Class Notes

Dennis Calvin (’78 agronomy & pest management), director of Pennsylvania Extension and associate dean of the Pennsylvania State University College of Agricultural Sciences, has been promoted to associate dean and director of special programs.

President Donald Trump announced his plans to nominate Scott Hutchins (’87 PhD entomology) to be Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research, Education and Economics at the Department of Agriculture on July 16. Hutchins is the global head of integrated field sciences for Corteva Agriscience, the agriculture division of DowDuPont. He also serves as an adjunct professor at the University of Nebraska. Hutchins was global director for crop protection research and development at Dow AgroSciences before the merger with DuPont. He is a past president of the Entomological Society of America.

Actress Jami Simon (’81 speech comm) recently performed in staged readings for the Write Now Workshop & as Jessica in a reading of "The Morning Girls." She had a principal role in the Leon Bridges music video "Bet Ain't Worth the Hand" released in April & played Sideways Jane in "Riding the D," which screened at the L.A. Intl. Women's Film Festival in March. Her episodes as Pinky on HBO's "High Maintenance" can be viewed on HBO on Demand & HBO Now. Her episode on "The Blacklist" ("Ruin") can be viewed on NBC.com.

David Sanders (L)('84 civil engr) recently returned to Iowa State University as the Greenwood Department Chair in Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering. Sanders previously held a university foundation professorship at the University of Nevada Reno, and his research has centered on the behavior and design of structural concrete.

Maggie McQuown (L)('74 textiles & clothing) and her spouse, Steve Turman, of Red Oak, Iowa, received the 2018 Practical Farmers of Iowa Farmland Owner Legacy Award. In 2012, Maggie and Steve retired to the 170-acre farm Maggie grew up on, which has been in her family since 1899. They renamed it Resilient Farms to reflect their goal of sustainability.

Petrina Jackson (A)(MA '94 English), head of Special Collections and University Archives for the Iowa State University Library, has been elected to the Society of American Archivists Council.

In August 2018, Jennifer Lyons ('89 journalism) announced she was stepping down from her post as news director for WGN television in Chicago to become vice president of communications and external relations for Catholic Extension, a Chicago-based fundraising organization that supports and strengthens poor mission dioceses nationwide. Lyons is a 25-year veteran of WGN who has served as news director for the city's largest television news operation since 2014, when she was tabbed to succeed Greg Caputo. In 2017, she was named News Director of the Year by Broadcasting & Cable magazine and she has earned such distinctions as "The Most Powerful Woman in Chicago Journalism" during her career with WGN.

Alex Sandvig ('11 accounting) has joined Holmes Murphy's shareholder group in the employee benefits division. Sandvig is based out of Waukee, Iowa.

Joe Tiernan (A)('10 finance) has joined Holmes Murphy's shareholder group in the property casualty division. Tiernan is based out of Kansas City, Mo.

Brian Meyer (L)('83 journalism), director of college relations for the Iowa State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, received the Association of Communications Excellence in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Life and Human Sciences (ACE) Professional Award Aug. 7 during the association's annual conference in Phoenix, Ariz. It is the highest honor presented by ACE.

Lynn Henderson (L)('74 ag journalism), owner and publisher of AgriMarketing magazine, received the Agricultural & Applied Economics Association's Lifetime Achievement Award at the 20th annual Agricultural Media Summit in Scottsdale, Ariz., Aug. 7.

Christina Freese Decker (L)('00 finance) has been appointed by the System Board of Directors for Spectrum Health, a not-for-profit health system in West Michigan, as the system's next president and chief executive officer. The appointment will be effective Sept. 1, 2018. Freese Decker has been with Spectrum Health since 2002 and was most recently the organization's executive vice president and chief operating officer.

Ellen Franzenburg (’13 global resource systems & ag engineering) has accepted the position of director of secretariat operations at the World Food Prize Foundation.

Wesley Schweer (’13 an sci, MS ’15, PhD ’18) has joined Zinpro Corporation as a swine research nutritionist.

Brandi Merrick (’10 ag and life sciences education) has been hired as an assistant superintendent of golf course management at the Omni Grove Park Inn Golf Course in Asheville, N.C.

Tricia Stouder (’09 public service & admin in ag) has accepted a position as enrollment services adviser with ISU Student Financial Aid. She will be working with the America Reads/America Counts program.

Dawn Mausser (A)(’04 ag studies, ’10 ag and life sci ed, MS '18) has accepted a position as an ag educator and FFA adviser at Beckman Catholic High School.

Ryan Royer (’98 an sci, DVM ’02), co-owner of Elkader Veterinary Clinic, received the Clayton County Dairy Promotion Committee’s Appreciation Award.

Marty Schwager (A)(’92 ag business, MS '01 professional ag), has been named director of field service for the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation.

Chris Novak (L)(’87 public service and administration in ag) has been named president at CEO of CropLife America.

Valerie Plagge (’06 ag and life sci ed) has been named a regional winner of the America’s Farmers Mom of the Year Award. Plagge, a farmer near Latimer, Iowa, operates hog finishing barns and farms corn and soybeans with her husband, Ian (’07 ag business). She participates in the Common Ground online community with her blog, Corn, Beans, Pigs and Kids. Plagge is among 10 national finalists honored for contributions to family, farm, community, and the agriculture industry.

The American Society of Safety Professionals and Holmes Murphy have recognized Josh Jacobsen (A)(’05 industrial technology), senior loss control consultant for Holmes Murphy, as the Region V 2017 Safety Professional of the Year. Jacobsen was among eight recipients recognized at the society’s annual conference in San Antonio, Texas, on June 5.

Celize Christy ('16 an sci & global resource systems) has accepted a position as a swine and poultry coordinator for Practical Farmers of Iowa.

Trey Forsyth (L)('17 ag business & public svc & admin in ag) has been promoted to government relations specialist at Land O Lakes Inc., in Washington, D.C.

Gregory Whitis (A)('80 zoology) has published his debut novel, Blue Green. The book describes in great detail life in the rural south in the 1990s. If you are from the Deep South, these incidents will seem like normal day-to-day happenings with some colorful commentary from the local peanut gallery. If you aren’t, you may be surprised at some of the encounters and how folks respond to each other, but you will get to glimpse inside this lost piece of America. Soft-cover and e-format versions are available now at Amazon, Apple iTunes, Barnes & Noble, Books a Million, and Google Play.