Lana Koepke Johnson | Agronomy and Horticulture
Over 125 students, faculty, staff, emeriti, alumni, industry leaders and guests celebrated and honored the achievements of students, faculty and staff, past and present, at the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture Spring Banquet on April 4 in the Nebraska East Union.
The evening began with a social hour, followed by a buffet meal and program. Master of Ceremony Vipin Kumar, agronomy doctoral student and Agronomy and Horticulture Graduate Student Association vice president, welcomed everyone to the banquet and thanked the sponsors, including Nebraska Wheat Board, Nebraska Agri-business Association, Inc., Central Valley Ag, Stock Seed Farms, Nebraska Corn Board, Ward Laboratories, Brian D. Joyce and Katherine A. Frels, and Charles A. and Barbara L. Francis.
Department Head Martha Mamo gave the opening remarks.
Mamo presented the Martin A. Massengale Outstanding Senior Award to Charlotte Brockman. The award honors Massengale, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln Chancellor from 1981–1991, president emeritus of the University of Nebraska, founding director of the Center for Grassland Studies and Foundation Distinguished Professor.
Brockman is an agronomy major with an emphasis in soil science and a minor in international trade. She is a UCARE Scholar, a member of the UNL Soil Judging Team, involved in the University Honors Program, and president of the Innocents Society, the Chancellor’s senior honorary at Nebraska. She also serves as a teaching assistant for Introduction to Soils, and mentors aspiring entrepreneurs as a Trail Guide in the Engler Program. Brockman loves to travel and has participated in study abroad programs to Brazil and Rwanda in addition to her travels to Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Ireland and Germany. Off campus, Brockman is actively involved in a variety of entrepreneurial efforts, volunteers in the community and works as a free-lance writer for Nebraska Farmer. She is passionate about empowering people through entrepreneurship to build sustainable agricultural systems around the world.
A representative from each student club, organization and competition team gave a brief overview of their group, introduced the officers and advisers, talked about their group’s achievements and activities during the year and presented awards.
Thayer Jonak, senior agronomy major, introduced the Crops Judging Team. Kumar presented the Weed Science Team.
Promise (PJ) Smeal, senior plant and landscape systems major, and Brockman introduced the Soil Judging Team. Becky Young, assistant professor of agronomy, presented Smeal with the UNL Soil Judging Team Trowel Award and the Sharp Shooter Award to Adrian Cox, a junior Integrated science major.
Each president introduced their club or organization.
Easton Weber, a junior agribusiness major, introduced the Agronomy Club. He presented two awards for the Agronomy Club. Gage Fryda, sophomore agronomy major, received the UNL Agronomy Club Outstanding Freshman award. Kaleb Senff, senior agronomy major, received the American Society of Agronomy Outstanding Senior award. Nolan Wolfe received the UNL Agronomy Club Outstanding Senior award.
William Anderson, a senior plant and landscape system major, introduced the Horticulture Club.
Anderson also introduced the university’s Alpha Gamma Chapter of Pi Alpha Xi, the national honor society for horticulture. Luqi Li, club co-adviser and lecturer in agronomy and horticulture, presented a Pi Alpha Xi Alpha Gamma Scholarship to Anderson and Lauren Wilson, also a senior plant and landscape system major.
Ryleigh Grove, a senior plant biology major, introduced the Plant Biology Club. Walker Peterson, a senior plant and landscape management major, introduced the Turf Club.
Frazier Kaelin, a senior grassland systems major, introduced the Range Management Club. The club will honor two members with Trail Blazer Award and the Trail Boss Award at the School of Natural Resources Spring Banquet on April 12.
Ana Clara Gomes, agronomy master’s student, introduced AHGSA.
Gomes recognized agronomy master’s students Stephanie Lugo and Bellodgia Roberson as this year’s AHGSA Outstanding Student Member for their support and engagement in the association and its activities.
Roberson presented Martha Mamo, agronomy professor and department head, with the AHGSA Faculty Appreciation Award for her involvement and contributions to the association.
Roberson presented AHGSA Staff Appreciation Awards to Lisa Hilfiker, graduate program coordinator, and Connie Hansen, events coordinator, for their outstanding support of all graduate students.
Kumar recognized undergraduate and graduate students who received awards, scholarships and/or fellowships over the past year. He then thanked all sponsors for their generous contributions for the scholarships and fellowships.
David Meyer, co-chair of the Agronomy and Horticulture Alumni Advisory Council, introduced the Advisory Council. Made up of volunteer alumni, they provide aid and console to the department head in alumni engagement, financial stability, industry relations and student interactions with alumni. They have the privilege of selecting the department’s Alumni Lifetime Achievement Award recipients.
Meyer introduced the 2024 Alumni Lifetime Achievement Award recipients. Those honored included the late Joseph W. Keaschall, the late William (Bill) Robert Raun and the late James J. Vorst. Their bios were read by Sheridan Wilson, Emma Decker and Garrett Kuss.
This award is the highest honor bestowed upon graduates of the department who have made significant contributions to their community, state and nation through professional service, public service and/or civic engagement.
“As the bios of these winners are being read, I urge all of you students to listen to the attributes that have made each of the winners so impactful and successful and ask yourself how you are cultivating those attributes within yourselves,” Meyer said.
“Because in this room are our future winners.”
Full biographies of award recipients are available at agronomy.unl.edu/alumni.
Vorst’s wife JoAnn shared her gratitude for the award and their love and memories of Nebraska.
Kumar thanked the donors, faculty and staff for their assistance and the Horticulture Club for the beautiful table centerpieces. A special thanks went to the Spring Banquet Committee.
Professor emeritus James Schepers thanked the students for their hard work and shared that he remembers standing in that same spot years ago as a member of the Agronomy Club. Then he, David Vetter of Grain Place Foods and a member of AHAAC, and Ray Ward of Ward Industries, handed out five-dollar bills to all undergraduate students to pay for their banquet meal.
The banquet ended with the announcement of the winners of the silent auction.
More photos at https://go.unl.edu/banquet-pictures2025.
More details at: https://go.unl.edu/banquet2025