GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Twenty-four faculty and graduate students in the UF/IFAS College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS) were recognized for their excellence in teaching at the 67th annual conference of the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA).
NACTA is an international professional society dedicated to teaching and learning in agriculture and related disciplines whose members include faculty, staff and students from public and private two-year and four-year colleges. In addition to recognizing remarkable faculty and graduate students, the conference provides opportunities for members to share their scholarship of teaching and learning.
“We strive to create the best experience for our students in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences,” said CALS Dean Elaine Turner. “Our college has a long tradition of teaching excellence, and our faculty and graduate students continue to be leaders in preparing students for the challenges and successes they will face in agriculture, natural resources and the life sciences.”
CALS faculty and graduate students at the University of Florida received awards across three categories:
NACTA Teacher Educator Award
- Erin Alvarez, lecturer, environmental horticulture department
- Jeanette Andrade, assistant professor, food science and human nutrition department
- Benjamin Baiser, assistant professor, department of wildlife ecology and conservation
- Shirley Baker, associate professor, School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences
- Rebecca Baldwin, associate professor, entomology and nematology department
- Chad Carr, associate professor, department of animal sciences
- Danny Coenen, lecturer, School of Natural Resources and Environment
- Gerardo Nunez, assistant professor, horticultural sciences department
- William Pelletier, lecturer, department of agricultural and biological engineering
- Bala Rathinasabapathi, professor, horticultural sciences department
- Ajay Sharma, assistant professor, School of Forest, Fisheries, and Geomatics Sciences, stationed at the West Florida Research and Education Center
- Misti Sharp, lecturer, food and resource economics department
- Cecilia Suarez, assistant professor, department of agricultural education and communication
NACTA Excellence in Teaching and Learning with Technology Award
- Jamie Loizzo, assistant professor, department of agricultural education and communication
NACTA Graduate Student Teaching Award
- Jacqueline Aenlle, doctoral student, agricultural education and communication
- Peyton Beattie, doctoral student, agricultural education and communication
- Brad Coleman, doctoral student, agricultural education and communication
- Natalie Ferand, doctoral student, agricultural education and communication
- Ashley McLeod-Morin, doctoral student, agricultural education and communication
- Taylor Nash, master’s student, agricultural education and communication
- Jonathan Orsini, doctoral student, agricultural education and communication
- Whitney Stone, doctoral student, agricultural education and communication
- Lauren Trotta, doctoral student, wildlife ecology and conservation
- Jackie Yourell, doctoral student, youth development and family sciences
The annual conference was held virtually June 21-24.
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The College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS) administers the degree programs of the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). The mission of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences is to deliver unsurpassed educational programs that prepare students to address the world’s critical challenges related to agriculture, food systems, human wellbeing, natural resources and sustainable communities. The college has received more total (national and regional combined) USDA teaching awards than any other institution.
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