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The 2001 D.W. Brooks Award winners are (l-r) Mark |
Four University of Georgia faculty members received the
prestigious D.W. Brooks award for excellence in public service Oct.
1 in Athens, Ga.
The $5,000 annual awards recognize UGA College of Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences faculty who excel in teaching,
research, extension and county extension programs. An award for
international agriculture is given in even-numbered years.
The 2001 winners are Mark Rieger, teaching; Darrell Sparks, research; Robert Stewart, extension; and Rick Reed, county programming.
The CAES sponsors the annual lecture and awards in memory of
D.W. Brooks, founder and chairman emeritus of Gold Kist, Inc.,
and founder of Cotton States Mutual Insurance Companies. Brooks
was an advisor on agriculture and trade issues to seven U.S.
presidents.
Michael J. Phillips, executive director of food and
agriculture for the Biotechnology Industry Organization,
delivered the 2001 D.W. Brooks Lecture, “The Future of
Agricultural Biotechnology.” The lecture and awards presentations
were in the Mahler Auditorium of the Georgia Center for
Continuing Education.
Rieger, a horticulture professor, was cited
for his innovative approach to teaching. He is highly rated by
students and considered a leader in Web-based distance
education.
In his 14 years as a member of the UGA horticulture faculty,
Rieger has earned a local, national and international reputation
in horticulture and in his specialty of environmental stress
physiology of fruit crops. He has twice been named “Teacher of
the Year.”
Sparks, a horticulture professor, has
researched physiology and management of pecans for 36 years. His
research into cyclic production helped revitalize the pecan
industry in Georgia and nationwide.
The American Society for Horticultural Sciences’ 1998
Outstanding Researcher, Sparks contributed to the pecan industry
through his nutrition research. Little was known about pecan
nutrition until his pioneering efforts.
The findings greatly reduced defoliation of important
cultivars, which led to enhanced nut production. Today, growers
throughout Georgia and around the world fertilize pecans based on
leaf analysis.
Stewart is committed to getting results
through innovative programming. Soon after he took over the
Tifton Bull Evaluation Center in 1983, Stewart began enhancing
its national reputation by incorporating new technology to
improve buyer decision-making.
He developed a computer program that was quickly adopted by
farm managers across the country. Stewart also enhanced bull
evaluation through documenting genetics for consigners and
developing new measurements to add to selection criteria.
He received the 1996 distinguished service award from the
National Association of County Agricultural Agents, the 1997
Gamma Sigma Delta Extension award of merit and the 2000
outstanding senior scientist award in extension at the Tifton
campus.
His work has been highlighted in national magazines and by the
National Cattlemen’s Association. He also was selected to serve
on the performance committee of the International Beef
Improvement Federation.
Reed has been a member of the UGA Extension
Service staff since July 1974. He plays a major role in providing
leadership to the $198.5 million agriculture industry in Coffee
County.
Reed is sought out by growers and researchers for his
knowledge and input when they seek practical information on
sustainable, ecologically based cropping systems. He is also
recognized for helping to develop the Georgia sweet carrot
industry and for his major role in developing a new product,
Douglas Pride, made from municipal waste.
