WVSU Students Win Competitions at the Association of 1890 Research Directors Biennial Research Symposium

4/4/2017

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Contact: Kimberly Osborne
(304) 766-3363
kosborne@wvstateu.edu
 
   
INSTITUTE, W.Va. – Three West Virginia State University (WVSU) students won awards in their respective agricultural and environmental research competitions at the Association of 1890 Research Directors (ARD) 2017 Biennial Research Symposium, held in Atlanta, Ga., April 1-4, 2017. 

The national symposium, with the theme “1890 Research: Meeting 21^st Century Challenges Through Innovation,” included competitions between research students from the country’s 1890 land-grant universities in the areas of: Plant Health and Production and Plant Products; Animal Health and Production and Animal Products; Food Safety, Nutrition and Health; Renewable Energy, Natural Resources and Environment; and Family, Youth, Community and Economic Development.

WVSU student Lav Yadav took first place in the Plant Health and Production and Plant Products graduate student competitive oral presentation category for his presentation entitled, “Characterization of Ankyrin Gene Family and Other Genes Involved in Pepper Fruit Size and Capsaicin Content.”

WVSU student Edwina Barnett took first place in the Renewable Energy, Natural Resources and Environment undergraduate student competition poster category for her poster entitled, “Optimization of DNA Extraction Protocol for Herbarium Preserved Rubus Tissue.”

WVSU student John Lucas took second place in the Renewable Energy, Natural Resources and Environment undergraduate student competition poster category for his poster entitled, “Use of Spent Horizontal Directional Drilling Mud as Soil Amendment.”

“The recognition and awards received by our student researchers are a testament to the quality research occurring at West Virginia State University under the direction of our esteemed research faculty,” said WVSU President Anthony L. Jenkins. “On behalf of the entire Yellow Jacket Nation, I offer my sincerest congratulations to our faculty and students Lav, Edwina and John.”

The first ARD Research Symposium was held in 1976 to commemorate the United States’ Bicentennial and to showcase the varied accomplishments of research scientists and students at the nation’s 1890 land-grant institutions.

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West Virginia State University is a public, land grant, historically black university, which has evolved into a fully accessible, racially integrated, and multi-generational institution, located in Institute, W.Va. As a “living laboratory of human relations,” the university is a community of students, staff, and faculty committed to academic growth, service, and preservation of the racial and cultural diversity of the institution. Its mission is to meet the higher education and economic development needs of the state and region through innovative teaching and applied research.