NMPF Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program

At their June meeting, the NMPF Board of Directors selected a student to receive the newly created Dr. Peter Vitaliano Legacy Scholarship. The scholarship, created in March, supports individuals who demonstrate a passion for the industry through community engagement, academic interests and advocacy. This year’s scholarship was awarded to:

Maria Belen Ugarte Marin, a doctoral candidate in Veterinary Medical Sciences at the University of Florida studying the identification of detrimental milking characteristics and their association with dairy farm performance. Maria’s dedication to mentorship, serving as a teaching assistant, and overall passion for supporting the next generation embodies the vision for dairy leadership by Dr. Vitaliano, who retired from NMPF last year after nearly four decades as an economist with the organization.

The Board also selected three additional graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the 2025 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. These students are conducting research in areas that will benefit dairy cooperatives and producers. Scholarship were awarded to:

Dallas Soffa, a doctoral candidate in Physiology of Reproduction in Animal Science at Texas A&M. Soffa’s research explores the hormonal influence on reproductive microbiota and immune cell signaling in cattle.

Margaret Costello, a doctoral candidate in Animal & Dairy Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research focuses on integrating emerging sequencing technology and non-invasive sampling techniques with rumen microbiome research to address key industry concerns.

Marina Rocha Dorella, a master’s student in Animal Science at the University of Minnesota. Her research explores enhancing dairy industry sustainability through precision dairy technology, more specifically, optimizing hyperketonemia treatment efficiency and labor allocation.

At their June meeting, the NMPF Board of Directors selected five graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the 2024 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. These students are conducting research in areas that will benefit dairy cooperatives and producers. Scholarship were awarded to:

Agustin Olivo, a PhD candidate in Animal Science at Cornell University, whose research focuses on the evaluation and dissemination of system analysis tools and performance indicators to improve environmental outcomes of New York dairies.

Ana Beatriz Montevecchio Bernardino, a PhD candidate in Veterinary Clinical Sciences at the University of Florida, who is studying the effect of a novel non-steroidal anti-inflammatory formulation on welfare of Holstein cows challenged with E. coli.

Grant Fincham, a MS candidate in Ruminant Nutrition at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln, whose research looks at whole animal energy utilization and manure biogas production in feeding dried distillers grains with solubles to lactating dairy cattle.

Lynn Olthof, a PhD candidate in Animal Science – Dairy Management at Michigan State University, who is studying the economic implications of dairy farm management decisions.

Megan Lauber, a PhD candidate in Dairy Science at the University of Wisconsin – Madison investigating an integrated approach to optimize sexed semen in dairy herds.

Scholarship winners for 2023 selected by the NMPF Scholarship Committee included five graduate students who are conducting research in areas that will benefit dairy cooperatives and producers. Scholarships, announced to NMPF’s Board of Directors in June, were awarded to:

Alanna Staffin, a Ph.D. candidate in Integrative and Biomedical Physiology at Penn State University, whose research focuses on the effects of palmitic and stearic acids on mammary gland uptake, gene expression, and metabolism in lactating dairy cows.

Alyssa Thibodeau, a MS candidate in Food Science and Technology and Oregon State University, whose research addresses upcycling of whey to produce craft organic acid-based beverages or vinegar with novel yeast and bacteria co-cultures.

Bhaswati Chowdhury, a MS candidate in Biological Sciences – Dairy Science at South Dakota State University, whose research focuses on the control of persistent environmental Listeria monocytogenes within the dairy processing plant using genomic and phenotypic approaches.

Luke Fuerniss, a Ph.D. in Animal Science at Texas Tech University, with research focusing on beef genetics in the dairy management system, evaluating the effects of management systems and maternal genetics.

Usman Arshad, a Ph.D. in Animal Nutrition at University of Florida, whose research focuses on choline and its role in hepatic metabolism and performance in dairy cows.

At their June meeting, the NMPF Scholarship Committee selected two graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the 2022 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. These students are conducting research in areas that will benefit dairy cooperatives and producers. Scholarship were awarded to:

Catherine McVey, a PhD candidate in Animal Biology at the University of California – Davis, whose research focuses on a model-free approach to extracting complex behavioral patterns from precision livestock farming data streams through unsupervised machine learning. Catie is this year’s recipient of the Hintz Memorial Scholarship given to the top scholarship candidate.

