2024 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors
The students indicated (*) will advance to compete at the College level for Outstanding Student in the College of Agriculture.
Annastasia Graham - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Engineering
Noah Berning* - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Systems Management
Noah is a dual major in Agricultural Systems Management and Agricultural Economics with minors in Food and Agribusiness Management, Farm Management, and Organizational Leadership. Noah hails from the small town of Monroeville, Indiana, where he graduated from Heritage Jr.-Sr. High School in 2019. On campus Noah is a member of FarmHouse Fraternity, the College of Agriculture Ambassadors, ABE Ambassadors, ASM Club, the Paint Crew Advisory Board, and the Mortar Board Honor Society. Noah recently concluded terms as the Purdue Interfraternity Council President and as a member of the Agriculture Future of America Student Advisory Team. This summer Noah will start his third summer as an intern for John Deere out of Moline, Illinois, working in Marketing Launch Support at the Harvester Works facility. He will then begin his Masters’ Degree at Purdue in the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department this fall.
Madelyn Whitaker - ABE Outstanding Senior - Biological Engineering
Madelyn Whitaker is a senior from Crown Point, Indiana, majoring in cellular and biomolecular engineering with minors in biotechnology and data driven agriculture. Madelyn is a member of the John Martinson Purdue Honors College, Alpha Epsilon Honors society, College of Engineering Ambassadors program, and is an affiliate of the JMHC Tech Justice Lab. Within the department she has worked in the Ni and Proctor labs and has assisted as a peer leader in ABE201: Thermodynamics in Biological Systems; she has also served on the executive board of Purdue iGEM and founded a research organization that works in space agriculture and bioregenerative engineering. Madelyn has researched in areas of synthetic biology and sustainable agriculture both as a College of Agriculture fellow and as a member of Crew 272 at the Mars Desert Research Station. Madelyn serves as a program liaison for Leading Women Towards Space Careers and planned a program trip for women and mentors at NASA Langley in Virginia. She will be continuing her graduate studies this fall as an incoming Ph.D. student in chemical and biomolecular engineering at Rice University in Houston, TX.
Outstanding Juniors
Tate Peters - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Engineering
Tate Peters is a junior in Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering from Waukesha, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. In high school, he was heavily involved with athletics and spent much of his free time hunting and fishing. He obtained his Eagle Scout after leadeing a project to build American Kestral nesting boxes for the local nature center. At Purdue, he is a Resident Assistant of Cary Quadrangle and a Teaching Assistant for Agronomy 255 - Soil Science. Additionally, he serves as an ABE Ambassador and an active member of the Bass Fishing Club. His hard work has earned Dean's List with Semester Honors each semester at Purdue. He recently accepted an invitation to join Alpha Zeta, the College of Agriculture's academic honor society. Tate's passion for environmental engineering stems from the love of the outdoors and wildlife conservation. He plans to pursue a career in aquatic ecosystem restoration to ensure future generations can enjoy the same opportunities for outdoor recreation.
Tate has spent the past four summers pouring concrete and doing landscaping for a small business and this summer will be a project engineering intern with JF Brennan Company, a marine construction company that specializes in environmental remediation, water-based infrastructure, and dredging, on their Environmental Team. His favorite courses include ABE 325: Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, ABE 426: Ecological Restoration Engineering, and CE 340: Hydraulics. He thanks his family and friends for their continual support.
Jacob Grow - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Systems Management
Jacob is majoring in Agricultural Systems Management with a concentration in Agrosecurity. Jacob is minoring in Food/Agribusiness Management, Military Science, and Farm Management. Jacob is from a small town called Rensselaer, Indiana, where he graduated from Rensselaer Central High School in 2020 with academic and technical honors. Currently, Jacob is an Assistant S3 in the Boiler Battalion. He hopes to commission in Spring 2025 in Air Defense Artillery. He is an ABE ambassador and Alpha Mu Honor society member. Jacob is also a part of the Army ROTC ultimate frisbee club, the ASM club, and the Ski Club at Purdue. This summer he will be an Agronomy Intern for CNH Industrial and will perform his annual training with the Indiana National Guard at Camp Atterbury, Indiana.
Sarina Lee* - ABE Outstanding Junior - Biological Engineering
Sarina is a junior pursuing a B.S. in Biological Engineering and a minor in Biotechnology. She is from Auburn Hills, Michigan and cherishes the community she has found here at Purdue. Sarina has earned Semester Honors and made the Dean's List for all of her five semesters at Purdue. On campus, she is involved in several student organizations, serving as the Vice President of Club for Purdue iGEM, Treasurer for Project Icarus, Committee Chair for ASABE, and Public Relations Committee Member/Student Ambassador for PSEF (Purdue Student Engineering Foundation). Sarina works as the Operations & Finance Coordinator for the Minority Engineering Program, as well as on the Outreach Team for the Women in Engineering Program. In these roles, she gets to practice her love for prospective student outreach, network with current students and alumni, and promote Purdue Engineering. Sarina has also enjoyed being a member of Zeta Tau Alpha since 2021. In the Fall, she was chosen by ZTA Nationals to receive a scholarship for her academic achievements and leadership on Purdue's campus. Last summer, Sarina had an enriching first industry experience as a Research & Development Intern at Unilever in Connecticut. This summer, she is looking forward to working in New Jersey as a Clinical Data Trial Management Intern at Merck. In her free time, Sarina enjoys volunteering as a Crisis Counselor for the Crisis Text Line and 988, as well as playing intramural volleyball. Sarina would like to thank the ABE faculty, her peers, and her advisor, Laurie, for making ABE such a wonderful department to be a part of. She would also like to thank her friends and family for their support and encouragement throughout her time at Purdue.
Outstanding Sophomores
Lucas Paz - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Engineering
Lucas is a Sophomore in the school of Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ENRE), as well as a Stamps Scholar and member of Purdue’s chapter of Engineers Without Borders. He is excited to learn this semester and grow as a student! Aside from working on various school projects, Lucas enjoys reading comic books, drawing, and working towards publishing a paper on Wildfire Sensors with Dr. Kan-Uge and Dr. Stwalley.
Tyler Kilmer* - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Systems Management
Tyler Kilmer grew up on his family farm in Wolcott, Indiana. Tyler is majoring in Agricultural Systems Management with a concentration in Data and Information Management and a minor in Data-Driven Agriculture. He is a member of FarmHouse Fraternity and serves as the Academic Chair. He is involved in the ASM club, Purdue Agricultural Council, and the Purdue Student Senate as one of the College of Ag Representatives. Tyler has attended the Agricultural Futures of America Leaders Conference, the AFA Tech Institute, and studied abroad in Ireland and Trinidad. He has held two internships: the first was with FMC as their Indiana Precision Agriculture Field Specialist; the second was with IntelinAir as the Assistant Data Analytics Manager. After college Tyler hopes to work for an Ag Tech company in the late stages of Research and Development.
Hudson Schneider - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshmen
Oakleigh Goedde - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Agricultural Systems Management
Oakleigh Goedde is a freshman in Agricultural Systems Management. She is originally from the small town of Morristown, Indiana where she was homeschooled until she started attending Morristown Jr. Sr. High School during her sophomore year. While in high school, Oakleigh was involved in gymnastics, track, cheerleading, golf, and National Honor Society. She was also a 10-year 4-H member and the Vice President of her high school’s FFA chapter; two activities that helped guide her in the direction of a career in Agriculture. During her first semester on campus, she was in a learning community, and she secured herself a spot on the Dean’s list! Her current campus involvement includes the Purdue Track Club, Swing Dance Club, and Alpha Lambda Delta Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society. She is passionate about her major because she feels that Purdue’s ABE program has helped create an environment where she is able to thrive. This summer, she will attend the ADM Immersive Summit Program in Decatur, IL to help her get an idea of the potential careers she may pursue with an ASM major. Oakleigh would like to thank her family and teachers for pushing her and helping her to achieve greatness!
Mia Wilhite* - ABE Outstanding Freshman- Pre-ABE
Mia is a freshman pursuing a degree in Biological Engineering on the pre-med track. She was born and raised in Indiana and eagerly transitioned to Purdue for the renowned ABE program. During her first semester at Purdue, she has been involved in Purdue ASABE (American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers). She is serving as a chair of the Industrial relations committee, and organized an industry tour which took place in early April and a company information session for the club. She has excelled academically, achieving semester honors and Dean’s list recognitions during her first semester. During her free time, she enjoys hanging out with friends, watching movies, and being outside. When choosing a major, she found particular interest in the biological engineering program through the World Food Prize Youth Institute in which she competed during high school and was able to tour the ABE facilities. She hopes to broaden her abilities and ways of thinking past the normal pre-med route by delving into the courses offered in ABE. She would like to thank her parents, sister, advisors, professors, and so many others who have supported her along the way.
Outstanding Graduate Students
ABE Outstanding PhD student - Zhihang Song
Zhihang Song is an accomplished researcher in the field of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Purdue University. He has dedicated his academic career to pioneering innovations in high-precision plant phenotyping, computer vision, and agricultural robotics. With a Ph.D. from Purdue, Zhihang has a robust educational background that supports his extensive technical skill set in programming, data analysis, and software development.
