Nine people to receive 2009 “Award of Distinction” at UC Davis

University of California, Davis
October 1, 2009

Nine people will be honored Oct. 9 at UC Davis with an “Award of Distinction” during the 21st annual College Celebration for the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

The honorees include faculty, staff, alumni, and friends of UC Davis’ founding college. The award is presented annually to those whose contributions and achievements enrich the image and reputation of UC Davis and enhance its ability to provide public service.

“This year’s recipients have all made important contributions to keeping our college at the forefront of meeting society’s most pressing challenges,” said CA&ES Dean Neal Van Alfen. “We are pleased to be able to give these individuals the recognition they deserve.”

Members of the campus community and the public are invited to participate in the event, which begins at 5:30 p.m. in Freeborn Hall. A festive reception follows presentation of the awards. Tickets are $15 each and will be available at the door. This year’s Award of Distinction recipients include:

Outstanding Faculty

• John C. Bruhn, a dairy food processing specialist emeritus in the Department of Food Science and Technology, is being honored as “Outstanding Faculty” for his life’s work improving the quality and taste of milk, cheese, and other dairy products. Bruhn became a UC Cooperative Extension specialist soon after earning his doctoral degree from UC Davis in 1968. In the 1970s, he led a national effort to identify the source of iodine contamination on dairy farms and at food processors. He also helped establish the Dairy Research and Information Center at UC Davis in 1995 and served as its founding director until 2002. The California Cheese and Butter Association recently awarded John and his wife, Christine Bruhn, a consumer foods specialist at UC Davis, a shared lifetime achievement award.

Outstanding Staff

• Thomas Kaiser, who as CA&ES executive assistant dean has helped the college navigate some of its most challenging budget years, is being honored as “Outstanding Staff.” For 17 years, Kaiser has provided critical support by developing new budget models for allocation of resources, especially in the early 1990s and early 2000s when the college faced significant budget reductions. He revised budget and financial processes to increase the transparency and accessibility of information. He has also worked with department chairs, managers, and faculty in planning and coordinating major capital renewal projects, including new construction and major renovation projects to replace outdated academic buildings and support facilities. He is a strong advocate for staff and helped streamline operations to make for more efficient, manageable workloads. Kaiser is a resident of Sacramento.

Outstanding Alumni

• Gurdev Khush, the chief plant breeder at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines from 1967 until 2002, is being honored among “Outstanding Alumni.” He led the development of more than 300 rice varieties that helped create the green revolution in South Asia. A native of India, Khush earned his doctoral degree in genetics at UC Davis in 1960. IRRI’s improved rice varieties pushed world rice production from 257 million tons in 1966 to 640 million tons by 2008. One of these varieties, IR36, is the most widely planted food crop ever grown. Khush, now an adjunct professor at UC Davis, has earned some of agriculture’s most significant awards such as the Borlaug Award (1977), the World Food Prize (1996), and the Wolf Prize in Agriculture (2000).

• Martha Guzman Aceves, legislative advocate for the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, is being honored as “Young Alumna” for her many contributions on farm labor issues. She earned her master’s degree in agricultural and resource economics at UC Davis in 2002. As director of the foundation’s Sustainable Communities Project, she advocates on environmental justice and farmworker health and safety issues such as heat illness and pesticide exposure. In 2003, she was the legislative coordinator for the United Farm Workers, AFL-CIO. Guzman is active with the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water and other advocacy groups. She is on the external advisory board of the UC Davis Agricultural Sustainability Institute, was appointed by the governor to the California Water Commission in 2002, and is a 2004 graduate of the California Agricultural Leadership Program.

Friends of the College

• James R. Lugg, recently retired executive vice president for food safety and quality at produce company Fresh Express, is being honored as a “Friend of the College” for his pioneering work on packaged salads, advocacy for produce safety, and service to the University of California. The Sacramento native earned a bachelor’s degree in soil science from UC Berkeley in 1956 and then served as a UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor in Kings County and later in Monterey County. In 1963 he joined Bruce Church, Inc. as research director. In 1966 he became president of the company’s TransFRESH Corporation, where he directed research and quality efforts in controlled- and modified-atmosphere applications for produce. Lugg serves on the CA&ES Dean’s Advisory Council and the UC President’s Advisory Commission on Agriculture and Natural Resources.

