WSSA and Two Affiliates Announce Weed Science Award Winners

National and regional contributors receive recognition for exceptional achievements

WESTMINSTER, Colo., March 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Weed Science Society of America (WSSA) and two regional affiliates recently honored more than fifty individuals for outstanding weed science achievements during 2025. WSSA honored more than 30 individuals during its annual meeting in Raleigh, North Carolina; and the North Central Weed Science Society (NCWSS) and Northeastern Weed Science Society (NEWSS) recognized almost 20 more during their recent annual meetings in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Hershey, Pennsylvania, respectively.

"Each year, our societies recognize the top individuals who do their utmost to advance weed science research, best management practices, and public knowledge about weeds and invasive species," says Hilary Sandler, outgoing WSSA president. "It's an honor to recognize members who have made exceptional contributions during 2025. Thanks to these dedicated individuals, our nation and its various regions are much better equipped to prevent the multiple, negative impacts that weeds, and invasive species, can cause to our environment, natural resources, and economy." 

The award winners listed below include individuals from academia, government and private industry and contributions from a wide variety of weed-science related disciplines and geographies. Their achievements include substantial improvements to weed-science education, research, professional publications, program development, and services.

WEED SCIENCE SOCIETY OF AMERICA (WSSA)
FELLOW AWARD (WSSA's highest honor)

• Larry Steckel, Ph.D., Extension Weed Specialist and Researcher, University of Tennessee Institute of Technology
• Joseph Neal, Ph.D., Professor and Extension Specialist, North Carolina State University

EARLY CAREER OUTSTANDING SCIENTIST AWARD

• Rodrigo Werle, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Extension Cropping System Weed Scientist, University of Wisconsin-Madison

EXCELLENCE IN JOURNALISM AWARD
War Against Weeds podcasters:

• Sarah Lancaster, Ph.D., Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist, Kansas State University
• Joe Ikley, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Extension Weed Specialist, North Dakota
• State University
• Alyssa Essman, Ph.D., Weed Science Extension Specialist, Ohio State University
• Stephanie DeSimini, Conference Coordinator, Purdue University, and War Against Weeds Podcast Editor

OUTSTANDING EXTENSION AWARD  

• Brad Hanson, Ph.D., Extension Weed Specialist, UC Davis.

OUTSTANDING GRADUATE STUDENT AWARD

• Tristen Avent, Ph.D., former graduate student at the University of Arkansas, and Technical Service Representative, UPL North America

OUTSTANDING INDUSTRY AWARD

• Gary Schwarzlose, Principal Field Agronomist, Bayer Research and Development

OUTSTANDING RESEARCH AWARD

• Todd Gaines, Ph.D., Professor, Colorado State University

OUTSTANDING TEACHER AWARD

• Jason Norsworthy, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor, University of Arkansas

US-HRAC HERBICIDE RESISTANCE MANAGEMENT AWARD

• Kevin Bradley, Ph.D., Professor and State Extension Weed Scientist, University of Missouri

OUTSTANDING PAPER: WEED SCIENCE

• Andrew McKenzie-Gopsill, Ph.D., Research Scientist, Agri-Food Canada

OUTSTANDING PAPER: WEED TECHNOLOGY

• Tristen Avent, Ph.D., former graduate student at the University of Arkansas, and Technical Service Representative, UPL North America
• Rebecca Rooney, Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of Waterloo

OUTSTANDING REVIEWER AWARD: WEED SCIENCE

• Sachin Dhanda, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Weed Ecology, South Dakota State University

OUTSTANDING REVIEWER AWARD: WEED TECHNOLOGY

• Shawn Beam, Ph.D., Technical Service Representative, BASF

OUTSTANDING REVIEWER AWARD: IPSM

• David Gorchov, Ph.D., Professor of Biology, Miami University (Ohio)

OUTSTANDING ASSOCIATE EDITOR AWARD: WEED SCIENCE

• Bhagirath Chauhan, Ph.D., Cropping Weeds Team Lead, University of Queensland

OUTSTANDING ASSOCIATE EDITOR AWARD: WEED TECHNOLOGY

• Kevin Bradley, Ph.D., Professor and State Extension Weed Scientist, University of Missouri

OUTSTANDING ASSOCIATE EDITOR AWARD; IPSM

• Ryan Wersal, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Minnesota State University

PUBLIC SERVICE AWARD

• Kelly Tindall, Ph.D., Senior Science Advisor, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

PUBLICATION BOARD: RETIRING EDITORS

• Marty Williams, Ph.D., Affiliate Professor, University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana
• Sharon Clay, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor (emerita), South Dakota State University
• Hilary Sandler, Ph.D., Extension Professor, University of Massachusetts-Amherst
• Drew Lyon, Ph.D., Professor (retired), Washington State University
• Charles Geddes, Ph.D., Research Scientist, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
• Ryan Thum, Ph.D., Professor and Department Head, Montana State University

PRESIDENT'S AWARD

• Sarah Ward, Ph.D., Associate Professor (retired), Colorado State University

HONORARY MEMBER

• Gulshan Mahajan, Ph.D., Agronomy Professor, Punjab Agricultural University

NORTH CENTRAL WEED SCIENCE SOCIETY (NCWSS)
FELLOW AWARD

• Reid Smeda, Ph.D., Professor, University of Missouri

DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

• Education: Lizabeth Stahl, University of Minnesota Extension
• Education: Sarah Lancaster, Ph.D., Kansas State University
• Industry: Ryan Edwards, Ph.D., Winfield United, River Falls, Wisconsin
• Professional Staff: Daniel Smith, University of Wisconsin-Madison Extension
• Young Scientist: Erin Burns, Ph.D., Michigan State University Extension

OUSTANDING GRADUATE STUDENT AWARDS

• Isabel Werle Noe, Ph. D. Candidate, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
• Jeanine Arana, Ph.D. Candidate, Purdue University

NORTHEASTERN WEED SCIENCE SOCIETY (NEWSS)

FELLOW AWARD

• Daniel L. Kunkel, Ph.D., AMVAC

AWARD OF MERIT

• Roger G. Batts, IR-4 Project

OUTSTANDING RESEARCH AWARD 

• Vipan Kumar, Ph.D., Cornell University

OUTSTANDING EDUCATOR AWARD 

• Matthew A. Cutulle, Ph.D., Clemson University

ROBERT D. SWEET OUTSTANDING GRADUATE STUDENT – M.S.  

• Juan R. Romero, Virginia Tech University

ROBERT D. SWEET OUTSTANDING GRADUATE STUDENT – Ph.D.  

• Navdeep Godara, Ph.D. Virginia Tech University

M. GARRY SCHNAPPINGER SERVICE RECOGNITION AWARD 

• Larissa Smith, Ph.D., Syngenta

Biographical sketches for many of these and other WSSA, NCWSS, and NEWSS award winners are available online at the following links:

• WSSA
• NCWSS (scroll to page 59)
• NEWSS (2026 updates coming soon)

To learn more about WSSA and its calendar of meetings, to include national and regional annual meetings, visit: https://wssa.net/meeting/calendar-of-meetings/.

About the Weed Science Society of America
The Weed Science Society of America is a nonprofit scientific society, founded in 1956 to encourage and facilitate the development of knowledge concerning weeds and their impact on the environment. The Society promotes research, education and extension outreach activities related to weeds, provides science-based information to the public and policy makers, fosters awareness of weeds and their impact on managed and natural ecosystems, and strengthens cooperation among weed science organizations across the nation and around the world. For more information, visit www.wssa.net.

SOURCE Weed Science Society of America