COLUMBUS, Ohio— Shannon Washburn, professor and chair of the Department of Agricultural Communication, Education, and Leadership (ACEL) at The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), has been named the college’s Sanford G. Price and Isabelle P. Barbee Chair in Teaching, Advising, and Learning.
His term begins Nov. 1.
Washburn, who joined ACEL as professor and chair in 2020, previously served as an assistant dean for Academic Programs for the College of Agriculture at Kansas State University, from 2015 to 2020. In that role, he led the college’s student retention efforts, facilitated professional development opportunities for faculty and instructional staff on teaching and advising, and coordinated the course and...
I just heard about the health warning advising Ohioans about the ongoing hepatitis A outbreak across the state. What is hepatitis A, and how do I protect myself against it?
Hepatitis A is a highly contagious virus that infects a person’s liver. It can be spread through close contact with a person who has hepatitis A or by eating food prepared by a person with hepatitis A.
In a written statement published last week by the Ohio Department of Health (ODH), the agency warned about the ongoing hepatitis A outbreak impacting Ohio and advised those who believe that they are at high risk for hepatitis A infection to contact their healthcare provider or local health department for information about vaccination.
As of Sept. 23, there have been 3,758 reported cases of hepatitis A...
COLUMBUS, Ohio—Some 188,300 meals were packed and delivered to families in northeast Ohio last week as part of an effort by more than 500 volunteers from The Ohio State University who joined some 200 community organization partners to fight food insecurity in Ohio.
The effort was part of “Urban October,” a worldwide campaign the United Nations launched to focus on the opportunities and challenges created by the fast rate of change in cities.
The theme of Ohio’s monthlong campaign is “Celebrating Ohio Cities—Where We Live, Work, Play, Learn, and Serve.”
As part of that service, Ohio State students, staff, faculty, alumni, volunteers, and families packed and delivered free meals to those struggling with food insecurity. In an effort led by...
COLUMBUS, Ohio—Amid a surge in large-scale solar energy developments across the state, Ohioans now have more influence over what, if any, land in their communities will be used for wind or solar farms.
A new state law (Senate Bill 52) that went into effect Oct. 11, allows county governments to designate restricted areas where utility-scale solar or wind facilities cannot be located. County residents now will have advance notice, a public hearing, and a right to reject any proposed solar or wind development. And county and township officials will be represented on the board, reviewing any utility-scale energy projects.
“There’s a lot of change going on in the rural landscape of Ohio because of the interest in renewable energy development. And yet many weren’t...
COLUMBUS, Ohio–V.M. “Bala” Balasubramaniam, a professor of food engineering in The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) departments of Food Science and Technology and Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, is the 2021 recipient of the Research and Development Award from the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT).
Balasubramaniam was honored for his ground-breaking work in high-pressure processing, IFT President Noel Anderson, said in a written statement. IFT is an international, nonprofit scientific society of professionals engaged in food science, food technology, and related areas in academia, government, and industry.
“What makes this recognition especially distinctive is the fact that (he) was...
COLUMBUS, Ohio– Hannah Epley, an associate professor of Extension education and the interim associate state 4-H leader and Ohio State University Extension specialist for camping and older youth, has been named associate state 4-H leader, effective Sept. 1.
Ohio 4-H, the youth development program of OSU Extension, which is the outreach arm of The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), annually offers or sponsors 4-H camps to youth in all 88 of Ohio’s counties.
Epley joined CFAES as the 4-H educator in Fairfield County in 2005, becoming the camping and older youth state 4-H specialist in 2014. During her time as a 4-H educator, Epley provided overall leadership for the county 4-H program, which now has more than 1,600...
I plan to carve some pumpkins for Halloween, but I’m trying to avoid injuring myself like I did last year. Do you have any tips on how I can do that?
It’s that time of year when pumpkins are being harvested and readying to carve. And while carving a pumpkin can be a fun, festive, fall family event—as long as you know what you’re doing—it’s important to do so safely.
Even though pumpkins are a beautiful, tasty vegetable (or fruit, depending on who you ask), carving them can result in injuries if you aren’t careful.
One thing to keep in mind is choosing the right pumpkin to carve.
There are several kinds of pumpkins—some that you eat, and some that are typically used for carving, said Jenny Lobb, a family and consumer sciences...
COLUMBUS, Ohio—The Ohio State University will be the lead partner on a new five-year, multimillion-dollar pilot watershed project in northwestern Ohio designed to demonstrate that agricultural conservation practices—if used on 70% of the farmland in a watershed, and evaluated on a watershed scale—can help meet Lake Erie’s water quality goals.
The Regional Conservation Partnership Program, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service, is providing $6.8 million in funding for the project.
A further $4 million is being made available to the project by the state of Ohio through the H2Ohio water quality initiative, which the project will complement.
Key to the project are investments by other partners that...
COLUMBUS, Ohio–Pasha A. Lyvers Peffer, a professor in The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) Department of Animal Sciences, has been named interim chair of that department. Her term begins Oct. 1 and will continue until a permanent chair is named.
Lyvers Peffer joined CFAES as an assistant professor in 2005, becoming an associate professor in 2011, and a professor in 2018. She previously served as undergraduate program leader and chair of Academic Affairs in the Department of Animal Sciences from 2014–17, as interim associate chair of Animal Sciences from 2016–7, and as acting assistant dean of CFAES Academic Affairs from 2017–18.
In her role as interim chair of the Department of Animal Sciences, Lyvers...
It is a shocking statistic. In the United States, nearly 40% of all food produced is never eaten. This anomaly results in lost resources, economic costs to business and households, decreased food security, and negative climate impacts.
With the United Nations moving toward an ambitious goal of halving food waste by 2030, a new $15 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) will be used to establish the first national academic research network on wasted food in the United States.
Brian Roe, a professor of agricultural economics in Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), will serve as a co-principal investigator along with four colleagues from American University, Johns Hopkins University, Morgan State University, and the...
