Writer: Maegan Snyder, mrudd@uga.edu, 706-424-6876
Contact: Steve Dempsey, Dempsey@uga.edu, 706-542-6127
The Office of the Vice President for Public Service and Outreach at the University of Georgia recognized six faculty members and one staff member for outstanding service to the state and UGA at the 24th annual Public Service and Outreach Meeting and Awards Luncheon on April 13.
Hill Fellow
Eric Prostko, professor and extension specialist in the department of crop and soil sciences in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, received the Walter Barnard Hill Distinguished Public Service Fellow Award. UGA’s highest honor for public service and outreach, the award recognizes sustained, distinguished and superb achievement in university public service that improves quality of life.
It is named for the chancellor who led UGA from 1899 until his death in 1905.
Prostko is responsible for the statewide weed science programs in field corn, peanut, soybean, sunflower, grain sorghum and canola. In addition, he provides training and education programs for county extension agents and at local county crop production meetings.
Click here to learn more about Eric Prostko.
Hill Awards
Four faculty members and service professionals received the Walter Barnard Hill Award for Distinguished Achievement in Public Service and Outreach in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the improvement of the quality of life in Georgia and beyond.
This year’s Hill Award recipients are Alfredo Martinez, Raye Rawls, Paula Sanford and Clint Waltz.
Martinez, a professor of plant pathology in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, focuses on disease management and production practices for turfgrass, small grains and grass forages in Georgia.
Rawls, public service associate at the J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development, works in community leadership development with a specialty in conflict resolution, mediation and arbitration.
Sanford, a public finance and organization specialist at the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, has helped public agencies throughout Georgia address critical governance issues on retirement benefit reforms through applied research and technical assistance.
Waltz, professor and turfgrass extension specialist in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, has statewide responsibilities in all turfgrass management areas, including turfgrass water management.
Engaged Scholar Award
Initiated in 2008, the Engaged Scholar Award recognizes a full-time, tenured faculty member for significant contributions in public service, outreach and community engagement. The 2015 recipient was Anna Karls, faculty member in the department of microbiology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. Since joining UGA, Karls has worked to establish unique outreach and engagement opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students.
Click here to learn more about Anna Karls.
Staff Award
The Public Service and Outreach Staff Award for Excellence honors outstanding effort and workplace creativity and innovation, and celebrates the achievements of public service and outreach staff. The 2015 recipient was Sandy Christopher, program coordinator and assistant to the director at the J.W. Fanning Institute for Leadership Development.
This year’s award winners were honored at the 2015 PSO Annual Meeting and Awards Luncheon on April 13.