Kirby Krogstad, a PhD candidate in Animal Science at Michigan State University, whose research focuses on nutritional strategies and feed additives to modulate inflammation and health of dairy cows.

At their June meeting, the NMPF Scholarship Committee selected three graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the 2021 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. These students are conducting research in areas that will benefit dairy cooperatives and producers. Scholarships were awarded to:

Alycia Drwencke, a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Behavior at the University of California – Davis, whose research focuses on the welfare implications of caustic paste disbudding and pain mitigation for dairy calves.

Paulo Menta, a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Science at Texas Tech University, whose research focuses on predicting metritis cure as a path to reducing antimicrobial use in dairy cattle.

Kelly Mitchell, a Ph.D. candidate in Nutrition at Ohio State University studying the stimulation of microbial protein synthesis by branched volatile fatty acids.

At their June meeting, the NMPF Scholarship Committee selected three graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the 2020 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. These students are conducting research in areas that will benefit dairy cooperatives and producers. Scholarships were awarded to:

Ellen Lai, a Ph.D. candidate in Integrative Genetics and Genomics at the University of California, Davis, whose research focuses on improving production and welfare of Holstein cattle by providing genetic tools to reduce lameness caused by foot warts and sole ulcers.

Conor McCabe, a M.S. candidate in Animal Science at Purdue University, studying tissue mobilization in transition dairy cows.

Mateus Peiter, a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Science at the University of Minnesota studying the use of automated technologies to improve animal health and herd management on dairy farms.

The 2019 Hintz Memorial Scholarship, given to the top scholarship candidate, was awarded to Amber Roberts, an MS candidate in Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities studying the factors that influence resilient dairy farms.

Additional scholarships were awarded to:

Cesar Matamoros, a Ph.D. candidate in Integrative and Biomedical Physiology at the Pennsylvania State University studying the role of volatile fatty acids as metabolic regulators of mammary lipogenesis in the bovine.

Russell Pate, a Ph.D. candidate in Ruminant Nutrition at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign studying nutritional and environmental stressors and their effect on performance and immunological parameters in dairy cattle.

The NMPF Scholarship Committee selected two graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the 2018 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program.

The 2018 Hintz Memorial Scholarship, given to the top scholarship candidate, was awarded to Isaac Salfer (left), a Ph. D. candidate in animal science at Pennsylvania State University, who is studying the effect of nutrient intake on circadian rhythms in the mammary gland of dairy cows.

A scholarship was also awarded to Gustavo Mazon, M.S. candidate in animal science, at the University of Kentucky, who is studying the effects of yeast-derived microbial protein in transition dairy cows’ health and production.

The NMPF Scholarship Committee selected two graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the 2017 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program.

The 2017 Hintz Memorial Scholarship, given to the top scholarship candidate, was awarded to Sarah Adcock (left), a Ph.D. candidate in animal behavior at the University of California-Davis, who is studying the long-term welfare implications of hot-iron disbudding in dairy calves.

A scholarship was also awarded to Carlyn Peterson, a Ph.D. candidate in animal biology, also at the University of California-Davis, who is studying the use of a novel methane inhibitor to improve the environmental footprint of dairy cattle.

NMPF’s Scholarship Committee selected three graduate students to receive awards as part of the 2016 NMPF National Dairy Leadership:

Matthew Borchers (left), a Ph.D. candidate in Dairy Systems Management at the University of Kentucky, who is studying the effect of housing environment on bedding bacterial profiles and immunological function of dairy cattle.

Brittany Shonka-Martin, a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Science at the University of Minnesota, who is studying a comparison of feed intake, frame size, body weight, and production efficiency of ProCROSS versus Holstein cows.

Jennifer Spencer, a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Physiology at the University of Idaho, who is studying the role of aspirin on prostaglandin secretion and alternative synchronization protocols to improve pregnancy rates in lactating dairy cows.

Four graduate students researching dairy-related topics were selected to receive $2,000 each from NMPF’s National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program.