Zhihang's research has significantly advanced the understanding of plant traits through the development of novel algorithms and systems. His work has applications in both academic and industrial settings, demonstrated during his tenure as a Co-Op at Bayer Crop Science R&D, where he improved herbicide research assays and developed machine-learning solutions for hyperspectral data analysis.
A recipient of several awards, including the ASABE Superior Paper Award and the Estus H. and Vashti L. Magoon Award for Excellence in Teaching, Zhihang is recognized both for his scholarly contributions and his mentorship. He has led multiple controlled environments and field studies, enhancing crop stress phenotype research and mentoring a new generation of researchers in plant phenotyping technologies.
Zhihang's leadership extends beyond research; he has been actively involved in academic mentoring and has held significant roles in student organizations. His commitment to his field is further exemplified by his participation in numerous conferences, where he presents his findings to the global scientific community.
ABE Outstanding MS student - Melissa Rudolph
Melissa Rudolph is a passionate advocate for safety and education, currently pursuing her Master's degree in Agricultural System Management within the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Purdue University. Her academic journey began with a Bachelor of Science degree in agricultural education and receiving her teaching license, also earned at Purdue. Under the mentorship of Dr. Shawn Ehlers, Melissa's research is dedicated to revolutionizing technical-skill learning in agricultural machinery operation and maintenance. By integrating video-based learning with QR technology, she aims to create efficient and safe learning environments for individuals with varying levels of experience. In addition to her research endeavors, Melissa is deeply committed to teaching and has contributed as a Teaching Assistant for several undergraduate courses, including ASM 104, 201, 245, and 491. She finds great joy in sharing her knowledge and skills while utilizing her educational background in pursuit of her Master's degree. Outside of academia, Melissa cherishes moments spent with loved ones and indulges in activities such as working with cattle and enthusiastically supporting Purdue Athletics. She extends her heartfelt gratitude to the ABE staff, her committee, lab-mate Glen Morris, and her support network for their invaluable contributions to her academic journey and success.
2023 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors
Nikira Lane - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural & Biological Engineering
Heidi Philips - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Systems Management
Heidi is pursuing degrees in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agribusiness Management. She grew up on her family’s farm in Groveland, NY, where she developed her passion for agriculture and technology. At Purdue, Heidi is involved in several clubs and organizations. She currently serves as the Public Relations Representative for the Purdue Western Equestrian Team, has served as the ASM Chair for the ABE Ambassadors, and is in the Dean’s Scholars Program. In the summer of 2020, Heidi had the opportunity to intern with Pence Group in Indiana as a crop scout. Last summer Heidi worked at Cargill as a Grain Operations Management Intern where she learned the process of grain storing and handling. Heidi is currently expanding her intercultural understanding as she is spending the semester studying abroad in Ireland. Heidi would like to thank all of the wonderful professors and staff that she has encountered at Purdue and her friends and family for supporting all of her endeavors whether it be in another state or another country!
Alexa Stern* - ABE Outstanding Senior - Biological Engineering
Alexa Stern, of Saline, Michigan, is majoring in Biological Engineering and minoring in biotechnology. She was the president of the Purdue Engineering Student Council, and as the co-president of the Purdue Engineering President’s Council, has guided the organization back to fully in-person events. She is an Agricultural and Biological Engineering ambassador, a College of Engineering ambassador and a TA for an ABE biotechnology lab course. She conducts research within the Lab of Renewable Resources Engineering (LORRE), working on their project in collaboration with Eli Lilly. She also creates computational models of diseases in the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering and has interned for Cayman Chemical Company and Eli Lilly and Company. Stern has assisted with multiple wellbeing initiatives to support Engineering students and plans to attend graduate school to pursue a degree in bioengineering. Her favorite thing about Purdue is the small community that she has found within such a large school, which has helped make campus feel like home.
Outstanding Juniors
Kayla Osen - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Engineering
Kayla is a sophomore pursing a degree in Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering with a minor in Environmental Policy. She grew up in Livonia, MI, a suburb outside of Detroit, enjoying her summers and winters on the all the wonderful lakes that Michigan has to offer. At Purdue, Kayla is the Outreach Committee Lead for the Purdue Student Sustainability Council, an ABE ambassador, and is competing in the Student Soybean Innovation Competition. She has been on the Dean’s list and received semester honors for each of her semesters at Purdue. In her free time, Kayla enjoys playing intramural sports, do-it-yourself projects, and spending time with nature. Her passion for the environment and love for data analysis, math, and science makes this degree a perfect fit. In the future she hopes to work on soil or water remediation projects and overall, make a positive impact on the environment. She would like to thank all the staff and professors she has met thus far for all the support and for challenging her to be better every day. Kayla would also like to thank her family and friends for believing in her and investing in her future.
Noah Berning* - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Systems Management
Noah is majoring in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agricultural Economics with minors in Food and Agribusiness Management, Farm Management, and Organizational Leadership. Noah is from the small town of Monroeville, Indiana where he graduated from Heritage Jr. Sr. High School in 2019. Currently, Noah is the President of FarmHouse Fraternity and is also serving as the Recruitment Coordinator for the ABE Ambassadors r and the Director of Facilities for the Purdue Grand Prix Foundation. Noah also is a member of the College of Agriculture Ambassadors, Agriculture Futures of America, Collegiate Farm Bureau, ASM Club, Alpha Mu Honor Society, and is an active member at St. Thomas Aquinas.
Madelyn Whitaker - ABE Outstanding Junior - Biological Engineering
Madelyn is a sophomore from Crown Point, Indiana, who majors in cellular and biomolecular engineering with minors in biotechnology and biological sciences. Madelyn is in the Purdue Honors College, is on the Dean's List and has received Semester Honors. She is also a Goss Scholar, and was a recipient of the Board of Trustee's scholarship. Within the department, Madelyn conducts research with Dr. Porterfield, in which she investigates technological applications to better understand biological activity in microgravity environments. Under his advice, she and the Purdue Interplanetary and Space Agriculture Team are currently competing in the NASA Plant the Moon/Mars challenge to better understand how to optimize agricultural practices by growing soybeans in modified lunar and Martian soil simulants for further genomic analysis. Madelyn is the President and co-Founder of Engineering Research for Bioregenerative Sustainability in Space, a research group that looks to conduct research within the space biology and -omics areas, via technologies that are provisionally patented, and in future research competitions. She is on the executive board of Purdue iGEM- International Genetically Engineered Machine, in which she pitched and is developing a probiotic to proactively treat Celiac Disease. Outside of the department, Madelyn is a member of the NASA GeneLab Multi-Omics and Plant Analysis Working Groups. She is a mentor within the Purdue Honors College Mentorship Program and is a tutor for the Women in Engineering Program Tutoring Program, where she also serves on the leadership team. Madelyn is a member of the Purdue Engineering President's Council and served on the Honors College Outreach Committee. This summer, Madelyn will be an Engineering/Manufacturing Intern for Anheuser-Busch in Windsor, CO. In the future, she hopes to pursue a thesis Master's and Ph. D. in biological engineering or a space, computational biology-related field. She would like to either become a professor or work in a research and development setting in the future to work within areas of interplanetary life support, sustainable agriculture, or environmental policy and remediation.
Outstanding Sophomores
Matthew Wu* - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Engineering
Matt is a Sophomore in Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering. He is a Canadian international student born in Toronto, but grew up in Seattle, Washington. At Purdue, Matt is an ABE ambassador, and works part time in Dr. Hosen's ecosystem research lab. He regularly attends church on Sundays at Campus House and was a group leader in Asian American Association. His favorite thing to do is hangout with his friends he met in his Freshman year. Matt has a passion for sustainable design engineering, and he hopes to work in industry to make products more sustainable for the environment. Making the world last longer is his dream. Matt would like to thank his friends and family for supporting him, as well as the faculty and overall community in ABE. Matt is still pursuing an internship for the summer, but mayy stay on campus to work full-time as an intern at the lab where he currently works.
Jacob Grow - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Systems Management
Jacob is majoring in Agricultural Systems Management: Agrosecurity, with minors in Military Science and Leadership, Food and Agribusiness Management, and Organizational Leadership. Jacob is from the small town of Rensselaer, Indiana, where he graduated from Rensselaer Central High School in 2020. Jacob was heavily involved with First Christian Church in Rensselaer. He was also involved in the history club and economics club at Rensselaer. Jacob played football, earning All-State awards, and also ran track at Rensselaer. Currently at Purdue, Jacob is contracted in ROTC after already being enlisted in the Indiana Army National Guard for three years. Jacob holds a leadership position in the Purdue Battalion as a team leader in charge of three cadets. He also participates in frisbee and tactics club. He additionally has made the dean’s list for ROTC and ABE. This summer Jacob will be going back to the farm and getting his sprayer license to learn how to deal with chemicals and all the applications required to spray fields.
Maya Driscoll - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshmen
Owen Bishop* - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Agricultural Systems Management
Owen Bishop is from Pendleton, Indiana, and is currently majoring in Agricultural Systems Management. He graduated as a homeschool student with academic and technical honors in 2022. Owen showed swine and rabbits and was a 10-year 4-H member in Hancock County. He was also very involved in VEX robotics throughout middle school and high school, which fueled his passion for STEM, as well as the Hancock County Children’s Choir. He made the Dean’s list his first semester at Purdue and was a part of two different learning communities on campus. He also completed honors projects for two of the classes he was enrolled in and participated in a College of Agriculture Study Abroad trip to Costa Rica over the 2023 spring break. Owen thanks the ABE department for the supportive environment they’ve created at Purdue as well as his parents and siblings for their constant love and support.
