Genetics assistant professor Jake Brunkard and plant pathology assistant professor Leslie Holland were selected to receive the 2023 Alfred Toepfer Faculty Fellow Awards. The one-year award is bestowed on pre-tenure faculty whose research benefits agricultural activities within the United States and whose areas of interest lie in the scientific fields of crop research, improvements in crop yield and quality, or animal sciences.

Brunkard joined the CALS faculty in August 2020 as an assistant professor in the Department of Genetics. His lab studies how plants sense and respond to nutrients, or, how plants coordinate metabolism. They focus on a regulatory gene called TOR that is extremely similar in both humans and plants using multidisciplinary approaches, including methods from genetics, genomics, biochemistry, cell biology, and physiology. Long-term, Brunkard and his lab aim to harness TOR signaling pathways to improve agricultural crop resilience and yields while reducing reliance on costly, unsustainable fertilizers.

Holland joined the CALS faculty in August 2020 as an assistant professor in the Department of Plant Pathology and a fruit crop pathology extension specialist in the Division of Extension. Her research focuses on the diagnosis, biology and management of pathogens affecting fruit production in Wisconsin, specifically cranberry, apple, grape and other specialty fruit crops. Her lab uses basic and applied research to address disease challenges and translate their findings into practical information. Research projects are driven by grower needs and include fungicide resistance, disease forecasting, and cultural and chemical management.