Karmella Dolecheck, left, is a Ph.D. candidate in animal science at the University of Kentucky. Her research focus is increasing dairy profitability through the application of a whole farm stochastic simulation model.

Paul LaPierre is a M.S. candidate in animal science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research focus is the effects of hydroxy vs. sulfate forms of trace minerals in milk replacer on dairy calves through weaning.

Jon Pretz is a Ph.D. candidate in dairy science at South Dakota State University. His research focus is evaluation of yeast products and antioxidants alone or in combination on ruminal volatile fatty acid absorption when fed to mid-lactation high-producing dairy cows

Barbara Wadsworth is a Ph.D. candidate in animal science at the University of Kentucky. Her research focus is use of precision dairy farming technologies to detect lameness in dairy cattle.

At their June 2014 meeting, the NMPF Scholarship Committee selected two graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the organization’s National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program.

The 2014 Hintz Memorial Scholarship, given to the top scholarship candidate, was awarded to Curtis Park (pictured left), a Ph.D. candidate in Food Science at North Carolina State University. His research project is the effect of processing on the quality of skim milk powder and sources of off-flavors in whey protein concentrate.

A scholarship was also awarded to Robb Bender, a Ph.D. candidate in Dairy Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for his research on using statistical process control to integrate nutritional data in real-time analysis on commercial dairy farms.

At their June 2013 meeting, the NMPF Scholarship Committee selected three graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the organization’s National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program.

The 2013 Hintz Memorial Scholarship, given to the top scholarship candidate, was awarded to Kristen Glosson (left), a M.S. candidate in Animal Science & Nutrition at North Carolina State University. Her research project is supplementing a pasteurized milk balancer product to two feeding levels of pasteurized whole milk on the health and growth of dairy calves.

A scholarship was also awarded to Clayton Stoffel, M.S. candidate in Dairy Cattle Nutrition at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for his research on the effects of different fatty acid profiles on milk fat depression in dairy cattle fed diets below 4% fat.  Yun Yu, M.S. candidate in Food Science at the Pennsylvania State University, was awarded a scholarship for her research on a novel clean-in-place approach of electrolyzed water for dairy processing equipment.

At their June 2012 meeting, the NMPF Scholarship Committee selected two graduate students to receive scholarships as part of the organization’s National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. These students were conducting research in areas that would benefit dairy cooperatives and producers.

The 2012 Hintz Memorial Scholarship, which is given to the top scholarship candidate, was awarded to Rosemarie Cabral (left), a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Science at the University of New Hampshire. Her research project was “Improving immunity in the neonatal dairy calf”.

An additional scholarship was awarded to Ryan Higgs, a Ph.D. candidate in Animal Science at Cornell University, for his research project “Predicting amino acid flows and improving nitrogen utilization in lactating dairy cows.”

In 2011, the National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program continued to fund graduate-level research projects of immediate interest to NMPF member cooperatives in areas such as animal health, economics, food safety, and nutrition. NMPF’s Scholarship Committee again received a record number of applications this year and acknowledged the high quality of the applicants. Ultimately, four students were awarded a total of $8,000.

The 2011 Hintz Memorial Scholarship, given to the top scholarship candidate, was awarded to João Paulo Nascimento Martins (left), a Ph.D. candidate at Michigan State University. The title of his research proposal was “Effect of enhanced luteinizing hormone pulses during ovulatory follicle development on oocyte competency and subsequent pregnancy losses in dairy cattle”.

Additional scholarships were awarded to:

• Daniel Garrido, a Ph.D. candidate in Food Science at the University of California-Davis. The title of his research proposal was “Molecular validation of the prebiotic properties of casein glycomacropeptides”.
• Amanda Sterrett, a M.S. candidate in Animal Science at the University of Kentucky. Her research proposal was titled “Characterization of relationships between lying behavior, rumination behavior, and core body temperature using novel precision dairy farming techniques”.
• Laura Bradner, a M.S. candidate in Biochemistry at Iowa State University. The title of her research proposal was “Optimization of methods for the detection of Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis in milk and colostrum of naturally infected dairy cows”.