Luke Williams - ABE Outstanding Freshman- Pre-ABE
Luke is a freshman pursuing a degree in Agricultural Engineering (Machine Systems Concentration). He has lived in his hometown of Vincennes, Indiana, for his entire life and loves being outside doing various agriculture-related chores and activities. While at Purdue, Luke has been very involved while also thriving academically, achieving the Dean’s list in his first semester. He is involved with the AgBot club as well as Alpha Lambda Delta Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society and is employed part-time at the Throckmorton-Purdue Agricultural Center. Over the summer, Luke plans to begin an internship at the Indiana Department of Transportation where he plans to broaden his knowledge and skillset in engineering. In his free time, Luke enjoys hanging out with friends, attending Purdue sporting events, and working on old tractors and pickup trucks. Have grown up living on his grandpa’s farmstead, Luke developed a passion for farming. After being introduced to engineering by his father and taking a variety of classes throughout his time at his Alma Mater of South Knox Middle-High School, he knew designing farm equipment was the career he wished to pursue. Luke would like to thank his family, friends, teachers, advisors, mentors, and all others who have pushed him to achieve his goals.
2022 ABE Outstanding Students
Clare McNicholas - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural & Biological Engineering
Clare grew up in Chesterton, Indiana, and is in Machine Systems with a minor in Communications. She has worked as an undergraduate research assistant in Dr. Evans’s lab for a year and a half doing exploratory work in robotics and sensors. Clare has been involved in and is currently head of the Purdue Utilities Project (PUP), designing and building basic utility vehicles for developing nations in Africa. Clare, along with the rest of her senior design team, designed, developed, and tested a hydraulically driven PUP vehicle over the past year. Clare is also actively involved in St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church and over her 4 years has led various ministries, including Boiler Catholic Women, Ignite Bible Studies, and has helped to plan and lead Boiler Awakening. Clare is also the Vice President of ABE Ambassadors. She enjoys presenting to FYE students about the opportunities available to students in ABE. Upon her graduation, Clare will begin employment with Caterpillar in their Engineering Rotational Development Program.
Justin Johnson* - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Systems Management
Justin is a senior double majoring in Ag Systems Management and Farm Management with a minor in crop science. He grew up on his family's grain and hog farm in Columbia City, IN. When going back to the farm was no longer an option, he decided to pursue his passion for agriculture and technology in Ag Systems Management. During his four years in the ABE department, he has served on executive committees for Collegiate Farm Bureau, Ag Systems Management Club, Alpha Mu, and Circle K. He has also served as a College of Ag Ambassador since his sophomore year. Through Farm Bureau and Young Farmers and Ag Professionals, he has represented Indiana nationally in the discussion meet competition at both the collegiate level and Young Farmers and Ranchers competition. His internships include Ag Plus Inc. handling crop nutrients, Advanced Agrylitics as a crop specialist, and with the ABE department and the Wabash Heartland Innovation Network with sensors and connectivity. He will be starting full-time after graduation with TTG Equipment and their Integrated Solutions team focus on precision ag technology.
Emma Keesling - ABE Outstanding Senior - Biological Engineering
Emma is pursuing a degree in Food and Biological Process Engineering with a minor in Foods and Nutrition. She grew up on a 3rd generation corn and soybean farm in Modoc, Indiana, and was involved in helping the community, youth group, FFA, FCA, cross country, and track in high school. She still enjoys running and is on Purdue's Cross Country and Track and Field collegiate team. Emma is also actively involved in Stewart Cooperative and Purdue Christian Campus House. Upon finishing her bachelor's degree, Emma hopes to work with humanitarian organizations like World Vision or AgriStewards, coming alongside people in developing countries and collaborating on ways to improve the sustainability and efficiency of farming nutrient-rich foods. Emma would like to thank all the staff and professors she has met thus far, as well as her peers and family members, for making her senior year a great one!
Outstanding Juniors
Nikira Lane - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Engineering
Nikira is a junior pursuing a degree in Agricultural Engineering (Machine Systems Discipline) with minors in Soil Science, Crop Science, and an Ethnobotany Occupational Endorsement from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. As a born and raised Alaskan, Nikira definitely misses home while here in Indiana but is enjoying the variety of new experiences that Purdue has to offer. From joining the AgGrowBOTS team, to becoming the Agricultural Engineering chair for ABE Ambassador this year, and participating on the soil judging team, she feels like the ABE department is a perfect fit for her interests. Outside of the engineering world, she is very active with Grace Campus Fellowship and a bit of hunting and fishing during her free time never hurts. Her love of the outdoors, engineering, and sharing her faith influences her plans of joining a missions’ group that teaches healthy agricultural practices. After that, she hopes to return to Alaska to promote sustainability in cold climates and continue her work with the Space Farming Institute. Nikira would like to thank all of those within the ABE department who know her name and all her family members who have invested their time into her future.
Heidi Phelps* - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Systems Management
Heidi is pursuing degrees in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agribusiness Management. She grew up on her family’s farm in Groveland, NY, where she developed her passion for agriculture and technology. At Purdue, Heidi is involved in several clubs and organizations. She currently serves as the Public Relations Representative for the Purdue Western Equestrian Team, has served as the ASM Chair for the ABE Ambassadors, and is in the Dean’s Scholars Program. In the summer of 2020, Heidi had the opportunity to intern with Pence Group in Indiana as a crop scout. Last summer Heidi worked at Cargill as a Grain Operations Management Intern where she learned the process of grain storing and handling. Heidi is currently expanding her intercultural understanding as she is spending the semester studying abroad in Ireland. Heidi would like to thank all of the wonderful professors and staff that she has encountered at Purdue and her friends and family for supporting all of her endeavors whether it be in another state or another country!
Alexa Stern - ABE Outstanding Junior - Biological Engineering
Alexa is a junior from Saline, Michigan, studying Cellular and Biomolecular Engineering with a minor in Biotechnology. She serves as the president of Purdue Engineering Student Council, where she works closely with the College of Engineering to provide for students within the college. Alexa is also involved in ABE Ambassadors, the Purdue Run Club, and the Alpha Epsilon ABE Honors Society. With her degree, Alexa hopes to work in the pharmaceutical industry to increase access to medications in developing nations. This summer she will be working as a manufacturing intern with Eli Lilly. Alexa is very grateful for the support that she has received from the faculty and staff within the ABE department, her friends, and her family.
Outstanding Sophomores
Kayla Osen - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Engineering
Kayla is a sophomore pursing a degree in Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering with a minor in Environmental Policy. She grew up in Livonia, MI, a suburb outside of Detroit, enjoying her summers and winters on the all the wonderful lakes that Michigan has to offer. At Purdue, Kayla is the Outreach Committee Lead for the Purdue Student Sustainability Council, an ABE ambassador, and is competing in the Student Soybean Innovation Competition. She has been on the Dean’s list and received semester honors for each of her semesters at Purdue. In her free time, Kayla enjoys playing intramural sports, do-it-yourself projects, and spending time with nature. Her passion for the environment and love for data analysis, math, and science makes this degree a perfect fit. In the future she hopes to work on soil or water remediation projects and overall, make a positive impact on the environment. She would like to thank all the staff and professors she has met thus far for all the support and for challenging her to be better every day. Kayla would also like to thank her family and friends for believing in her and investing in her future.
Noah Berning* - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Systems Management
Noah is majoring in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agricultural Economics with minors in Food and Agribusiness Management, Farm Management, and Organizational Leadership. Noah is from the small town of Monroeville, Indiana where he graduated from Heritage Jr. Sr. High School in 2019. Currently, Noah is the President of FarmHouse Fraternity and is also serving as the Recruitment Coordinator for the ABE Ambassadors r and the Director of Facilities for the Purdue Grand Prix Foundation. Noah also is a member of the College of Agriculture Ambassadors, Agriculture Futures of America, Collegiate Farm Bureau, ASM Club, Alpha Mu Honor Society, and is an active member at St. Thomas Aquinas. This summer Noah will be interning with John Deere in Des Moines, Iowa, in customer product support.
Madelyn Whitaker - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Biological Engineering
Madelyn is a sophomore from Crown Point, Indiana, who majors in cellular and biomolecular engineering with minors in biotechnology and biological sciences. Madelyn is in the Purdue Honors College, is on the Dean's List and has received Semester Honors. She is also a Goss Scholar, and was a recipient of the Board of Trustee's scholarship. Within the department, Madelyn conducts research with Dr. Porterfield, in which she investigates technological applications to better understand biological activity in microgravity environments. Under his advice, she and the Purdue Interplanetary and Space Agriculture Team are currently competing in the NASA Plant the Moon/Mars challenge to better understand how to optimize agricultural practices by growing soybeans in modified lunar and Martian soil simulants for further genomic analysis. Madelyn is the President and co-Founder of Engineering Research for Bioregenerative Sustainability in Space, a research group that looks to conduct research within the space biology and -omics areas, via technologies that are provisionally patented, and in future research competitions. She is on the executive board of Purdue iGEM- International Genetically Engineered Machine, in which she pitched and is developing a probiotic to proactively treat Celiac Disease. Outside of the department, Madelyn is a member of the NASA GeneLab Multi-Omics and Plant Analysis Working Groups. She is a mentor within the Purdue Honors College Mentorship Program and is a tutor for the Women in Engineering Program Tutoring Program, where she also serves on the leadership team. Madelyn is a member of the Purdue Engineering President's Council and served on the Honors College Outreach Committee. This summer, Madelyn will be an Engineering/Manufacturing Intern for Anheuser-Busch in Windsor, CO. In the future, she hopes to pursue a thesis Master's and Ph. D. in biological engineering or a space, computational biology-related field. She would like to either become a professor or work in a research and development setting in the future to work within areas of interplanetary life support, sustainable agriculture, or environmental policy and remediation.
