Sponsored by Land O’Lakes Purina LLC
William Justin Sexten
University of Missouri

Justin Sexten joined the faculty at the University of Missouri in 2007. Dr. Sexten’s extension program is directed toward cow-calf and backgrounding programs. Dr. Sexten is a member of the Commercial Agriculture Beef Team and directs the Premiere Beef Marketing program in Missouri. He is responsible for the nutrition component of grazing schools offered by MU Extension. He has an active research program studying supplementation of backgrounding cattle. His research has also studied the storage and use of distillers grains in beef diets. Dr. Sextin’s extension program has had direct benefit on the productivity of Missouri’s cow-calf industry and has provided the foundation for growth of the backgrounding industry of the state.

Sponsored by Land O’Lakes Purina LLC

Justin Waggoner
Kansas State University

Dr.Justin Waggoner serves as the Beef Systems Specialist at Kansas State University’s Southwest Research and Extension Center in Garden City, Kansas. He obtained his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Animal Science from Kansas State University and PhD in Ruminant Nutrition at New Mexico State University. Dr. Waggoner developed the Wildcat Steer Futurity and K-State Cattle Feeders College, and helped develop the 5-States Beef Conference in cooperation with specialists from OK, TX, NM, and CO. He helped introduce the Brands ration balancing program. He developed spreadsheet decision tools to enable producers to calculate key ration components, and storage methods for wet distillers’ grains. Dr. Waggoner has authored over 60 Extension articles, including Focus on the Feedlots, a monthly publication summarizing closeout reports from 10 commercial Kansas feedlots. He has authored or co-authored 8 peer-reviewed journal articles and 20 scientific abstracts and proceedings. His programs have attracted over $108,000 in grants, contracts and sponsorship, either solely or in collaboration with other KSU faculty. 

Sponsored by DSM Nutritional Products Inc.

George A. Perry
South Dakota State University

Dr. George Perry earned his Ph.D. in Animal Science from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2003.  He is an Associate Professor in the Animal Science Department at South Dakota State University.  Dr. Perry’s research program is focused on improving beef cow reproductive efficiency. Dr. Perry has published 26 peer-reviewed manuscripts and his research has been supported by the USDA, private industry, and commodity groups. Dr. Perry has incorporated both extension and teaching activities seamlessly into his research program, as his research projects actively involve both beef producers and undergraduate students.

Sponsored by Archer Daniels Midland Company

Joann M. Kouba
Kansas State University

Dr. Joann Kouba is from Bellevue, Nebraska, received her B.S. in Animal Science Equine emphasis from Truman State, her M.S. from Clemson, and her Ph.D. from Texas A&M. Dr. Kouba is an associate professor at Kansas State with an 80% teaching and 20% research appointment. She is responsible for the development of 5 new on-campus courses and 2 distance courses and currently teaches 7 on-campus courses and 2 distance courses. She serves as the advisor for 40-65 students each year, is the advisor for the KSU Horseman’s Association, and is the faculty coordinator for the KSU Horse Teaching and Research unit. She has led equine study tours of Europe and Africa.

Sponsored by BASF Plant Science

Clint R. Schwab
National Swine Registry

Dr. Clint Schwab completed his M.S. and Ph.D. at Iowa State University and is Chief Executive Officer of National Swine Registry where he provides leadership for four major breeds of swine. He has established international genetic evaluation in China, resulting in over 30,000 registered purebred animals, and has coordinated additional alliances in the Philippines, Ukraine, and Korea. Dr. Schwab leads research collaborations with USMARC, Iowa State University, Purdue University, Michigan State University, and Colorado State University. He is currently serving as President of the National Swine Improvement Federation and is a member of two National Pork Board research groups, Animal Science Committee and Genomics Focus Group.

Sponsored by the National Pork Board

Yanhong Liu
University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana

Sponsored by the Tim S. Stahly Memorial and Tribute Fund

Cassandra Jones
Iowa State University

Cassie Jones earned her B.S. and M.S. in Animal Science at Kansas State University. Her thesis research resulted in four published manuscripts and helped shape feeding recommendations regarding the use of phytases, carbohydrases, and specialty proteins in nursery pig diets. Since beginning her Ph.D. at Iowa State University with Dr. John Patience, Jones has written grants totaling $148,775 in research dollars. Her dissertation research will result in an additional eight publications on fallback pig identification and management. Additionally, Jones is member of the American Society of Animal Science Board of Directors, serving as a Graduate Director. Cassie and her husband, Spencer raise Angus cattle near Boone, IA.

Ohio State University students Lindy Smith, James Maynard, Alex Newman, and Kevin Jacque

Masters Oral Competition
First Place: Josh Flohr – Kansas State Univ
Second Place: Whitney Martin – U. of Missouri
Third Place: Rebecca Esealante – U. of Missouri

PhD Oral Competition
First Place: J. K. Farney, Kansas State University, Manhattan.
Second Place: A. C. Chaytor, North Carolina State University, Raleigh.
Third Place: R. Song, University of Minnesota, St. Paul

Master's Poster Competition
First Place: Mary Berg – University of Wisconsin Madison
Second Place: Hyatt Frobose – Kansas State University
Third Place: Phil Steichen –NDSU

PhD Poster Competition
First Place: X. J. Li University of Minnesota, St. Paul.
Second Place: J. D. Magolski North Dakota State University, Fargo.
Third Place: H. A. Ramirez Ramirez University of Nebraska, Lincoln.