The Musser International Turfgrass Foundation named Cameron Stephens, Ph.D., the recipient of the 2021 Award of Excellence.
Named in honor of the late H. Burton Musser, Ph.D., the foundation presents "the award of excellence and a significant financial gift to the best doctoral candidates who, in the final phase of their graduate studies, demonstrated overall excellence throughout their doctoral program."
Stephens earned a bachelor's degree in agriculture with a focus on turfgrass science from Ohio State University. He went on to earn a master's in agronomy from Penn State, where he focused on turfgrass pathology and fungicide resistance. Stephens earned his doctorate in plant pathology at North Carolina State University, where he pursued a dissertation entitled, "Etiology, Epidemiology, and Management of Take-all Root Rot on Golf Course Putting Greens." His research is focused on detrimental turfgrass pathogens and optimizing disease management solutions.
"Earning this prestigious award has been a professional goal of mine since studying turfgrass science as an undergrad at Ohio State. It is an absolute honor to receive this accolade and to be considered among such elite company," Stephens said. "I am extremely grateful to all of the people who have helped shape who I am as a turfgrass scientist and plant pathologist and hope to faithfully carry on the legacy of Professor Musser."
Stephens has accepted a position as the technical market manager for BASF's turf and ornamental division.
"The primary pillar of my academic journey has always been to solve challenging disease problems that turfgrass managers encounter by improving our knowledge of turfgrass pathogens and providing practical management solutions," he said. "It's always been about helping the end users and I will strive to fulfill that mission throughout my career."
The criteria on which applicants are judged include graduate work, academic record, dissertation, publications, leadership and extracurricular activities. To date, awards have been granted to doctoral students from universities including; Arizona, Auburn, Cornell, Georgia, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Michigan State, Rutgers, Tennessee, and Texas A & M.
Naming a winner this year was a tough choice, according to Musser International Turfgrass Foundation president Frank Dobie.
"The qualifications for applicants are very high for the doctoral candidates that apply for the Foundation's Award of Excellence, so all of the applicants are of the highest caliber," Dobie said. "We strive to select the one candidate that we feel is the best of the best."