Outstanding Freshmen
Jacob Grow - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Agricultural Systems Management
Jacob is majoring in Agricultural Systems Management: Agrosecurity, with minors in Military Science and Leadership, Food and Agribusiness Management, and Organizational Leadership. Jacob is from the small town of Rensselaer, Indiana, where he graduated from Rensselaer Central High School in 2020. Jacob was heavily involved with First Christian Church in Rensselaer. He was also involved in the history club and economics club at Rensselaer. Jacob played football, earning All-State awards, and also ran track at Rensselaer. Currently at Purdue, Jacob is contracted in ROTC after already being enlisted in the Indiana Army National Guard for three years. Jacob holds a leadership position in the Purdue Battalion as a team leader in charge of three cadets. He also participates in frisbee and tactics club. He additionally has made the dean’s list for ROTC and ABE. This summer Jacob will be going back to the farm and getting his sprayer license to learn how to deal with chemicals and all the applications required to spray fields.
Joshua Mariani* - ABE Outstanding Freshman- Pre-ABE
Outstanding Graduate Students
ABE Outstanding PhD student - Abigail Ekeigwe
Abigail Ekeigwe is a Ph.D. candidate in the Biotechnology Innovation and Regulatory Sciences program, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, and a Rotary Global Grant Scholar. As a pharmacist, she worked with the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) for over 20 years in various capacities, including laboratory analyst, head of the laboratory's Central Registry, head of the Counterfeit Medicines laboratory, expert witness in the prosecution of counterfeiters, and Chair, Quality Management Systems Steering committee before starting her Ph.D. studies at Purdue in 2018 under the supervision of Dr. Kari Clase.
She also served the Nigerian National Accreditation Services (NiNAS) as an ISO 17025:2017 laboratory lead assessor. She is a fellow and an adjunct faculty of the West African Post-Graduate College of Pharmacists and was a member of the examination scheme development committee, Society of Testing Laboratory Analysts of Nigeria (SoTLAN).
She is an American Society of Quality Certified Quality Improvement Associate, PECB Certified ISO 9001:2015 Lead Auditor, and ISO/IEC:17025 Lead Assessor.
For her Ph.D. dissertation, she developed a competency-based regulatory sciences education model for expanding the workforce of regulatory scientists in low- and medium-income countries. She has published several papers on medical product regulation in sub-Saharan Africa and collaborated on several research projects involving the quality of medicines. This research contributes to access to safe, quality, and effective medical products and United Nations SDG No. 3's achievement, which is concerned with health and nutrition for all.
Her recent outstanding services include ABE Graduate Student Ambassador, College of Engineering GradTrack Mentor, leadership roles in the ABE Graduate Student Association, Graduate Teaching Assistant for several ABE graduate and undergraduate courses, involvement in informal mentoring of undergraduates and graduates, and as a member of the College of Engineering Grades Appeal committee.
She has received several awards and recognition for academic excellence, leadership, and mentorship initiatives. Recent awards include the prestigious Purdue Graduate School's Boiler Changemaker award, the Mentoring Network for African Women in Academia Outstanding Graduate student award, College of Engineering GradTrack mentor, Purdue Graduate School and Center for Instructional Excellence Teaching Excellence, and a commendation letter from Purdue's President, Mitch Daniels, for her work in Dr. Kari Clase's Phage Discovery Lab at Purdue.
Her passion is for access to safe, quality, and effective medicines.
ABE Outstanding MS student - Lauren Novak
Lauren is a 2nd year Master's student in Biological Engineering. She grew up in Kokomo, Indiana, and developed a passion for science, particularly in biology and biotechnology, in high school. In undergrad, she attended Purdue and majored in Biological Engineering with a certificate in Cooperative Education (Co-Op). During her graduate studies, Lauren has been a part of Dr. Kari Clase's research group which has contributed to phage knowledge by studying how proteomic and lipidomic phage profiles change over time. When not doing research, she helps teach the undergraduate biotechnology courses ABE 226 & 227 and led a large group of undergraduate peer leaders for the courses. Outside of school, she enjoys attending football and basketball games with her friends and going to the CoRec. After graduating in May, Lauren will be starting full-time with Eli Lilly as a scientist in the Leadership Development Program. Lauren would like to thank ABE's staff for providing her with incredible opportunities during her academic career and her friends and family for their enduring love and support.
2021 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors
Megan Casey - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Engineering
Megan grew up in Mason, Ohio, and is Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering with minors in Plant Biology and Creative Writing. She has worked as an undergraduate research assistant in Dr. McMillan’s lab for three years, and is currently working on an independent study. She is creating resources for farmers in Peru to improve their farm management practices and crop yields, as well as helping those outside of the scientific community to understand the meaning and importance of research in soil and water quality. Megan is also the Recruitment Coordinator for ABE Ambassadors, for which she coordinates the application and interview processes for new Ambassadors. She enjoys presenting to FYE students about the opportunities available to students in ABE. Outside of ABE, Megan is a member of the Purdue Cross Country and Track teams.
Chaela Minor* - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Systems Management
Chaela is graduating this spring with degrees in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agribusiness Management, with a minor in Organizational Leadership and Supervision. Growing up on a grain farm in Reelsville, Indiana fostered Chaela's love for agricultural technology. Throughout her four years at Purdue, Chaela has been very involved in many different clubs and organizations. She has served on the executive teams for Sigma Alpha, Ag Week Task Force, and Mortar Board. She also represented the university on Agriculture Future of America's Student Advisory Team as well as National Mortar Board’s National Council. Chaela has interned with Monsanto Company and John Deere in her summers. Upon graduation, Chaela will be working with John Deere as a Customer and Product Support Representative in Des Moines, Iowa. Chaela acknowledges she would not be where she is today without the support of our great faculty and staff, peers, family, and friends, and extends her deepest gratitude to each of them! Chaela was also honored as the College of Agriculture Outstanding Senior.
Marina Mehling - ABE Outstanding Senior - Biological Engineering
Marina Mehling is a cellular and biomolecular engineering student in biological engineering with a minor in biotechnology. She is from Phoenix, Arizona. She serves as the Vice President of ABE Ambassadors and as the Awards Chair for the Barbara Cook Chapter of Mortar Board, helped delegate over $43,000 in awards to the Purdue community and initialized the new Awards Match Program. Marina is a Resident Assistant in Duhme Hall, a peer mentor for the Goss Scholars Honors Engineering Program, an athlete in Purdue Club Badminton, and a member of Alpha Epsilon ABE Honors Society. Marina is a two-time recipient of the Homecoming Pillars of Excellency Research and Innovation Award and the received first place at the 2020 and 2021 Office of Undergraduate Research 3-Minute Thesis Pitch Competition. Since 2016, Marina has worked as a lab technician for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and has published research addressing the oil content and viability of biofuel plants. She was also a 2020 Medicines Innovation Hub Intern at Eli Lilly and Company. At Purdue, she performs undergraduate research in the Laboratory of Renewable Resources Engineering under Dr. Ladisch but has also published work related to catalyzing photosynthesis through the Cramer Lab of Structural Biology. After completing the Amgen Scholars program at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and UC Berkeley in the summer of 2021, Marina will begin a Ph.D. program in Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada to continue research related to biodiesel development and implementation at the BioProducts Institute.
Outstanding Juniors
Nathan Sprague - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Engineering
Nathan grew up the Seattle area, nowhere near a farm. With a desire to improve efficiency in agricultural equipment, he chose in Agricultural Engineering, with a minor in ASM. He has been working with Dr. John Evans since last Fall and will continue through the summer's SURF program on various research projects such as beehive data section sensors and robots. Nathan is involved in several clubs on campus, such as the Student Farm Club, Purdue Quarter Scale, and Salt and Light Christian Fellowship. He is also currently taking flight lessons at Purdue Aviation. Nathan would like to thank the Purdue College of Agriculture for the amazing breadth of opportunities for an agricultural career, and especially Dr. Evans, who is an incredible mentor. He looks forward to finishing the last two years at Purdue strong!
Chase Trainor - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Systems Management
Chase is a Junior majoring in Agricultural Systems Management with a minor in Food and Agribusiness Management. He grew up on a 4th generation row-crop and livestock operation in Central Illinois. Chase transferred from Lake Land College in Mattoon, Illinois where he was an Ag Transfer Major, served as a Student Ambassador and was involved in many clubs and organizations. At Purdue he is involved with different organizations such as FarmHouse Fraternity serving as the Director of Administration, ABE Ambassadors, ASABE Club and Dean’s Scholars. When he is not at Purdue, he enjoys going home to farm, working with livestock, and finding new projects to work on.
