Call for Nominations for the 10th
I. E. Melhus Graduate Student Symposium

The APS Seed Pathology Committee is sponsoring the 10th I. E. Melhus Graduate Student Symposium at the 2010 APS Annual Meeting in Nashville, TN. The symposium entitled “Seed Pathology: Epidemiology, Management, and Phytosanitary Concerns” will feature four to six presentations on graduate thesis work, highlighting research aimed at providing a better understanding of the epidemiology, management, and phytosanitary issues of plant diseases caused by pathogens that are seedborne.

All graduate students with relevant significant work are invited to apply. To attract as many applications as possible from APS student members (and potential members), the APS Seed Pathology Committee wishes to define eligible research topics in the broadest possible sense. Topics assessing seed infection, seed transmission, genetics of host-pathogen interactions of seedborne pathogens, management of seedborne diseases (seed treatments and other practices), epidemiology of seedborne pathogens, phytosanitary/regulatory issues, and other aspects of seedborne pathogens are pertinent. Applications will be sought to cover basic and applied issues on seedborne pathogens, and to demonstrate significant contributions of research to improving our understanding of seed pathology and reducing losses caused by seedborne pathogens. Each presentation will be 30 minutes in length (including time for questions), and will be selected based on the significance of the contribution to new understanding of seedborne and seed-transmitted plant pathogens.

Speakers for the symposium will be chosen by a selection committee chaired by APS Caribbean Division Councilor Maria Mercedes Roca, Zamorano University, and composed of members of the sponsoring APS Committee on Seed Pathology. Applicants must currently be enrolled as a graduate student or have completed their graduate program within 12 months of the 2010 APS meeting.
The deadline for applications is Friday, January 15, 2010.

Applications and letters of recommendation should be submitted electronically to Maria Mercedes Roca, Zamorano University: mmroca@zamorano.edu (PO Box 93, Tegucigalpa, Honduras). Each application must contain:

1) A written description of the goals, methods, results, and significance of the applicant’s thesis research. The description should be a maximum of five single-spaced, typed pages (excluding tables and figures) with 12 pt font; AND

2) Two letters of nomination, one of which must be from the applicant’s major professor. Letters of nomination must include an evaluation of the applicant’s research and the ability of the student to present their research in a clear and effective manner.

Invited speakers will receive a financial award toward the cost of travel. Speakers must be APS members at the time awards are made.

I. E. Melhus, a plant disease epidemiologist, was a renowned teacher, innovative researcher, and outstanding administrator at Iowa State College. Melhus served as president of APS in 1926 and was elected a fellow of APS in 1965.

© Copyright 2009 by
The American Phytopathological Society

Special Thanks to This Year’s Sponsors

 
ROGERS Brand Vegetable Seeds (Syngenta)

BASF Corporation

Casiana (Nollie) M. Vera Cruz, International Rice Research Institute

Eurofins STA Laboratories, Inc. (ESTA)

Lindsey J. du Toit, Washington State University

Their support provides a financial award, to offset travel costs, for all invited speakers