2008 Walter Barnard Hill Award for Distinguished Achievement in University Public Service and Outreach

Jeanna Wilson

Jeanna Wilson, professor of poultry science, has a national and international reputation in broiler breeder management. Her work on improving breeder fertility alone is estimated to save Georgia poultry breeders more than $6 million annually.

Since joining UGA in 1988, her extension programs have focused on solving current industry problems in hatchery and breeder management. She is considered an international authority on male broiler breeder fertility. She works to improve flock productivity, fertility and hatchability through field studies and applied research on feed restriction programs, hen nesting preferences, egg production patterns, rooster mating activity, semen quality, embryo viability and egg contamination.

Today’s breeder houses are designed based on her recommendations for slat configuration, separate male feeders, male selection pens, and nest, drinker and feeder installation.

Wilson organizes the annual Georgia Poultry Conference for the broiler and layer industry, the Deep South Poultry Conference, and an annual two-day hatchery breeder school to introduce new techniques for better breeder flock and incubation management.

She is an active supporter of youth programs through her work with 4-H and Future Farmers of America poultry judging programs.

Author or coauthor of more than 85 extension and trade journal publications and 60 refereed journal articles, Wilson has been invited to present her work at nearly every major U.S. broiler company as well as in Colombia, Mexico, New Zealand, Taiwan, France, Spain and Canada. She was awarded the 2005 Poultry Science Association Award for Excellence in Extension, the highest national award an extension poultry scientist can receive.