Emma Keesling* - ABE Outstanding Junior - Biological Engineering
Emma is pursuing a degree in Food and Biological Process Engineering with a minor in Foods and Nutrition. She grew up on a corn and soybean farm in Modoc, Indiana, and was involved in helping the community, youth group, 4-H, FFA, FCA, cross country, and track in high school. She still enjoys running and is on Purdue's Cross Country and Track and Field collegiate team. Emma is also actively involved in Stewart Cooperative and Purdue Christian Campus House. Upon finishing her bachelor's degree, Emma hopes to work with a Christian organization like World Vision, teaching people in developing countries how to grow nutrient-rich food more sustainably. Emma would like to thank all the staff and professors she has met thus far, as well as her peers and family members, for making her junior year a great one! Emma was also nominated for the College of Agriculture Outstanding Junior.
Outstanding Sophomores
Nikira Lane - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Engineering
Nikira is a sophomore pursuing a degree in Machine Systems Engineering with minors in Soil Science and Crop Science. As a born and raised Alaskan, Nikira definitely misses home while here in Indiana but is enjoying the variety of new experiences that Purdue has to offer for her. From joining the AgGrowBOTS team, to becoming an ABE Ambassador this year, and participating on the soil judging team, she feels like the ABE department is a perfect fit for her interests. Outside of the engineering world, she is very active with Grace Campus Fellowship and a bit of hunting and fishing during her free time never hurts. Her love of the outdoors, engineering, and sharing her faith influences her plans of joining a missions’ group that teaches healthy agricultural practices. After that, she hopes to return to Alaska to promote sustainability in cold climates. Nikira would like to thank all of those within the ABE department who know her name and all her family members who have invested their time into her future.
Heidi Phelps - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Systems Management
Heidi is pursuing degrees in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agribusiness Management. She grew up on her family’s farm in Groveland, NY, where she developed her passion for agriculture and technology. At Purdue, Heidi is involved in several clubs and organizations. She currently serves as the Public Relations Representative for the Purdue Western Equestrian Team, the Risk Management Officer for Sigma Alpha Sorority, an ABE Ambassador, and she is in the Dean’s Scholars Program. Heidi had the wonderful opportunity to intern with Pence Group in the summer after Freshman year, in which she gained experience as a crop scout. Lastly, Heidi would like to thank the professors and staff of the Purdue ABE program for giving her a fantastic experience thus far. She would also like to thank her friends and family for all of their love and support!
Ella Ditslear* - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Biological Engineering
Ella is a student from Noblesville, Indiana pursuing a major in Cellular and Molecular Engineering with minors in Biotechnology and Computer Science. She is on the Dean’s List and Semester Honors for each of her semesters at Purdue and is a recipient of the Presidential, Rex Hall, and ABE Alumni and Friends Scholarships. Along with her academic schedule, Ella is involved with research at Dr. Pedro Irazoqui’s Biomedical Engineering lab: Center for Implantable Devices. There, Ella operates on rodents and implants electrical devices that collect data to further study Epilepsy, Cardiology, Glaucoma, and Neural Interfaces. Ella is also actively involved with her sorority, Alpha Chi Omega, where she is the External Philanthropy Chair and the Sophomore representative for Chapter Relations. Outside of Purdue, Ella attends City of God Church in Lafayette, volunteers at the YWCA Women’s Shelter, and enjoys playing tennis with her friends. Ella is extremely passionate about the medical field and about serving and seeks to practice both of these in her career. Upon graduation, Ella dreams of working for a biotechnology and pharmaceutical company where she can combine her biological engineering, biotechnology, and computational studies. Eventually, Ella would like to attend medical school to study to be a pediatric surgeon. She would like to thank her family, friends, and professors for supporting and challenging her throughout her studies and making Purdue feel like home. Ella was also nominated for the College of Agriculture Outstanding Sophomore.
Outstanding Freshmen
Noah Berning* - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Agricultural Systems Management
Noah is majoring in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agricultural Economics with minors in Food and Agribusiness Management, Farm Management, and Organizational Leadership. Noah is from the small town of Monroeville, Indiana where he graduated from Heritage Jr. Sr. High School in 2019. Noah was very involved in both FFA and 4-H throughout his pre-collegiate career, serving as an Indiana FFA State Officer last year, and the Indiana FFA National Officer Candidate this past fall. Currently on campus Noah is the Director of Recruitment for FarmHouse Fraternity and is a member of the Purdue Collegiate Farm Bureau, St. Thomas Aquinas, and the Purdue Agronomy Club. Noah was also recently elected to serve as the Director of Facilities for the Purdue Grand Prix Foundation for Race 65 and will begin serving as the Recruitment Coordinator for the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Ambassadors this fall. This summer Noah will be interning with Co-Alliance Cooperative as a Field Scout Coordinator. Noah was also nominated for the College of Agriculture Outstanding Freshman.
Katie Reichard - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Pre-Agricultural Engineering
Katie is a Freshman in Pre-ABE. She grew up in a small town called Union City, Indiana, and was actively involved in her school and community. She took part in 4-H, FFA, Student Council, National Honor Society, Archery Club, Varsity Softball Team, and lots of community service. At Purdue, she is involved in the Purdue Poultry club, a member of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, and is on the Dean’s List. She would like to thank her professors and advisors for helping her get through her freshman year.
Outstanding Graduate Students
ABE Outstanding PhD student - Camila Garcia Jange
Camila is a graduate research assistant working in the Agricultural Particulates Research Group under Associate Professor Kingsly Ambrose. She is originally from São Paulo, Brazil, and earned her bachelor's degree in Food Engineering at the University of São Paulo (USP), the best university in Latin America at the time of her admission. Coming from a low-income family, succeeding in the college entrance exam at USP was a difficult task. Her mom could not afford private high school expenses; this could have facilitated her college admission . But her mom managed to pay for a private English school so that Camila could at least learn a second language. After completing high school, a great-aunt sponsored Camila's studies in a school that specialized in the college entrance exam for the most recognized Brazilian universities. After two years of hard work and perseverance, Camila did not disappoint her great-aunt and finally was admitted to two tuition-free public universities: Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) for Chemical Engineering and the University of São Paulo for Food Engineering. She chose USP as this is the dream university for all the engineering fields in Brazil.
Camila has been involved in research since her sophomore year of undergraduate and was determined to pursue a career as a research scientist in engineering. Camila’s undergraduate advisor from USP, Professor Samantha Pinho, recommended she apply for graduate school in the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department at Purdue University, the number one department in the United States. She was admitted to ABE with a graduate research assistantship.
As a graduate student in ABE, Camila has embraced every opportunity since her admission. She served as the professional development co-chair of the ABE GSA, mentored five undergraduate students, and taught guest lectures in the Characterization of Particles, Powders, and Compacts class (ME 531/ABE 591). Eager to learn more about processing and manufacturing, she joined AbbVie Inc. and AFB International for industrial internships. In her doctoral project, she developed a method to control nutrient release from urea fertilizer. This method intends to follow crop nutrient intake and mitigate soil and water stream contamination due to fertilizer leaching. She has seven peer-reviewed publications, four of which are from ABE in highly recognized journals in her field. She also has two publications from her latest project planned for peer-review submission.
Camila would like to thank everyone who supports her throughout her journey and the ABE faculty and staff for all the encouragement and advice. She also dedicates this award to her family, especially her mom.
ABE Outstanding MS student - Mark Gee
Mark is from Johnston, Iowa, and earned three undergraduate degrees: Biological Engineering, Biochemistry, and Agronomy. In Biological Engineering, his focus was biomolecular and cellular engineering. His goal is to become an expert in engineering biological systems to improve water quality. Mark has hands-on growing experience in Iowa and interned at international ag research stations in Mexico and India for a total of seven months before starting college. At Purdue, he has been involved with research projects studying plant epigenetics and advanced phenotyping. Mark served as the Greenhab officer for the Purdue crew to the Mars Desert Research Station where he managed the greenhouse and studied microgreens as a way to improve astronaut nutrition. Mark interned for DuPont Pioneer four summers. He started as a maize pollinator in the field, then interned in entomology, worked in DuPont Pioneers’ Government Affairs office in Washington DC, and then in the engineering group for automated phenotyping. He enjoys spending time with his family, playing soccer, practicing guitar, hiking in nature, and bow-hunting.
2020 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors
Adam Hemmelgarn* - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Engineering
Jonathan Neff - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Systems Management
Jon Neff is a senior who will graduate in May with a degree in Agricultural Systems Management and a minor in Crop Science. Jon grew up on a small farm near Macy, Indiana, where they grew sweet corn, soybeans, and raised livestock (mainly chickens and ducks) along with about 30 barn cats. He was also involved in 4-H, FFA, and various local historical societies whose members shared his addiction to old farm machinery. In addition, he also ran his own small-engine repair business during high school. While at Purdue, Jon participated in two internships with equipment dealerships and, after graduation, will start full-time as a service technician with a Case-IH dealership in Northern Indiana. Jon would like to thank the scholarship donors who made it possible for him to attend Purdue, and his professors and advisors for helping to make his college experience beneficial and rewarding.
