Showing Their Teachers Some Love

Posted on February 8, 2012 by

Everyone who has ever attended school has memories of one or more teachers who really made a difference in your life. Maybe he or she sparked your creativity, helped you over a difficult academic hurtle, forced you to question your assumptions, or took an interest and let you know that you and your success mattered.

Every year, NC State University gives our students an opportunity to honor teachers who have made a difference in student’s lives with the “Thank A Teacher” program.

The College of Natural Resources is excited that students have honored 14 of our faculty this year. Our students expressed appreciation for – “Unwavering loyalty to students, Professionalism, Going beyond the call to ensure that students are successful, Making a difficult course as fun as possible, A good attitude, approachability and fairness, Enthusiasm and dedication, Taking the time as an advisor to get to know what I’m looking for in terms of college goals and post-graduation activities, Keeping me motivated, Making learning easy and fulfilling, Ready response to all our questions and emails,” and more. One student wrapped up his comments with, “Thanks a million for everything that it is you do, keep giving, it makes a difference.”

Our congratulations to:
Gary Blank, Forestry & Environmental Resources
Kim Bush, Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management
Heather Cheshire, Forestry & Environmental Resources
Chris Deperno, Forestry & Environmental Resources
Thomas Easley, Dean’s Office/Community for Diversity
Ryan Emanuel, Forestry & Environmental Resources
Richard Lemaster, Forest Biomaterials
Terrie Litzenberger, Forestry & Environmental Resources
Melissa Mchale, Forestry & Environmental Resources
Annette Moore, Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management
Janell Moretz, Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management
Stacy A.C. Nelson, Forestry & Environmental Resources
Larry Nielsen, Forestry & Environmental Resources
David Tilotta, Forest Biomaterials

“We are proud of our tradition of teaching excellence and the welcoming and supportive environment engendered by the faculty and staff of our college. On behalf of our whole faculty, staff, students and alumni, I thank these teachers for their excellent effort.”
– Dean Bob Brown

“Thank A Teacher” recipients receive a letter of congratulations from the University Provost which includes one or more quote from student letters of appreciation, and recognition at the Office of Faculty Development’s Teaching and Learning Symposium during Spring Semester.

Learn more about NC State’s commitment to teaching excellence at the Office of Faculty Development website.

Learn more about the College of Natural Resources at NC State University

Foamy Filters Prove Cheap and Effective

Posted on February 7, 2012 by

Researchers in the College of Natural Resources at NC State Univeristy have isolated a new biomaterial for filter use. This foam material made from the byproducts of both the forest and seafood industry may just solve quite a few problems with water contamination. Drs. Joel Pawlak and Richard Venditti are faculty in the NC State Department of Forest Biomaterials.

Read the Full Story by Daniel Weikel, Correspondent, The TechnicianOnline, NC State University’s Student Newspaper

Parks, Parents, Kids and Play

Posted on January 12, 2012 by

Creating environments that inspire kids to be active is a significant step in fighting childhood obesity. A team of NC State researchers’ study of park use and park-based physical activity among children and adolescents, ages 0 to 18 concludes that parks can play an important role in children’s physical activity because they are generally associated with increased physical activity and are available in urban areas. The study noted that:

Playgrounds were the most common areas for children to play (40.3%), followed by open space areas (14.7%) and picnic areas (11.9%).
Girls were less likely to be observed in courts and fields, and more likely to be observed in playgrounds.
Higher physical activity levels increased 3.76 times when other active children were in the park zone.
Presence of a parent or adult supervisor was associated with a lower likelihood of higher levels of physical activity.

This last point continues to attract interest from parenting publications – most recently a January 2012 USA Today Special – “Ways to Empower Kids To Take Charge of Their Health.

According to the team, more research is needed to better understand both the social and environment characteristics that effect vigorous activity at parks. In addition to its value to parents, the researchers see the study as useful for community and park managers engaged in in park planning and maintenance.

For a more expansive look at the study, see “Park-Based Physical Activity Among Children and Adolescents” in the September 2011 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

CNR Dean Brown Announces Retirement

Posted on January 12, 2012 by

Dr. Robert (Bob) Brown, Dean of the College of Natural Resources at North Carolina State University, has announced his plans to retire in late summer-early fall, 2012.

