Class Notes

Martin Gross (A)('11 biology, MS '13 food sci & tech, PhD '15 ag & biosystems engr/food sci & tech), CEO of Gross-Wen Technologies in Ames, Iowa, won the 2017 John Pappajohn Iowa Entrepreneurial Venture Competition.

Heather Hucka ('03 animal ecol), naturalist for Story County (Iowa) Conservation, received the National Association for Interpretation's Master Frontline Interpreter Award.

Angela Shaw (A)('03 an sci, MS '06 meat sci, food sci & tech), associate professor in ISU's Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, received the Advance Degree Graduate Distinction Award from Texas Tech University's Department of Animal and Food Sciences. Shaw received her Ph.D. from Texas Tech in 2010.

April Riley ('94 ag studies), farm manager at Riley Farms in Harrisonville, Mo., received the CropLife Ambassador of the Year Award.

Pamela White (A)(PhD '81 food tech), former dean of the ISU College of Human Sciences, received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities Board on Human Sciences, Inc.

Andrew Barnum (PhD '59 entomology), retired biology professor at Dixie State University in St. George, Utah, was recently honored with a life-size bronze statue in front of the university's science building. Barnum, one of the college's longest-serving faculty members, is known for his dedication to animal and plant science and for the creation of a museum of scientific specimens at Dixie State.

Amanda DeJong (A)('02 ag business) has been appointed by President Donald J. Trump to manage the Farm Service Agency for the State of Iowa. She previously worked as senior policy advisor for the Iowa Corn Growers Association.

Clark Chapin (MS '09 interdisciplinary studies) has been appointed by President Donald J. Trump to manage the Farm Service Agency for the State of Connecticut. He previously served 16 years as a Connecticut state legislator and as project director for Working Lands Alliance.

Ryan Haaland ('05 philosophy), attorney in the Ames office of Davis Brown Law Firm, was elected to the 2018 Davis Brown Lawn Firm Board of Directors. He is the current Story County Bar Association president.

As of November, I am the new USDA-NRCS Soil Conservationist in St. Mary's County, Maryland. This was a promotion from being a NRCS Farm Bill Program Assistant in NYS. I am really enjoying the change in work and getting used to living in Southern Maryland. I'm only about an hour from D.C. so that is a bonus.

Jim Dietz (L)('89 history, MA '92 English), the head coach of the Lincoln Land Community College women's volleyball team that recently advanced to its third-straight NJCAA Final Four, is set to publish his second coaching textbook, "Like Heck She Isn't a Volleyball Player: 27 Essays to Make a Coach Think."

J. Mark Meachem (A)('99 mech engr, MS '02) was among 109 St. Louis-area educators honored with the 28th Emerson Excellence in Teaching award in November 2017. The award is designed to recognize educators from kindergarten teachers to college professors for outstanding achievement and dedication in the field of education. Meachem is an assistant professor in the School of Engineering & Applied Science at Washington University, St. Louis.

Katie Hulet (’06 electrical engr), senior engineer at Midcontinent Independent System Operator, received the IEEE Power and Engineering Society Twin Cities 2017 Outstanding Engineering Award during the Minnesota Power Systems Conference in November.

Ann Krogan ('82 speech comm), a behavior strategist for the Des Moines Public Schools, has received the Stephen Tsai Award for Excellence in Autism Education from the Autism Society of Iowa.

Michelle Johnson ('09 early childhood ed) of Rolling Green Elementary School in Urbandale, Iowa, has received the Stephen Tsai Award for Excellence in Autism Education from the Autism Society of Iowa.

Michael Spiritfair Marty ('07 liberal studies) is the founder of "Just Another Holy Book," LLC, which publishes e-books aimed at tackling the broad topic of understanding life's purpose and direction.

Jean Duffy (L)('87 family resource mgmt & consumer sci) has been named one of the National Association of Plan Advisors' 2017 Top Women Advisors, as well as named to the 2017 Financial Times 401 Retirement Plan Advisors list. Duffy is senior vice president and financial advisor with CAPTRUST in West Des Moines, Iowa.

Minnesota Rep. Rick Hansen (A)(MS '87 agronomy) of South St. Paul received the Willard Munger Award for Distinguished Environmental Partnership from the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party he represents in the Minnesota House. The award was presented Dec. 9, 2017 at the DFL Founders' Day Dinner in Minneapolis.

At the annual business meeting of the Iowa Defense Counsel Association (ICDA), the membership elected Kevin M. Reynolds (A)('78 pol sci) as its 2017-2018 president. Reynolds, member attorney at Whitfield & Eddy Law in Des Moines, will serve a one-year term as president. He has served on the IDCA Board of Directors since 2013.

The winter 2017-2018 issue of the Ploughshares literary journal will feature "Transparent" by Jodie Noel Vinson ('05 English) -- a Seattle-based writer and editor.

Kelsey Heino ('11 history) has joined Goosmann Law Firm as a complex litigation lawyer at the firm's Sioux City, Iowa location.

Dr. Mingan Shao (PhD '96 agronomy) has been elected to the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Promoted to Associate Chief Information Officer at Illinois Institute of Technology.

President, Commission on Institutions of Higher Education, New England Association of Schools and Colleges. Serve on the Quality Board of Iceland and Quality and Qualifications Ireland, the higher education quality assurance bodies of those counties.

My wife, Ayfer Hoffman (nee Keskinel), passed away at age 82 on November 2, 2017, from complications of cancer and dementia. A Fulbright Scholar at ISU from Turkey, she received her MS in Food Technology in 1962; her honors included being named a Landgrant Centennial Scholar. She and I were married in the ballroom of the ISU Memorial Union on March 2, 1962, and lived in Pammel Court until we both completed our degrees. We delighted in sharing our lives for over 55 years. Ayfer's career covered many aspects of the food industry and included founding and managing Sultan Baci Fruit Preserves in her native city Istanbul and, more recently, developing many successful dietary products for Medifast, of Owings Mills, Maryland. She is survived also by our two daughters and three grandchildren. Eugene Hoffman PhD 1963