Reed Trende - ABE Outstanding Senior - Biological Engineering
Reed is a Senior finishing up a dual degree in Biological Engineering and Biochemistry. He has participated in a wide variety of academic and extracurricular activities on campus, including bioinformatics work with several labs, wet-lab research studying DNA methyltransferases in Dr. Gowher's lab, and TAing for two undergraduate ABE courses. He has spent his summers working for a small medical device company and for a University of Minnesota research lab exploring immunological approaches to prevent transplant rejection. In his spare time, Reed enjoys going for runs and reading about philosophy, particularly normative ethics. Starting in the fall he will be attending Washington University in St. Louis, where he hopes to study how pathogens interact with the immune system while pursuing a Ph. D. in immunology.
Outstanding Juniors
Brittany Kent - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Engineering
Brittany is pursuing a degree in Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering with a minor in Environmental and Ecological Engineering. Hailing from the small town of Wheatfield, Indiana, she has an agricultural background with a passion for improving the sustainability of cropping systems. Since coming to Purdue, she has been active in several organizations, including Purdue's ASABE Chapter, where she serves as the treasurer and Ag Council Representative. She is also a member of Purdue's Women in Engineering Program, helping to recruit and empower the next generation of women engineering students. For the past two years, she has been a lab assistant at the USDA's National Soil Erosion Research Lab, where she has studied flow patterns in soil and phosphorus isotope extraction. After finishing her undergraduate degree, Brittany plans to work for the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service, which is where she spent last summer and will return to this summer. She enjoys the impact and mission of the agency, as they serve to help farmers and landowners manage their land and resources in more sustainable ways. Lastly, Brittany would like to extend her sincere gratitude to all of the professors and staff who work tirelessly to make Purdue's ABE program so impactful and to her friends and family for all of their support and love throughout her time here!
Chaela Minor* - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Systems Management
Chaela is pursuing degrees in both Agricultural Systems Management and Agribusiness Management, with a minor in Organizational Leadership and Supervision. Growing up on a grain farm in Reelsville, Indiana, fostered Chaela's love for agricultural technology. Throughout her three years at Purdue, Chaela has been very involved in many different clubs and organizations. She currently serves as the Vice President of Recruitment for Sigma Alpha, Director of Recruitment for Ag Week Task Force, is an ABE Ambassador, and represented the university on Agriculture Future of America's Student Advisory Team. Just this semester, Chaela was "tapped" into the Barbara Cook Mortar Board Class of 2021! Chaela has interned with Monsanto Company and John Deere in her summers. Upon graduation, Chaela hopes to work for an agricultural equipment company where she can assist farmers and producers in optimizing their operations through the use of precision technology. Chaela acknowledges she would not be where she is today without the support of our great faculty and staff, peers, family, and friends, and extends her deepest gratitude to each of them!
Marina Mehling - ABE Outstanding Junior - Biological Engineering
Marina Mehling is a Cellular and Biomolecular Engineering student from Phoenix, Arizona, pursuing minors in Biochemistry and Biotechnology. As an ABE Ambassador, Marina organizes industry tours for students.On campus, she is a Resident Assistant in Duhme Hall, a peer mentor for the Honors Engineering Program, a Honors Engineering Ambassador, an athlete in Purdue Club Badminton, and an incoming member of Purdue Mortar Board. She was the 2019 Homecoming Pillars of Excellence Research and Innovation recipient. Since 2016, Marina has worked as a lab technician for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and has published research addressing the oil content and viability of biofuel plants. At Purdue, she studies the affects of altered oil content in cyanobacteria for the Cramer Lab. Marina intends to earn a PhD in bioengineering to continue biodiesel development and implementation as a university professor.
Outstanding Sophomores
Nathan Sprague - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Engineering
Nathan grew up the Seattle area, nowhere near a farm. With a desire to improve efficiency in agricultural equipment, he chose in Agricultural Engineering, with a minor in ASM. He has been working with Dr. John Evans since last Fall and will continue through the summer's SURF program on various research projects such as beehive data section sensors and robots. Nathan is involved in several clubs on campus, such as the Student Farm Club, Purdue Quarter Scale, and Salt and Light Christian Fellowship. He is also currently taking flight lessons at Purdue Aviation. Nathan would like to thank the Purdue College of Agriculture for the amazing breadth of opportunities for an agricultural career, and especially Dr. Evans, who is an incredible mentor. He looks forward to finishing the last two years at Purdue strong!
Justin Lammers - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Systems Management
Justin is pursuing a degree in Agricultural Systems Management with minors in Crop Science and Farm Management. Justin is an active member of the ASM Club, the Purdue Wesley Foundation, and Purdue’s Collegiate 4-H Club where he serves as the Ag Council Representative. He enjoys playing disc golf and intramural sports. Justin grew up on a cattle and crop production family farm in Huntingburg, Indiana. Upon graduation, he is looking to make a difference in the production agriculture community either through taking over the family farm or working for another agricultural company.
Emma Keesling* - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Biological Engineering
Emma is pursing a degree in Food and Biological Process Engineering with a minor in Foods and Nutrition. She grew up on a corn and soybean farm in Modoc, Indiana, and was involved in helping the community, youth group, 4-H, FFA, FCA, cross country, and track in high school. She still enjoys running and is in Purdue's Run Club. Emma is also actively involved in Stewart Cooperative and Purdue Christian Campus House, and she is in the Dean's Scholars Program. Upon finishing her bachelor's degree, Emma hopes to work with a Christian organization like World Vision or Compassion International, teaching people in developing countries how to grow nutrient-rich food more sustainably. Emma would like to thank all the staff and professors she has met thus far, as well as her peers and family members, for making her sophomore year a great one!
Outstanding Freshmen
Bryce Oliver* - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Agricultural Systems Management
Bryce is a Freshman pursuing a degree in Agriculture Systems Management. He grew up on a corn and soybean farm in Rossville, Indiana, and was involved in community service, youth group, FFA, FCA, basketball, golf, and tennis in high school. Bryce still enjoys playing basketball at the Co-Rec and is part of an intramural basketball team. He is also actively involved in Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity, Purdue Christian Student Center, and is on the Dean's List. Bryce participates as part of Purdue’s AgBot team and the ABE Ambassadors. He would like to thank his professors, organization leaders, and fellow classmates for the success and fun he's experienced throughout his freshman year.
Lucas Johnson - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Pre-ABE
Luke is pursuing a degree in biological engineering with a concentration in cellular and biomolecular engineering with a minor in management. He grew up in West Lafayette, Indiana, where he attended William Henry Harrison High school. He was a captain of the swim team, an National Honor Society Officer, and a captain of the Unified Track Team. At Purdue, Luke is an Economic Scholar, is actively involved in Agriculture and Biological Engineering Ambassadors, and is an associate member of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity. After completing his undergraduate degree, Luke aspires to attend medical school to study to be a cardiovascular surgeon. Luke would like to thank all the professors and staff who have helped guide him through freshman year. Special thanks to Laurie Snyder, Dan Taylor, and Dr. Kenji Matsuki.
ABE Outstanding MS student - Zhengpu Chen
Zhengpu Chen is a graduate research assistant majoring in Agricultural Engineering. He grew up in Beijing, China. Zhengpu participated in a 2+2 partnership program organized by the Agricultural and Biological Engineering (ABE) departments of Purdue University and China Agricultural University during his time as an undergraduate. He studied at China Agricultural University in his freshman and sophomore years. For his junior and senior years, he transferred to Purdue University and graduated with a bachelor's degree in Agricultural Engineering. Zhengpu continued to pursue a higher degree in the ABE department of Purdue University. He was a graduate student advised by Dr. Kingsly Ambrose and Dr. Carl Wassgren. For his research, Zhengpu developed and validated models for predicting grain kernel damage using the discrete element method. In addition, he is interested in investigating problems related to powder and bulk solids materials characterization, handling, processing, modeling, and simulation. During his graduate study, Zhengpu has published 5 first-author peer-reviewed journal articles (additional 2 articles are under review), presented 1 poster, and given 4 presentations at national and international conferences. After graduation, he plans to work for CNH Industrial as a soil and crop modeling engineer. Zhengpu is a book lover and enjoys playing badminton and ping-pong in his free time.
ABE Outstanding MS student - Mark Gee
2019 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors
Zane Gottschalk - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Engineering
Zane is a senior and is finishing up his degree in Agricultural Engineering with a concentration in Machine Systems. He is from Rossville, Indiana, where he was an active member in the local FFA chapter and enjoyed participating in speech contests, as well as dairy and forestry judging contests. At Purdue, Zane has been involved with the Alpha Zeta Honor Society, the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, the Purdue Society of Professional Engineers, and is also a member of the Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity. Upon graduation he will be working for the mining division of Caterpillar in Decatur, Illinois and will be participating in Caterpillar’s Engineering Rotational Development program. Zane would like to recognize and thank the Agricultural Engineering faculty and staff, the many scholarship sponsors, and his family for the support and encouragement he has received over his past four years.
