Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Alltech Young Scientist Program Calls All Future Innovators

  • 09/01/16

LEXINGTON, KY – The Alltech Young Scientist (AYS) program, the world’s largest university-level competition in agri-science, seeks to attract future innovators for its 2017 term. Regional first-place winners will be invited to attend an all-expense-paid Alltech Young Scientist Discovery Week, culminating at ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference in Lexington, KY. Here, the brightest minds will compete to obtain a fully funded Ph.D. position (undergraduate) or fully funded postdoctorate position (graduate) in addition to cash prizes of $5,000 USD and $10,000 USD, respectively. 

“These bright minds have the potential to discover the solutions today to meet the challenges of tomorrow,” says Dr. Aoife Lyons, director of educational initiatives and engagement at Alltech. “The Alltech Young Scientist program continues to discover emerging research talent in agri-science, and we want these future innovators to join our global team.”

The AYS program, now in its 12th year, attracted approximately 200 student nominees from 144 professors representing the world’s top 117 universities from 42 countries last term.

Richard Lally, a postgraduate student at the Institute of Technology, Carlow in Ireland, developed a paper based on plant growth promotion to win first place in the graduate competition. Lally took home $10,000 USD and secured a two-year, fully funded postdoctorate contract with Alltech.

“It has been one of the most exciting and enjoyable experiences of my life and has been my greatest achievement to date,” says Lally. “I hope to contribute to the understanding of plant growth-promoting bacteria and their role in sustainable agricultural practices.”

Alonna Danielle Wright, an undergraduate student at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, developed a paper based on the viral super-infection of the corn earworm pest to take home the global undergraduate title and $5,000 USD. Wright is currently searching for a Ph.D. program to continue her line of study.

Registration is now open for the 2017 competition and will close on Oct. 31, 2016. Students must be nominated by a professor in order to participate and may submit scientific papers on topics such as animal health and nutrition, crop science, agriculture analytical methods, food chain safety and traceability, human health and nutrition and other sectors related to agri-science. Paper submissions may be completed online through to Dec. 31, 2016.

Each student’s paper will first compete within his or her home region of North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Europe or Africa. Each regional finalist will then present his or her paper to a panel of international judges and a live audience during ONE: The Alltech Ideas Conference, held May 21–24, 2017.

For more information and to register for the Alltech Young Scientist program, please visit AlltechYoungScientist.com.

Featured

  • How a Portable Sink Helped an Art Classroom Run More Smoothly

    Classroom design decisions can have outsized effects on instructional time and safety at schools juggling mismatched infrastructure, strict budgets, and crowded schedules — particularly in the arts. Between spilled paint and dirty brushes, art classes run smoother with a sink in the studio. But many schools don’t have a sink in every art classroom.

  • NWEA Report Recommends K–12 Natural Disaster Recovery Strategies

    The Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA), a K–12 assessment and research organization, recently announced the release of a new playbook for schools and communities recovering from extreme weather events, according to a news release.

  • Chartwells Launches Campus Dining Evaluation Framework

    Contract food-service management provider Chartwells Higher Education recently announced the launch of BLUEPRINT, according to a news release. The evaluation framework was designed to provide a data-driven and customizable roadmap towards optimizing campus dining services and, by extension, the student experience.

  • Illinois State University Breaks Ground on College of Fine Arts Transformation

    Illinois State University in Normal, Ill., recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts transformation project, according to university news. The series of new constructions and renovations will upgrade spaces in Centennial East, the Center for the Visual Arts, and the Center for the Performing Arts, as well as replace the existing Centennial West facility with a new Commons Building.