Dr. Brown has been Dean at NC State since 2006. He attended the University of California at Davis, and received his B.S. from Colorado State University. After a tour in Vietnam with the Marine Corps, he attended Penn State University and received his Ph.D. in 1975. He was on the faculty of Texas A&I University in Kingsville and a Research Scientist there with the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute from 1975-87. He was head of the Wildlife and Fisheries Department at Mississippi State University from 1987-93, and then head of the Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences Department at Texas A&M University from 1993-2006. While at Texas A&M, he was also Director of the Institute for Renewable Natural Resources and Coordinator of the Gulf Coast CESU.

Dr. Brown has been National President and a Fellow in The Wildlife Society, President of the National Association of University Fish and Wildlife Programs, Chair of the Board on Natural Resources of NASULGC (now ALUP), a Professional Member of the Boone & Crockett Club, Chair of the External Review Panel of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, and was an Adult Leader in the Boy Scouts for 18 years. He retired as a LtCol. in the Marine Corps Reserve.

Dr. Brown and his wife, Regan, will remain in the Raleigh area after retirement. Together they recently established the Bob and Regan Brown Endowed Scholarship in Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology to provide support for incoming freshman. The first recipient will enter the program at NC State in Fall 2012.

NC State is moving forward with a national search for a new dean of the College of Natural Resources, according to Provost Warwick Arden. Blanton Godfrey, dean of the College of Textiles at NC State, will lead the CNR search.

NC State Renewable Energy Experts Serve On EPA Science Advisory Board Panel

Posted on November 7, 2011 by

Three North Carolina State University professors recently served on an Environmental Protection Agency Science Advisory Board Panel to discuss scientific issues that have major implications for the future of renewable power and fuels.

Drs. Robert Abt, professor of forest economics and management; Morton Barlaz, professor and head of the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering; and Stephen Kelley, professor and head of the Department of Forest Biomaterials; joined 15 other researchers from 10 universities and three national laboratories on the panel.

The Biogenic Carbon Emissions Panel met in Washington, DC, Oct. 25-27 to conduct a peer review of EPA’s Accounting Framework for Biogenic Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Emissions from Stationary Sources. The review included identifying key scientific and technical factors to be considered when constructing a framework for accounting for the impacts of utilizing biologically-based feedstocks at stationary power and fuel production sites, which include power plants, chemical plants, landfills, bioethanol plants, oil refineries and wood products manufacturing facilities.

Biogenic carbon dioxide emissions are emissions from a stationary source directly resulting from the combustion or decomposition of biologically-based materials other than fossil fuels. This panel focused on the scientific links between the biogenic emissions and the capture of carbon during the growth of the biomass, along with the associated land changes.

When the panel completes its work it will provide a comprehensive scientific overview of the different frameworks for tracking biogenic CO2 emissions through the carbon cycle.

NC State was the only university with three researchers appointed to the board, one from the College of Engineering and two from the College of Natural Resources.

Abt has 25 years of experience in modeling forest-dependent industries and markets. He developed the Sub-Regional Timber Supply (SRTS) modeling framework, which has been used by NASA and EPA to evaluate the potential impact of climate change and other environmental stressors of southern forests. Abt’s forest resource assessment research is supported by a consortium of 22 resource- dependent firms who are members of the Southern Forest Resource Assessment Consortium at NC State. Recently, his work has focused on the potential impact of bio-energy demand on the sustainability of the forest resource, traditional wood dependent industries and sequestered carbon.

Barlaz became head of the CCEE department in August 2010. He has been a faculty member at NC State since 1989 and served as the associate head of the department from 1998 to 2006. He is an internationally renowned expert in the field of solid waste management, and his research in microbial ecology and degradation processes in landfills is considered by many to be the most important work in the field today. He was the recipient of the Distinguished Individual Achievement Award from the Solid Waste Association of North America in 2004 and the Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors in 2003 and 2009.

Kelley became head of the Department of Forest Biomaterials in 2005. His research interests include the sustainable production of energy and materials from biomass, life cycle analysis of wood products and energy systems and the application of novel analytical tools to biomass characterization. Prior to joining NC State, he worked for 13 years at DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and six years as an industrial researcher working with renewable polymers. He currently serves on the editorial boards of three international journals and is the president of the Consortium for Research in Renewable Industrial Materials.

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For more information:
Nate DeGraff, NCSU College of Engineering 919-515-3848
Tilla Fearn, NCSU College of Natural Resources 919-513-4644