.

Since the creation of the Fellowship, 210 students from 93 universities and colleges in 36 states and the District of Columbia have been employed by the program. Over 97 percent of fellows have pursued degrees in related disciplines, and 88 percent remain employed in critical fields relevant to science, agriculture and nutrition.

The 2018 Wallace-Carver Fellows are a distinguished and diverse group of outstanding young leaders representing 25 universities and colleges in 17 states across the country.

• Macy Alexander | University of Arkansas | Placement: ARS Aquatic Animal Health Research Unit; Auburn, AL

• Parker Bartz | Vassar College | Placement: ARS National Lab for Agriculture and the Environment - Soil, Water & Air Research Unit; Ames, IA

• Alexandria Brown | Tuskegee University | Placement: ARS Forage and Range Research Unit; Logan, UT

• Molly Carlson | Wake Tech Community College | Placement: ARS Honey Bee Breeding, Genetics & Research Laboratory; Baton Rouge, LA

• Eric Chen | Yale University | Placement: OSEC Office of the Chief Economist; Washington, D.C.

• Daria Clinkscales | Virginia State University | Placement: ARS U.S. National Poultry Research Center, Poultry Microbiological Safety & Processing Research Unit; Athens, GA

• Elaina Conrad | Iowa State University | Placement: FAS Office of Civil Rights, Office of Agreements and Scientific Affairs; Washington, D.C.

• Lauren English | University of Notre Dame | Placement: ARS Southern Horticultural Research Unit; Poplarville, MS

• Mikayla Eppert | University of Iowa | Placement: ARS National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Functional Foods Research Unit; Peoria, IL

• Rachel Ganson | Boston University | Placement: Structure, ERS Technology and Productivity Branch; Washington, D.C.

• Jade Gerlitz | Iowa State University | Placement: ARS National Lab for Agriculture and the Environment, Agroecosystems Management Research Unit; Ames, IA

• Nicholas Grandstaff | University of Iowa | Placement: ERS Diet, Safety & Health Economics Division; Washington, D.C.

• Hailey Hampton | Utah State University | Placement: ARS Grape Genetics Research Unit; Geneva, NY

• Morgan Hasler | University of Kentucky | Placement: ARS Red River Valley Agricultural Research Center, Animal Metabolism - Agricultural Chemicals Research Unit; Fargo, ND

• Abbagail Hoffman | Iowa State University  | Placement: ARS National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, Functional Foods Research Unit; Peoria, IL

• Jerome Jacobsen | Columbia University | Placement: ARS Southern Regional Research Center, Food and Feed Safety Research Unit; New Orleans, LA

• Emma Lynne Johnson | The Ohio State University | Placement: ARS National Agricultural Library; Beltsville, MD

• Lavina Kalwani | Rice University | Placement: OSEC Office of Partnerships & Public Engagement; Washington, D.C.

• Harper Martin | Arkansas State University | Placement: ARS National Sedimentation Lab, Water Quality & Ecology Research Unit; Oxford, MS

• Sharon Mills | University of Maryland Eastern Shore | Placement: OSEC Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement; Washington, D.C.

• Mya Mitchell | Fort Valley State University | Placement: ARS Southeast Watershed Research Laboratory; Tifton, GA

• Priyanka Naithani | Clark University  | Placement: OSEC Office of Partnerships & Public Engagement; Washington, D.C.

• Madeline Poole | University of Illinois | Placement: FAS Office of Global Analysis, International Production Assessment Division; Washington, D.C.

• Alyssa Schaeffer | University of Iowa | Placement: ARS Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Water Management Research Unit; Ft. Collins, CO

• Josephine Slovut | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | Placement: ARS Range Management Research Unit; Las Cruces, NM

• Hunter Smith | Johnson County Community College | Placement: ARS Children's Nutrition Research Center; Houston, TX

• Stone Warfield | University of Kentucky | Placement: ARS Southern Regional Research Center, Food and Feed Safety Research Unit; New Orleans, LA

• Elizabeth Weyer | Drake University | Placement: ARS National Animal Disease Center, Infectious Bacterial Diseases Research Unit; Ames, IA

• Kelli Wicks | Iowa State University | Placement: ARS National Lab for Agriculture and the Environment - Soil, Water & Air Research Unit; Ames, IA

• Gillian Wilkins | Augustana University | Placement: ARS Red River Valley Agricultural Research Center, Insect Genetics & Biochemistry Research Unit; Fargo, ND

The Wallace-Carver Fellowship program is jointly coordinated by Keegan Kautzky and Libby Crimmings at the World Food Prize and Dr. Moushumi Paul at USDA. For more information, visit: www.worldfoodprize.org/USDAFellows

Press Contact:
Nicole Barreca, Director of Communications and Events
515-245-3735, or by email at: nbarreca@worldfoodprize.org

ABOUT THE WORLD FOOD PRIZE: The World Food Prize is the foremost international award recognizing the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world. The Prize was founded in 1986 by Dr. Norman E. Borlaug, recipient of the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize. Since then, the World Food Prize has honored 48 outstanding individuals who have made vital contributions throughout the world. The World Food Prize annually hosts the Borlaug Dialogue international symposium and a variety of youth education programs to help further the discussion on cutting-edge global food security issues and inspire the next generation to end hunger.

ABOUT THE USDA: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is made up of 29 agencies and offices with nearly 100,000 employees who serve the American people at more than 4,500 locations across the country and abroad. USDA provides leadership on food, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues based on public policy, the best available science, and effective management. USDA has a vision to provide economic opportunity through innovation, helping rural America to thrive; to promote agriculture production that better nourishes Americans while also helping feed others throughout the world; and to preserve our Nation's natural resources through conservation, restored forests, improved watersheds, and healthy private working lands.