At CALS, we have the good fortune to be able to offer a number of college and departmental professorships and chairships. These titles, with accompanying funding, are a way to acknowledge faculty members for doing outstanding work, while encouraging and inspiring excellence across the college.

This academic year, ten CALS faculty members were selected to receive college and department professorships or chairships. They will be honored during an investiture ceremony on February 10, 2026. (Details of the event will be announced in a future eCALS post.) The recipients are listed below.

Amaya Atucha, associate professor, extension specialist and chair of the Department of Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences, has been reappointed as the Gottschalk Family Chair for Cranberry Research. The award, established by the Gottschalk family, provides support for research and scholarly activities. Atucha is an expert on fruit crop production and focuses her research program on fruit crop physiology and production with an emphasis on soil and nutrient management, root dynamics and cold hardiness. In her role as an extension specialist, she does educational programming in fresh and processed market fruit production.

Irwin Goldman, professor in the Department of Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences, has been appointed as the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Grower KWS Chair. The chair was established by the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association in honor of Keith Kelling, Jeffrey Wyman and Walter Stevenson (hence “KWS” in the name). Goldman’s research program emphasizes plant secondary metabolites that have potential value for human health and wellbeing. Goldman, who is the first appointee to this chair, has bred cultivars used to make commercial hybrids and grown by farmers worldwide.

Francisco Peñagaricano, associate professor in the Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences, has been appointed as the Judge John J. Crown Chair in Dairy Genetics. The award was established by William and Tammy Crown in honor of William’s father, Judge John J. Crown. The Crown family operates Golden Oaks Farm, which promotes sustainability and dairy education. Peñagaricano’s research interests are in quantitative genomics and computational biology. He combines large datasets with high–throughput genomic technologies and computational methods to elucidate the connection between genome and phenotype.

Federico Rey, associate professor in the Department of Bacteriology, has been appointed as the Ira L. Baldwin Professor in Bacteriology. The award was established by family members of Ira Baldwin to honor Baldwin’s contributions and accomplishments as a faculty member and administrator at CALS and UW. Rey’s research aims to understand how an organism’s gut microbiome modulates the effects of diet and its susceptibility to cardiometabolic disease. His team uses a combination of microbiome analyses from humans and mice as well as studies in mouse models and classic bacteriology experiments.

Chad Rienstra, professor in the Department of Biochemistry, has been appointed as the Evelyn Mercer Professor in Biochemical Sciences. The award was established with funds from Samuel T. Mercer, in honor of his sister Evelyn, and recognizes a distinguished professor engaged in research to understand fundamental life processes. Rienstra’s research group has pioneered NMR methods and technologies that have helped solve high-resolution structures of small proteins. They have also discovered innovative approaches to understand larger structures. Their efforts are having a major impact on understanding Parkinson’s disease, fungicidal drug action and protein-lipid interactions in blood coagulation.

Guanming Shi, professor in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, has been reappointed as the Renk Chair in Agribusiness. The award was established by the Renk family of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, owners of the Renk Seed Company. Shi researches the economics of industrial organization in the U.S and China. She focuses on firms’ strategic behavior under imperfect competition in regard to pricing, product offering and intellectual property protection, with applications to biotechnology and the genetically modified seed industry. She is also interested in new technology and emerging issues in developing economies.

Jade Wang, professor in the Department of Bacteriology, has been appointed as the E.B. Fred Professor in Bacteriology. The award was established through the estate of E.B. Fred, a leading bacteriologist who went on to serve various UW campus leadership roles including CALS Dean and UW President. Wang’s research combines genetics and biochemistry to understand how bacteria signal different types of stress and coordinate processes to mitigate stress-induced conflicts. Her team works to establish fundamental principles in model organisms and then apply their research to pathogenic bacteria to solve issues such as widespread antibiotic resistance.

Named Bascom Professorships

The following individuals were selected to receive Named Bascom Professorships. These professorships are supported by donors as well as the UW Foundation through the Named Bascom Professorship program, administered by the Office of the Provost.

Scott Rankin, professor, extension specialist and chair of the Department of Food Science, has been appointed to the Campbell-Bascom Professorship. The award was established by the Campbell Soup Company and is awarded to faculty in CALS who have made outstanding contributions in the field of agriculture. Rankin is also serving as the interim chair of the Department of Nutritional Sciences, and his research focuses on the characterization of dairy food flavor with sensory and instrumental techniques. As an extension specialist, he offers numerous programs and short courses in support of the dairy foods processing industry with topics such as milk pasteurization and dairy chemistry.

Damon Smith, professor and extension specialist in the Department of Plant Pathology, has been appointed as the Vaughan-Bascom Professor in Plant Pathology. The professorship was established by James S. Vaughan in honor of his father Richard Vaughan, an extension professor of plant pathology from 1914–1950. Smith’s research interests focus on the biology, epidemiology and management of field crop diseases as well as improving disease forecasting systems. The information generated from his research serves his extension program and provides an integrated approach to managing diseases using improved host resistance, cultural management and chemical control techniques.  

Doug Soldat, professor and chair of the Department of Soil and Environmental Sciences, has been appointed to the Beers-Bascom Professorship in Conservation. The award was established in the early 1980s by the Kraft Company in honor of William O. Beers for his lifetime career of dedicated service to the company and volunteer leadership roles at UW­–Madison. Soldat’s research, teaching and extension programs are focused on optimizing resource use efficiency in turfgrass systems as well as understanding and improving urban soils. He also co-leads the Turfgrass Apprenticeship Program, which is part of the Farm and Industry Short Course.