Theses and Dissertations, 2020–2021

February 1, 2023

For many decades, ASA, CSSA, and SSSA have published thesis and dissertation titles of graduates in the agronomic, crop, soil, and related environmental science disciplines. This year, we received 165 submissions representing 62 universities. Congratulations to all of our master’s and Ph.D. graduates.

We encourage you to take full advantage of membership in the Societies as you pursue your professional careers. Your hard work, dedication, and perseverance has paid off, and an exciting career in our sciences now begins. ASA, CSSA, and SSSA are here for you every step of the way!

Name	Institution	Graduation	Advisers	Thesis/Dissertation Title
Doctorate Degrees in Agronomic Science Fields
ASA Land Management and Conservation Section
Benalcazar, Paul Gonzalo	Lakehead Univ.	6/3/2022	B. McLaren, R. Kolka, A. Diochion	Assessment and Evolution of Soil Health Indicators with Changes from Boreal Forest to Agriculture in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
ASA Agronomic Production Systems Section
Champagne, Rebecca J.	Univ. of Maine	5/7/2022	E. Gallandt	Evaluating Physical and Cultural Methods to Improve Weed Management in Organic Vegetables.
Essman, Alyssa I.	Ohio State Univ.	5/8/2022	M. Loux, A. Lindsey	The Impacts and Management of Herbicide-Resistant Weeds in Ohio Agronomic Crop Production.
McGlinch, Greg J.	Ohio State Univ.	12/15/2021	L. Lindsey	Management of Two-Row Winter Malting Barley to Meet Yield and Quality Requirements.
Nichols, Virginia Anne	Iowa State Univ.	9/14/2021	M. Liebman, S. Archontoulis	Anything but Simple: Using Models and Field Studies to Explore the Effects of Cropping System Diversification in the Upper Midwestern US.

Name	Institution	Graduation	Advisers	Thesis/Dissertation Title
Singh, Bhupinder	Mississippi State Univ.	5/1/2020	D. Chastain, K.R. Reddy	Agronomic and Physiological Responses of Resistant and Susceptible Cotton Genotypes to Reniform Nematode Severity and Soil Fertility.
ASA Environmental Quality Section
Mosesso, Lauren	Univ. of Delaware	6/17/2022	A. Shober	Characterization of Legacy Soil P and Quantification of Subsurface Losses Under Artificial Drainage.
Sedghi, Nathan	Univ. of Maryland	12/21/2021	R. Weil	Extending the Cover Crop Growing Season to Reduce Nitrogen Pollution.
Doctorate Degrees in Crop Science Fields
CSSA Crop Breeding and Genetics Division (C-1)
Hershberger, Jenna	Cornell Univ.	8/31/2021	M.A. Gore	Quality Trait Prediction in Cassava and Sweet Corn.
Hislop, Lillian	Univ. of Wisconsin- Madison	1/22/2022	W. Tracy	Genetic Associations of Endosperm Carbohydrate Composition and Sugarcane Mosaic Virus Resistance in Sweet Corn (Zeamays.).
Mangat, Puneet Kaur	Texas Tech Univ.	12/11/2021	R. Shim	Exploring Natural Variation in Solanum Lycopersicoides Towards Introgressive Breeding for Target Trait Improvement in Tomato (S.
Ravelombola, Francia Seconde	Univ. of Arkansas	5/15/2022	L. Mozzoni, E. Shabika	Breeding Soybean (Glycine Max L.) Under Reduction Irrigation.
Sandhu, Karansher Singh	Washington State Univ.	10/26/2021	A. Carter	Enhancing Genetic Gain in a Wheat Breeding Program using Genomics, Phenomics, Machine and Deep Learning Algorithms.
CSSA Crop Physiology & Metabolism Division (C-2)
Kim, Jinwook	Univ. of Lleida	1/27/2022	G. Slafer, R. Savin	Physiology of Genotypic Differences in Wheat Grain Weight Among Elite Cultivars of Contrasting Grain Number.
CSSA Crop Ecology, Management & Quality Division (C-3)
Sible, Connor Nelson	Univ. of Illinois	5/15/2022	F. E. Below	Characterizing Plant Biostimulants and Their Impact on the Soil Microbiome and Productivity of Maize.
CSSA Turfgrass Science Division (C-5)
Carlson, Michael	Univ. of Nebraska- Lincoln	5/14/2022	L. Puntel, B. Kreuser	Precision Nitrogen Management for Golf Course Fairways.
Carroll, Devon Elizabeth	Univ. of Tennessee	5/19/2022	J. Brosnan	Poa annua: An Annual Species?
Hutchens, Wendell Joseph	Virginia Tech	5/14/2022	D. McCall	Biology, Epidemiology, and Management of Spring Dead Spot of Bermudagrass.

