Tag: National Dairy Leadership Scholarship

2024 National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program Winners Awarded

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The NMPF Board of Directors selected five graduate students actively pursuing dairy related fields of research that benefit dairy cooperatives and producers to receive scholarships as part of the 2024 NMPF National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Program. Winners were announced June 4, at NMPF’s Board of Directors meeting in Arlington, VA.

Winners include:

Augustin Olivo, a doctoral candidate in Animal Science at Cornell University, where he is a part of the Nutrient Management Spear Program (NMSP). Olivo’s research and extension work focus is on evaluating and disseminating system analysis tools and performance indicators that support efforts to improve environmental sustainability in dairy systems for New York producers.

Megan Lauber is pursuing her doctorate at University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she received her Master’s in Dairy Science under the advisement of Dr. Paul Fricke. Her dissertation focuses on integrating basic physiology, management practices and economics to optimize the use of sexed semen in dairy herds.

Grant Finchman is a Master of Science candidate in Ruminant Nutrition at University of Nebraska- Lincoln. His research involves the impact of feeding dried distiller grains with solubles to lactating dairy cattle, looking at whole animal energy utilization and manure biogas production.

Ana Beatriz Montevecchio Bernardino is a second-year doctoral student in the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences at the University of Florida. Her research focuses on heat abatement strategies in dairy calves, udder health and pharmaceutical development. More specifically, her current research investigates the effect of a novel non-steroidal anti-inflammatory formulation on welfare of Holstein cows challenged with E. coli.

Lynn Olthof is a doctoral candidate under Dr. Barry Bradford studying dairy management at Michigan State University. Her research studies the economic implications of dairy farm management decisions.

NMPF’s Board of Directors offers scholarships each year to qualified graduate students enrolled in master’s or doctoral programs who are actively pursuing dairy-related fields of research that are of immediate interest to NMPF member cooperatives.

The scholarship program meaningfully assists graduate students and promotes research that benefits the entire dairy community. Donate today to support the National Leadership Scholarship Program.

2023 Scholarship Winners Webinar on Oct. 24

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

To highlight the work of NMPF’S 2023 National Dairy Leadership Scholarship Recipients, NMPF is hosting an online seminar on Oct. 24 from 1-2 p.m. EDT. The scholarship program supports master’s and doctoral students conducting research important to dairy farmers.

This year’s five recipients are researching topics ranging from control of Listeria monocytogenes in dairy processing plants, to choline’s role in hepatic metabolism, to evaluating the effects of management and maternal genetics in beef on dairy systems, and more.

Registration for the webinar is free and can be accessed here.

The scholarship program is largely funded through an annual online raffle fundraiser. Tickets may be purchased through Nov. 15, with the raffle drawing to occur at the close of the joint Annual Meeting. Prizes this year include a $1,000 travel voucher, American Express gift cards, Target gift cards, a Cabot Creamery Premium Gift Box, and more.

Sustaining this program means ensuring that critical dairy research may continue. Organizations interested in sponsoring the scholarship program or the fundraising raffle can contact ssaffran@nmpf.org.

NMPF Announces Scholarship Recipients, Recognizes ADSA Winners

Posted on by Theresa Sweeney

The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) today announced the recipients of its 2022 National Dairy Leadership Scholarship awards, recognizing outstanding graduate students pursuing research of interest to the U.S. dairy industry. The awards, funded by dairy farmers and their cooperatives, support the next generation of dairy researchers, extension staff, academics and industry professionals.

“On behalf of its Board of Directors, NMPF is proud to recognize, support and celebrate this year’s scholarship recipients,” said Jim Mulhern, president and CEO of NMPF. “Our scholarship program helps graduate students pursue research that brings scientific solutions to many of dairy’s challenges. We applaud this year’s awardees and look forward to their future contributions.”

Catherine McVey received this year’s top scholarship, NMPF’s Hintz Memorial Scholarship award. A North Carolina native, McVey received dual undergraduate degrees in Animal Science and Statistics at North Carolina State University. She is currently a doctoral candidate in Animal Biology at the University of California-Davis, where she is supported by the Dean’s Distinguished Research Fellowship. McVey’s research focuses on extracting complex behavioral patterns from precision livestock farming through unsupervised machine learning.

NMPF’s Board of Directors also awarded a scholarship to Kirby Krogstad. Krogstad grew up on dairy farms in South Dakota and Minnesota. He completed his undergraduate degree at South Dakota State University, followed by a master’s degree in dairy cattle nutrition at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is currently a doctoral candidate in Animal Science at Michigan State University and studies nutritional strategies and feed additives to modulate inflammation and health of dairy cows.

NMPF also sponsors student awards through the American Dairy Science Association (ADSA). This year’s Richard M. Hoyt Award winner, Bethany Dado-Senn, was recognized at ADSA’s annual meeting June 21. Dado-Senn grew up on her family’s dairy farm in Wisconsin. Her doctoral research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison investigates consequences and solutions to environmental heat stress in dairy cattle.

Michigan State University graduate students Ursula Abou-Rjeileh and Thainá Minela received first-place recognition as part of the NMPF sponsored ADSA Graduate Student Paper Presentation Contest in Dairy Production in the Ph.D. and M.S. divisions, respectively.

Learn more about the NMPF scholarship program here. The 2023 application period will open in January 2023. For information about ADSA awards, visit its awards page here.