Seven OSU students win at water conference

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Seven OSU students win for presentations at water conference

OSU students won in every presentation category at the 2013 Student Water Conference hosted on campus last week. Students from OSU and eleven other universities participated. The presentations were judged by OSU water faculty and scientists/engineers at numerous local water agencies. Awardees included the following:

Outstanding Undergraduate Poster Presentations: David Criswell (Oklahoma State), Qualla Parman (Oklahoma State), Peter Storm (Oklahoma State)

Outstanding Undergraduate Oral Presentation: Madeline Dillner (University of Oklahoma), Rebecca Purvis (Oklahoma State)

Outstanding Graduate Student Poster Presentations: Sukhbir Singh (New Mexico State University), Qian Zhang (University of Hawaii), Jarrod Powers (Oklahoma State)

Outstanding Graduate Student Oral Presentations: Ian Turner (Auburn University), John McMaine (University of Kentucky), Shane Morrison (Oklahoma State University)

A total of forty-five undergraduate and graduate students presented their research at the water conference. In addition to OSU, the other universities included Auburn University, New Mexico State University, Penn State University, Tarleton State University, Texas A&M University, University of Arkansas, University of Hawaii, University of Kentucky, University of Nebraska, University of Oklahoma, and Virginia Tech University.

The conference was organized and hosted by Dr. Garey Fox, associate professor and Buchanan Chair in Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, as part of a National Science Foundation grant and funds from the Orville L. and Helen L. Buchanan Endowed Chair in Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering. The conference was also supported by the Oklahoma Water Resources Center.

The conference included a keynote lecture, called the Buchanan Lecture, featuring Dr. Glenn Wilson, soil physicist/hydrologist from the USDA-ARS National Sedimentation Laboratory in Oxford, Miss. The Buchanan Lecture was titled “From Soil Physicist to Research Hydrologist: Be Prepared for Non-Laminar Career Flow Paths.”

The conference also welcomed back Dr. Derek Heeren, a recent Ph.D. graduate from OSU, for a presentation on “Perspectives on Different Phases of a Water Career.” Heeren discussed his experiences in entering industry immediately after a B.S. degree, returning to graduate school and completing a Ph.D. degree, and his experiences as a first year faculty member in academia. Heeren joined the faculty at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in August, 2012, as an irrigation engineer and assistant professor.