Name	Institution	Graduation	Advisers	Thesis/Dissertation Title
Kim, Kyungmin	Michigan State Univ.	12/17/2021	A. Kravchenko, P. Robertson, A. Guber	Change of Soil Micro-Environments During Plant Decomposition and its Effect on Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics.
McGrail, Rebecca Kay	Univ. of Kentucky	8/11/2021	D.H. McNear, Jr.	Enhancing Agroecosystem Phosphorus Management: Root Phenotyping and Decomposition for Improved Phosphorus Cycling.
Nevins, Clayton James	Univ. of Florida	8/9/2021	P. Inglett, S. Strauss	Biological Soil Crusts Impact Nutrient Cycling and Soil Microbiome in Agroecosystems.
Nunez, Agustin	Colorado State Univ.	8/4/2021	M. Schipanski	When the Wells Run Dry: Soil Organic Carbon Dynamics During the Transition from Irrigated to Dryland Cropping Systems.
Thapa, Vesh Raj	New Mexico State Univ.	8/4/2021	R. Ghimire	Cover Crops Affect Soil Health And Crop Production Under Limited-Irrigation Winter Wheat-Sorghum-Fallow.
SSSA Soil Chemistry Division
Sun, Fajun	Florida State Univ.	7/31/2021	Y. Wang	Geochemical Proxies Preserved in Fossils and Lake Sediments: New Insights into Ancient Diets and Environments in South China and Storm Activity in South Florida.
SSSA Soil Fertility & Plant Nutrition Division
Bohman, Brian Joseph	Univ. of Minneso- ta-Twin Cities	8/31/2021	D. Mulla, C. Rosen	Investigating Nitrogen and Irrigation Management Strategies to Improve Agronomic and Environmental Outcomes for Potato Production.
Cruz, Jayvee Adriano	Louisiana State Univ.	8/4/2021	B. Tubana	Silicate-Solubilizing Bacteria in Louisiana Soils: Identification, Profiling, and Functions in Crop Production.
Svedin, Jeffrey David	Univ. of Missouri	5/17/2022	N. Kitchen, K. Veum, S. Anderson	Utilization and Limitations of Soil Health Metrics for Missouri Corn Production.
SSSA Soil Physics and Hydrology Division
Weber, Peter	Aarhus Univ.	6/16/2022	L. Wollesen de Jonge, P. Moldrup, M.H. Greve	Greenlandic Soils: Their Functional Properties and the Effects of Glacial Rock Flour Application.
SSSA Soils & Environmental Quality Division
Ansari, Jamshid	Univ. of Missouri	5/15/2022	S. H. Anderson	Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Soil Microbial Activity for Selected Land Use Systems in Floodplains.
Perrone, Sharon	Univ. of Minnesota- Twin Cities	8/30/2021	J. Grossman	Sensitivity, Variability, and Statistical Evaluation of Soil Health Indicators in a Silt Loam Soil in Mower County, MN.

Name	Institution	Graduation	Advisers	Thesis/Dissertation Title
Master’s Degrees in Argonomic Science Fields
ASA Agronomic Production Systems Section
Arinaitwe, Unius	South Dakota State Univ.	8/22/2021	T. Nleya	Evaluating Canola Genotypes for Growth and Yield Under Different Environmental Conditions in South Dakota.
Ellison, Elora- Danam	West Texas A & M Univ.	5/7/2022	B. Blaser, M. Darapuneni, M. Rhoades	Evaluating Forage Sorghum- Cowpea and Pearl Millet-Cowpea Production and Quality in the Texas High Plains.
Munoz, Sonia Rebecca	Texas A&M Univ.-Kingsville	8/15/2021	G. Schuster, M. Setamou	Non-Thesis.
Sullivan, Tina Marie	Utah State Univ.	5/17/2022	M. Yost	4R Nitrogen and Water Optimization Combinations for Intermountain West Field Crops.
Master’s Degrees in Crop Science Fields
CSSA Crop Physiology & Metabolism Division (C-2)
Hull, Ashley Marie	Appalachian State Univ.	5/16/2022	H. Neufeld	Photosynthetic Physiology of Fraser fir (Abies fraseri) Christmas Trees.
Ortmeier-Clarke, Haleigh Jo	Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison	8/20/2021	S.P. Conley, R. Werle	Considerations for Growing Industrial Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) in Wisconsin.
CSSA Turfgrass Science Division (C-5)
Burgin, Hanna Renae	Brigham Young Univ.	12/17/2021	B. Hopkins	Hybrid Bermudagrass and Kentucky Bluegrass Response Under Deficit Irrigation in a Semi-Arid, Cool Season Climate.
Kaur, Charanpreet	Oklahoma State Univ.	7/30/2021	J.Q. Moss	Evaluation of Turf-Type Bermudagrass Cultivars and Experimental Genotypes for Rooting Characteristics and Drought Performance.
McNally, Brandon	Rutgers Univ.	1/2/2022	M. Elmore	Phosphorus and Soil pH Affect Annual Bluegrass (Poa annua L.) Competitiveness in Creeping Bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.).
CSSA Forage & Grazing Lands Division (C-6)
Dantas Queiroz, Luana M	Univ. of Florida	8/5/2021	J.C.B. Dubeux Jr.	Performance and Nitrogen Dynamics in Grass-Legume Systems in Florida.
Hall, Alyssa K.	Univ. of Nebraska- Lincoln	12/17/2021	D. Redfearn	Livestock Grazing Impacts on Crop and Soil Responses for Two Cropping Systems.
Mosqueda, Haley Malyn	West Texas A & M Univ.	5/10/2022	B. Blaser	Forage Production and Quality of Forage Sorghum and Sunnhemp Intercropped at Different Seeding Rates.
Master’s Degrees in Soil Science Fields
SSSA Forest, Range & Wildland Soils Division
McCool, Katherine	Oregon State Univ.	6/11/2022	J. Hatten	Quantifying Impacts of Forest Fire on Soil Carbon in a Young, Intensively Managed Tree Farm in the Western Oregon Cascades.