• Mary Patterson, a retired rancher and businesswoman who has been a devoted volunteer in the UC Davis Arboretum for more than 20 years, is being honored as a “Friend of the College.” The Davis resident is committed to environmental sustainability, public education about gardening, and the importance of volunteers in building a strong university and a vibrant community. She has been president of Friends of the UC Davis Arboretum, led the campaign to equip the new Arboretum Teaching Nursery, and helped expand the Arboretum plant sales program and initiate an annual giving campaign. She also designed and managed garden construction and renovation projects, helped expand the Arboretum's volunteer gardener program, and supervised crews of Arboretum volunteers. She helped plan and promote the Arboretum All-Stars program and the UC Davis Arboretum GATEways Initiative.

• Howard-Yana Shapiro, global director for plant science and external research at Mars, Inc., is being honored as a “Friend of the College” for his work in support of sustainability at the world’s largest chocolate company and at UC Davis. In the 1980s, he co-founded “Seeds of Change,” a company devoted to organic agriculture, biodiversity, and wholesome natural food that joined with Mars, Inc. in 1997. Shapiro announced recently that Mars will certify 100 percent of its cocoa from sustainably produced sources by 2020. He is co-author of “Chocolate: History, Culture, and Heritage,” a book arising from the Chocolate History Group formed by Mars and UC Davis. Shapiro, a Davis resident and adjunct professor in the Department of Plant Sciences, is chair of the external advisory board for the UC Davis Agricultural Sustainability Institute.

• Ann M. Veneman, executive director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), is a 1970 UC Davis alumna who is being honored as a “Friend of the College” for her career accomplishments, leadership in agriculture, and support of her alma mater. A native of Modesto, she earned her UC Davis bachelor’s degree in political science, a master’s in public policy at UC Berkeley, and a juris doctorate at UC’s Hastings College of Law. Veneman is the only woman to serve as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture (2001 to 2005) and as California’s Secretary of Food and Agriculture (1995 to 1999).  From 1996 to 2000 she was a member of the CA&ES Dean’s Advisory Council. At UNICEF Veneman leads a global organization advancing programs to save and improve the lives of children around the world.

• Fritz Maytag, who launched the craft brewing revolution with Anchor Brewing Company and continues to share his experience, enthusiasm, and support to aspiring UC Davis brew masters, is being honored as a “Friend of the College.” A native of Newton, Iowa, Maytag comes from a family of entrepreneurs. His great grandfather founded the Maytag appliance company with an innovative washer design. In 1941 his father created Maytag blue cheese from the family’s Holstein dairy cows. Maytag acquired the Anchor brewery in 1965 and honed it into a widely emulated microbrewery. In 1993 he established Anchor Distilling Co., which has stimulated an artisanal distilling movement. He owns York Creek Vineyards in Napa’s Spring Mountain District and in 2005 became a founding honorary board member of the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science.

The College Celebration awards ceremony is followed by a reception that includes regional and specialty hors d’oeuvres and beverages. A highlight of the evening is the Aggie Farmers Market display, packed with fresh California produce and grain products provided by commodity groups, college departments, and other organizations. Attendees are invited to disassemble the display and take the food products home with them at the end of the evening.

For additional information about the event, please contact Carrie Cloud at (530) 752-2120 or crcloud@ucdavis.edu. To learn more about Award of Distinction recipients, link to the college’s website for the event at http://caes.ucdavis.edu/NewsEvents/Events/college-celebration

Media contacts:

• Pat Bailey, UC Davis News Service, (530) 752-9843, pjbailey@ucdavis.edu
• John Stumbos, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, (530) 754-4979, jdstumbos@ucdavis.edu