Spring is the season of celebration. We celebrate the success of 40 BBE and 26 SSM students for completing their bachelor’s degrees, along with two MS students and one Ph.D. student for receiving their graduate degrees (four more MS and two more Ph.D. students are expected to complete their degrees this summer). Congratulations to all for your accomplishments! Our department held a graduation celebration on May 12th to recognize our graduates.
Spring is also the season of gratitude. We are thankful to industry sponsors and faculty advisors for supporting BBE and SSM Senior Capstone projects. We are also thankful for all the generous donors and attendees who supported our BBE Scholarship Gala on April 13th; special thanks to Gevo® and their CEO Pat Gruber, who was our Maroon level sponsor!
On May 2nd, the department faculty gathered for a retreat at the beautiful Como Park Zoo, completing a round of SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) on overall department, undergraduate programs, graduate program, research directions, external engagement, and our work environment and DEI efforts. This initial analysis will be shared with the BBE community, including the advisory council, to seek more input and feedback. This will be our first step towards conducting a comprehensive department review and developing the departmental strategic plan.
This year marks the retirement of Professors Kevin Janni and Pat Huelman. A retirement celebration is being held on May 18th for them along with Professor Chuck Clanton (who retired in 2020) to honor their combined 118 years of dedication and outstanding service to the University and Department.
In this issue of the BioBriEf, we feature a story on Professor Zhenong Jin’s AI work in precision agriculture. We also highlight the SSM students solar decathlon win at the DOE competition in Golden, CO. Our alumni spotlight features Chandra Her, an SSM graduate from the Sustainable Products Business Management specialization. Chandra graduated in Spring 2020 and currently works as a policy associate with Clean Energy Economy Minnesota.
I wish you and your family a relaxing and rejuvenating summer!
Hua Zhao
Professor and Head