Name	Institution	Graduation	Advisers	Thesis/Dissertation Title
SSSA Soil & Water Management & Conservation Division
Kruger, Kelsey	Univ. of Wisconsin- Madison	8/30/2021	M. Ruark, A. Thompson	An Exploratory Analysis of Edge-of-Field Phosphorus Losses.
SSSA Soil Biology & Biochemistry Division
Epps, Annalee Carol	Texas A&M Univ. College Station	5/20/2022	J. Howe, A.P. Smith	Effects of Long-Term Agricultural Nitrogen Fertilization on Soil Organic Carbon Cycling.
Judd, Tanner	Oklahoma State Univ.	5/6/2022	A. Jilling	Soil Nitrogen Storage and Mineralization Potential in a Winter Wheat System Under Long-Term Nitrogen Fertilization.
SSSA Soil Fertility & Plant Nutrition Division
Ankomah, Godfred	Illinois State Univ.	8/5/2021	C. Robinson	Phosphorus and Zinc Effects on Soybean Yield and Agronomic Efficiency.
Orjuela Diaz, Daniela	Purdue Univ.	8/5/2021	J. Camberato, R. Nielsen	Corn Growth and Yield Response to Starter Fertilizer.
SSSA Soil Physics and Hydrology Division
Coffman, Sarah Elizabeth	Texas A&M Univ. College Station	8/12/2021	C.L.S. Morgan, J.A. Howe	Assessing the Utility of the VisNIR-Mounted Penetrometer.
Wardrup, Jocelyn Lee	Univ. of Delaware	8/16/2021	R. Vargas	Soil Organic Carbon in Tidal Wetlands of the Northeast United States.
SSSA Soil Chemistry Division
Mumbi, Rose Caroline Kirigo	Tennessee State Univ.	7/14/2021	S. Rakshit	Probing the Influence of Veterinary Antibiotics on Boron Retention/ Release Mechanism at the Mineral/Water Interface.
Nel, Teneille	Univ. of Stellenbosch	12/10/2021	A. Hardie	Conversion of Soil pH Values and Exchangeable Base Cation Quantities Determined by Different Methods.
SSSA Soils & Environmental Quality Division
Brehm, Theresa	Ohio State Univ.	5/8/2022	S. Culman	Evaluating the Effects of Underground Pipeline Installation on Soil and Crop Characteristics Throughout Ohio, USA.
Fordyce, Simon Isaac	Montana State Univ.	5/12/2022	C. Jones, P. Carr	Spatial Patterns in Soil Depth and Implications for Offseason Nitrogen Dynamics in Dryland Wheat Systems of Central Montana.
Hight, Christopher Michael	California State Polytechnic Univ.	6/12/2022	C. Decock, A. Tubeileh, M. Grieshop	Predictive Indicators of Nitrogen Mineralization and Availability in Organic Fields on the Central Coast.
Sharry, Raedan Lane	Oklahoma State Univ.	7/31/2021	D.B. Arnall	Influence of Soil pH on Cotton Morphology, Lint Yield and Lint Quality.
No Section or Division Specified
Schuler, Jordan	Univ. of Wisconsin- Madison	4/5/2022	J. Colquhoun	Alternative Specialty Crops and Innovative Production Systems in Wisconsin Vegetable Production.

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