Three Department of Agronomy and Horticulture faculty will receive promotion and/or tenure in 2020. They are among 101 University of Nebraska–Lincoln faculty to be honored this year. Due to the ongoing threat of COVID-19, the spring promotion and/or tenure celebration has been postponed until fall.
Terri James will be promoted to associate extension educator. James received a Bachelor of Science in horticulture with a landscape design option and a Master of Science in public horticulture from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. James joined the department faculty Aug. 1, 2016, as an assistant extension educator for community environment and urban gardening. Prior to joining the university, she was the Nebraska State Fair Park horticulturist in Lincoln, and she managed the 200-acre property for six years.
James helps improve consumers’ knowledge about landscapes and gardening by providing science-based resources. Through Nebraska Extension programs she is able to dispense this information through television, social media, online classes and hands-on training. She coordinates the Nebraska Extension Master Gardener program and works with Backyard Farmer. James feels both programs provide quality, science-based horticultural information for the public. Her goal is to increase participation in and awareness of these programs in the state and region.
Christopher Proctor will be promoted to associate extension educator. Proctor received a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in crop science from Washington State University. He earned a doctorate in agronomy from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Proctor joined the department faculty July 1, 2015, as an assistant extension educator for weed management.
Proctor is working to help producers better understand how to integrate cover crops into their cropping systems and the role they may play in weed management. His primary interest is in improving integrated pest management systems for managing herbicide-resistant weeds. He is working to develop new IPM tools for managing Nebraska’s weeds and helping farmers to implement these tools effectively.
Samuel Wortman will be promoted to associate professor and granted tenure. Wortman received a Bachelor of Arts in biology and environmental studies from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. He received a Master of Science and a doctorate in agronomy from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. He began his faculty career at the University of Illinois where he focused on research and teaching in urban agriculture before returning to Nebraska as an assistant professor May 16, 2016.
Wortman’s research program aims to leverage Nebraska’s wealth of natural resources to develop biobased inputs and management tactics for specialty crop systems. Currently, his projects include research on biobased fabric mulches for leafy greens, carrots and strawberries; off-target herbicide injury in lettuce and pumpkin; grafted tomatoes for improved input use efficiency; and on-farm vegetable variety trials.
He has published 16 refereed papers since joining IANR in 2016. His research has been funded through many multi-institution, team-based projects and external awards totaling more than $13 million.
Wortman also teaches three courses including Agronomy/Horticulture 100 Plants, Landscapes and the Environment; Horticulture 221 Plant Propagation; and Agronomy/Horticulture 375 Innovations for Agriculture.
For more information on all Nebraska promotions and tenures, go to 2020 Promotion and Tenure.