Grant Knobloch - ABE Outstanding Senior - Agricultural Systems Management
Grant Knobloch majored in Agricultural Systems Management with a Minor in Food & Agribusiness Management. Knobloch hails from Wolcott, IN, where he grew up on a small hobby farm raising purebred hogs and gaining entrepreneurial experience. During his time at Purdue University, Knobloch served as an Agriculture Ambassador engaging with prospective students and their families. Purdue Student Government provided Knobloch with the opportunity to serve as a Senator for the College of Agriculture and represent student constituents. Studying abroad in Haiti was one of Knobloch’s most treasured experiences during his collegiate career engaging with other students and collaborating on global food security. Outside of Purdue activities, Knobloch was involved with Agriculture Future of America attending multiple leaders’ conferences and institutes. Investing in the future of agriculture and rural America while empowering others is critical for Knobloch as he serves on the American Berkshire Foundation Board of Directors as a Student Advisor providing scholarships for youth. Knobloch was fortunate to have two summer internships with John Deere & Company serving as a marketing intern working with dealerships and in future product development. Following these experiences, Knobloch is planning to join Deere & Company following graduation as a Customer and Product Support Representative. Knobloch is grateful for each experience and individual he had the opportunity to meet, engage, and collaborate with during his time at Purdue University and is thankful to be a Boilermaker.
Mark Gee* - ABE Outstanding Senior - Biological Engineering
Mark is a senior from Johnston, Iowa, and a triple major in Biological Engineering, Biochemistry, and Agronomy. In Biological Engineering, his focus is biomolecular and cellular engineering. His goal is to become an expert in engineering biological systems to improve water quality. Mark has hands-on growing experience in Iowa and interned at international ag research stations in Mexico and India for a total of seven months before starting college. At Purdue, he has been involved with research projects studying plant epigenetics and advanced phenotyping. Most recently, Mark served as the Greenhab officer for the Purdue crew to the Mars Desert Research Station where he managed the greenhouse and studied microgreens as a way to improve astronaut nutrition. Mark interned for DuPont Pioneer four summers. He started as a maize pollinator in the field, then interned in entomology, worked in DuPont Pioneers’ Government Affairs office in Washington DC, and then in the engineering group for automated phenotyping. He enjoys spending time with his family, playing soccer, practicing guitar, and hiking in nature. Mark would like to thank his family, professors and advisors in the ABE Department, Biochemistry, Agronomy, the College of Agriculture and Dr. Akridge, Dr. Tuinstra, Dr. Ejeta, Sherry Pogranichniy, and Dr. and Mrs. Beering for making it possible for him to study for a triple major at Purdue.
Outstanding Juniors
Adam Hemmelgarn - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Engineering
Adam is a junior pursuing a degree in Agricultural Engineering with a concentration in Machine Systems Engineering. He is also currently working toward earning a Certificate of Entrepreneurship and Innovation through the Krannert Business School. Adam is from Noblesville, Indiana. He was an active member in his local Boy Scout Troop, earning the Rank of Eagle Scout in 2013. At Purdue, he is involved with the Wesley Foundation, where he served as the Service Chair and currently serves as a Vice President on the student leadership board. He is involved in the Purdue Utility Project, and traveled with the team to Kenya last spring. He is currently performing research with Dr. Ambrose learning how to use and apply discrete element analysis to grain flows. He is a member of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. After he graduates, he plans to get a job with an equipment manufacturer in product evaluation in testing, and work with new machines before they are released to customers.
Jerod Putt - ABE Outstanding Junior - Agricultural Systems Management
Jerod was born and raised in the small town of Francesville, just north of the Purdue Campus. He worked on the family farm, a hog and grain operation, from his childhood all the way through high school. He was student body president as well as Valedictorian at West Central High School and has served as the president of the Purdue Young Group, a Christian organization on campus. Jerod enjoys playing basketball as well as most sports and most of all enjoys spending time with his family and friends.
Reed Trende* - ABE Outstanding Junior - Biological Engineering
Reed is a Junior pursuing a dual degree in Biological Engineering and Biochemistry. He participates in a wide variety of extracurricular activities on campus, ranging from bioinformatics research in Purdue's Y-Lab to designing and manufacturing tools for IEEE ROV, and underwater robotics club, to acting as Vice President and Treasurer of Swipe Out Starvation, an organization which enables students to donate extra meal swipes to raise funds for food charities. He has spent his summers working for a small medical device company and for a University of Minnesota research lab exploring immunological therapies to aid in organ allotransplantation. A committed, effective altruist, Reed hopes to go on to graduate school to learn more about how engineering and biochemistry can be used to combat and eliminate the most widespread diseases in the world today, such as malaria and tuberculosis.
Outstanding Sophomores
Megan Casey - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Engineering
Megan grew up in Mason, Ohio, and is studying Agricultural Engineering with a concentration in Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering. She has worked as an undergraduate research assistant in Dr. McMillan’s lab for the past year, and this semester she started an independent research project and presented her work at the ABE-GSA Poster Symposium. The goal of the project is to determine if there is a correlation between access to urban green space and socioeconomic factors, and to use these correlations to propose new locations for green space in Indianapolis. Megan is also a part of ABE Ambassadors, where she enjoys presenting to FYE students about the opportunities available to students in ABE. Outside of ABE, Megan is the Community Service & PR Officer for the Purdue Running Club. Her job is to plan volunteering events and increase club membership by maintaining a welcoming environment for runners of all levels. Recently, she organized a service event which resulted in the creation of 260 craft packages to send to cancer patients at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Chase Gripp* - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Agricultural Systems Management
Chase came to Purdue from a 6th generation family farm in rural western Illinois. Agriculture has been a part of him since the day he was born. During his time here at Purdue, he has been heavily involved. He serves as the Director of Risk Management and is a new member mentor for FarmHouse Fraternity. On top of this, he is a part of the National Agri-Marketing Association, Issues-360, Ag Council, and Dean’s Scholars. When not being active here at Purdue, he enjoys going home to farm or being outdoors hunting and fishing whenever possible.
Marina Mehling - ABE Outstanding Sophomore - Biological Engineering
Marina Mehling is a Cellular and Biomolecular Engineering student within Biological Engineering and is pursuing minors in Biochemistry and Biotechnology. On campus, she is an Ambassador for both the Honors Engineering program and ABE. She is also a peer mentor for Honors Engineering, a member of the General Honors Leadership Council, an athlete in Purdue Club Badminton, and a Resident Assistant in Duhme Hall. Since 2016, Marina has worked as a lab technician at a United States Department of Agriculture facility outside her hometown of Phoenix, Arizona. She is a published scientific author in research addressing the analysis and feasibility of biofuel accumulation in plant leaves. At Purdue, she performs research for the Cramer Lab and characterizes oil accumulation in cyanobacteria. Marina intends to earn a PhD and fulfill her passion for research by becoming a university professor.
Outstanding Freshmen
Jamie Wu - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Agricultural Systems Management
Jamie was born and raised in Taiwan, a country in East Asia. Although he grew up in an urban city, Jamie developed a love for nature and agriculture after volunteering at a sustainable farming camp in the countryside. He also interned at an organic tangerine farm and learned about small farm management and various organic farming techniques in his country. During high school, Jamie was the student leader for the Aquaponics Club and often gave tours and talks to visitors on how Aquaponics works. As an Agricultural Systems Management student, Jamie continues to work on what he loves; he is currently a member of the Purdue Student Farm Organization, working in the Purdue Horticulture Greenhouse, and he is also the historian for the Purdue Taiwanese Student Association. At Purdue, Jamie hopes to learn how to analyze data and utilize modern digital devices to improve crop production. Lastly, Jamie would like to thank all the faculty and staff in the ABE department for all the support he has received.
Emma Keesling* - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Pre-ABE
Emma is pursuing a degree in Food and Biological Process Engineering with a minor in Foods and Nutrition. Shew grew up on a corn and soybean farm in Modoc, Indiana, and was involved in helping the community, youth group, 4H, FFA, FCA, cross country, and track in high school. She still enjoys running and is in Purdue's Run Club. Emma is also actively involved in Stewart Cooperative and Purdue Christian Campus House, and she is in the Dean's Scholars Program. Upon finishing her bachelor's degree, Emma hopes to work with a Christian organization like World Vision or Compassion International, teaching people in developing countries how to grow nutrient-rich food more sustainably. Emma would like to thank all of the staff and professors she has met thus far, as well as her peers and family members, for making her freshman year a great one!
Outstanding Graduate Students
ABE Outstanding PhD student - Gabriella Mendes Candido de Oliveira
Gabriella Mendes Candido de Oliveira is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Purdue University. She was born in Minas Gerais (Brazil), to parents whose farm roots reflect her passion for food and agriculture. She is quick to share that her parents did not have the opportunity to attend college but, to the contrary, the values of hard work, perseverance, and faith they instilled in her contributed immensely to her pursuit of knowledge and education. To provide her with the background necessary to apply for a competitive undergraduate degree in the future, her parents took on extra work to support her studies in private middle and high schools. The outcome was as expected; she was accepted to prestigious Brazilian Universities: University of São Paulo (USP), São Paulo State University (UNESP), and the Federal University of Visçosa (UFV), colleges that offer tuition-free education to admitted students and are actually more prestigious than the private institutions that charge tuition. She chose the University of São Paulo, the leading institution in Brazil for research and teaching, to obtain her bachelor’s degree in Food Engineering.
At USP, she cherished all the opportunities she had to learn more, working her way through college with scholarship awards to conduct research. Passionate about research, Gabriella decided to go for graduate school. Her dream: Purdue University, the number #1 in Agricultural and Biological Engineering in the United States. After a pre-selection process by a nonprofit organization affiliated to Harvard University, Gabriella wrote and submitted a research proposal to CAPES Foundation and received a grant of more than $200.000 to conduct her Ph.D. studies.
At Purdue, Gabriella has built an outstanding proficiency with a collection of high marks due to her commitment to her academic performance. She has published two papers and has two other manuscripts in progress. Her Ph.D. research provides tools to relate the survival of microorganisms of importance to public health with processing conditions used in traditional and innovative food processing technologies.
In the ABE Department, Gabriella was a graduate teaching assistant for the classes ABE 308 – Heat and Mass transfer – and ABE 303 –Application of Physical Chemistry to Biological Processes –where her teaching skills during tutorial sessions were highly acknowledged by the students. Gabriella also contributed to the Department as the organizational support for the ABE Industrial Graduate Symposium in February 2017, the 2017 Recruitment Weekend, the Graduate Panel 2016 and the Spring Festivals 2016 and 2017.
Whenever she returns to her home country, Gabriella enjoys spending time with her family, her dogs, going to the family’s farm, and watching the cow named after her nickname: “Bibi”. She loves to eat, in a single bite, her favorite dessert: guava paste with fresh white Minas cheese, universally referred to in Brazil as “Romeo and Juliet”.
ABE Outstanding MS student - Aaron Etienne
Aaron Etienne is a second year master’s student, studying under Dr. Dharmendra Saraswat in the Digital Agriculture Discovery group. Aaron earned his bachelor’s degree from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, in Agricultural Systems and Education. After finishing his master’s this summer, he will begin a doctorate degree under Dr. Lumkes in ABE. For his master’s research, Aaron is developing an object detection system capable of spotting specific weed species in row crop fields, at various stages of the growing season. To achieve this, an unmanned aerial vehicle with attached thermal, multispectral, and color cameras was used to fly corn and soybean plots at low altitude, from pre planting to post harvest 2018, as well as early season 2019. Images were used to train a software capable of detecting weeds in real-time video.
2018 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors: Caitlin Nelligan, Agricultural Engineering; Katie Carnahan*, Agricultural Systems Management; Alexa Petrucciani, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Juniors: Zane Gottschalk*, Agricultural Engineering; Derek Neuhoff, Agricultural Systems Management; Margaret Hegwood, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Sophomores: Ilyas Yilgor, Agricultural Engineering; Jerod Putt, Agricultural Systems Management; Lauren Novak*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshmen: Chase Gripp*, Agricultural Systems Management; Kevin Massa, Pre-ABE
2017 ABE Outstanding Students
With the rapid increase in our student population, the faculty decided in 2013 to name an honoree in each discipline (Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Systems Management, Biological Engineering, and Pre-ABE). The students indicated (*) will advance to compete at the College level for Outstanding Student in the College of Agriculture.
Outstanding Seniors: Austin Bitting, Agricultural Systems Management; Anderson Smith, Agricultural Engineering; Hanna Tso, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Juniors: Jared Bedel, Agricultural Systems Management; Mark Gee, Biological Engineering; Peter Rusche, Agricultural Engineering
Outstanding Sophomores: Katie Carnahan, Agricultural Systems Management; Zane Gottschalk, Agricultural Engineering; Margaret Hegwood, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshmen: Adam Hemmelgarn, Pre-ABE; Jonathan Neff, Agricultural Systems Management
2016 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors: Candace Popp, Agricultural Engineering; Edward Babinec, Agricultural Systems Management; Jaycey Hardenstein, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Juniors: Casey Martin, Agricultural Engineering; Michael "Cole" Mundell, Agricultural Systems Management; Mark S. Aronson, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Sophomores: Robert "Levi" Bays, Agricultural Engineering; William Field, Agricultural Systems Management; Davis Jeffries, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshmen: Zane Gottschalk, Agricultural Engineering; Derek Neuhoff, Agricultural Systems Management
2015 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors: Gavin Downs, Agricultural Engineering; Jonathan Pelsey, Agricultural Systems Management; James Nolan*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Juniors: Danielle McNelly, Agricultural Engineering; Alex Emenhiser, Agricultural Systems Management; Jaycey Hardenstein*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Sophomores: Anderson Smith, Agricultural Engineering; Michael (Cole) Mundell, Agricultural Systems Management; Lauren Bailey*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshman; William Field*, Agricultural Systems Management; Lauren Miller, Pre-ABE
2014 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors: Ian Hahus, Agricultural Engineering; Corbin R. Abrell, Agricultural Systems Management; Gordon Showalter*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Juniors: Nicole Solitro, Agricultural Engineering; Joel Waterman, Agricultural Systems Management; James K. Nolan*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Sophomores: Danielle N. McNeely, Agricultural Engineering; William R. Sparks, Agricultural Systems Management; Jaycey R. Hardenstein*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshmen: Megan R. Shivley, Agricultural Systems Management; Lauren E. Bailey* - Pre-ABE
2013 ABE Outstanding Students
Outstanding Seniors: HannahJoy Pheasant, Agricultural Engineering; Eli H. Fred, Agricultural Systems Management; Sean Kearney*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Juniors: Jordan M. Garrity, Agricultural Engineering; Adam W. Sills, Agricultural Systems Management; Jessica L. Wade*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Sophomores: Caroline A. Schier, Agricultural Engineering; Joel T. Waterman, Agricultural Systems Management; James K. Nolan*, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshmen: Peyton E. Hite, Agricultural Systems Management; Sarah M. Cox* - ABE Outstanding Freshman - Pre-ABE
2012 ABE Outstanding Students
Laurent Ahiablame - ABE Outstanding PhD Student
Shahriar Karim - ABE Outstanding MS Student
Outstanding Senior: Benjamin Daily, Agricultural Systems Management/Agricultural Economics
Outstanding Junior: Elymae Cedeno, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Sophomore: David Bedel, Machine Systems Engineering
Outstanding Freshman: Jonathan Pelsey, Agricultural Systems Management
2011 ABE Outstanding Students
Jiji Chen - ABE Outstanding PhD Student
Jonathan Claussen - ABE Outstanding PhD Student
Outstanding Senior: Katherine "Kat" Gilbert, Biological and Food Process Engineering
Outstanding Junior: Benjamin Daily, Agricultural Systems Management/Agricultural Economics
Outstanding Sophomore: Sean Kearney, Biological Engineering/Applied Mathematics
Outstanding Freshman: Zane Graper, Biological and Food Process Engineering
2010 ABE Outstanding Students
Aeraj ul Hague - Purdue Student Engineering Foundation Outstanding Graduate Student & ABE Outstanding PhD Student
Ruth Pinto - ABE Outstanding MS Student
Purdue Student Engineering Foundation Outstanding Senior: Jeff Wojcicki, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering
Outstanding Senior: Mary Jane "Janie" Stine, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Sophomore: Molly Scherer, Biological Engineering
Outstanding Freshman: Josue Ordaz, Biological Engineering.
2009 ABE Outstanding Students
Majdi Abou-Najm - Purdue Student Engineering Foundation Outstanding Graduate Student
Jun Wang - ABE Outstanding PhD Student
Azalenah Shah - ABE Outstanding MS Student
Purdue Student Engineering Foundation Outstanding Senior: Ben Dietrich, Agricultural Engineering
Outstanding Senior: Craig Barcus, Biological & Food Process Engineering
Outstanding Junior: Janie Stine, Biological & Food Process Engineering
Outstanding Sophomore: Jacob Ohlemiller, Machine Systems Engineering
Outstanding Freshman: Ben Daily, Agricultural Systems Management
2008 ABE Outstanding Students
Dazhi Mao - Purdue Student Engineering Foundation Outstanding Graduate Student
Srinivasulu Ale - ABE Outstanding PhD Student
Amy Penner - ABE Outstanding MS Student
Purdue Student Engineering Foundation Outstanding Senior: Keith Mears, Agricultural Engineering
ABE Outstanding Senior: Jonathan Newell, Environmental & Natural Resources Engineering
ABE Outstanding Junior: Craig Barcus, Biological & Food Process Engineering
ABE Outstanding Sophomore: Janie Stine, Biological & Food Process Engineering
ABE Outstanding Freshman: Courtney McWaine, Environmental & Natural Resources Engineering
We have quite a gap in this information. If you have any filler material for us, please send it on!
1997 ABE Outstanding Students
ABE Outstanding Senior: Brent A. Anderson, Food Process Engineering
ABE Outstanding Junior: Nathan A. Litz, Agricultural Systems Management
ABE Outstanding Sophomore: Shoshone A. Leung, Food Process Engineering
ABE Outstanding Sophomore: Karen M. Lewis, Food Process Engineering
1996 ABE Outstanding Students
ABE Outstanding Junior: Douglas J. Biehl, Agricultural Systems Management
ABE Outstanding Junior: Karesa G. Keenan, Food Process Engineering
ABE Outstanding Junior: Wade A. Scott, Food Process Engineering
ABE Outstanding Sophomore: Nathan A. Litz, Agricultural Engineering