Meet the 2025 PSM Fellowship Awards

Dept of Plant, Soil and MIcrobial Sciences -

"Fellowship opportunities like this play a crucial role in helping students gain exposure to conferences, courses, and workshops. “I am thankful for the opportunities that allow students to grow as scientists.”

2025 PSM Graduate Student Award Spotlight

See All other PSM 2025 fellowship awardee profiles here:

This week we feature two students:

MasonRutgersRectangle.jpg

Mason Rutgers (Wessel Lab) wins the Eugene P. Whiteside Pedology Award, which funded travel, equipment, and participation in the 2025 Alaska Soils and Vegetation Geography Field Tour, a two-week trek along a transect from Anchorage to Prudhoe Bay led by soil scientists at the University of Alaska–Fairbanks.

From studying arctic soil morphology and soil organic carbon dynamics to witnessing frost-heave, thermokarst development, and post-fire vegetation patterns firsthand, "the trip offered a rare immersive experience in frozen landscapes and soil processes,” Mason says. “We camped in Denali National Park, Gates of the Arctic, and near sites such as Matanuska Glacier and the Toolik Arctic Research Station, which provided daily access to some of the most rapidly changing ecosystems on the planet,” Mason says. "I am deeply grateful to the department and the Whiteside family for enabling this transformative experience.”

Mason also attended the Soil Science Society of America Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, where he presented his graduate research: Examining Podzolization Induced by Afforestation of a Sandy Prairie Soil in Lower Michigan. "Connecting with researchers across soil chemistry, morphology, and land-use change offered valuable feedback and new collaborations as this project continues to develop."

Back on campus, Mason guided the MSU Soil Judging Team through a strong season, placing 3rd at the Region III Contest hosted in Bad Axe, MI. "Since beginning graduate school in 2024, I’ve had the rewarding role of serving as a team coach. My own three-year undergraduate experience on the University of Nebraska–Lincoln soil judging team played a key role in steering me toward pedology, and I now see the same impact on students I mentor."

Soil judging offers unmatched hands-on training, as students spend many hours in the field learning to interpret soil morphology and landscape processes with one-on-one guidance from professionals, Mason says. "Many participants who join out of curiosity end up pursuing soil science more seriously, sometimes even changing majors or launching undergraduate research projects in our lab. Coaching has strengthened my teaching, communication, and leadership skills while also helping recruit the next generation of soil scientists.

"Between fieldwork in the Arctic, conference presentations, and mentoring emerging pedologists, this year has strengthened both my research trajectory and my commitment to building a vibrant soil science community."

and 

DevendraRectangle.jpg

Devendra Chalise winner of awards from the Beard, Rieke and the Olsen foundations

James B. & Harriet Beard Endowed Graduate Fellowship
Paul Rieke Turfgrass Endowed Graduate Assistantship
The Billy M. Olsen Endowed Fund in Turfgrass Sciences and Landscape Horticulture

Devendra Chalise’s path into plant science started early, rooted in the terraced farms of Galkot, Baglung, Nepal. Those years helping his family manage crops sparked a curiosity that eventually blasted him through agricultural studies in Nepal, a master’s degree at the University of Georgia, and now into his fourth year as a Ph.D. student in Crop and Soil Sciences at Michigan State University.

As an undergraduate, Devendra dove deep into field and survey studies that built a strong foundation in data collection, lab work, and statistical analysis. His time at University of Georgia expanded that experience, placing him on large interdisciplinary teams working across agronomy, physiology, remote sensing, and crop modeling. Those projects led to several peer-reviewed publications and established him as an emerging researcher with broad scientific reach.

His diverse research ranges from cotton physiology and turfgrass winter stress responses to UAV-based imaging, cuticular wax biology, anaerobic metabolism, and plant responses to ice encasement. This breadth has helped bring his work into multiple scientific communities and journals. Along the way, he has stayed active in peer review, conference presentations, and professional organizations, earning recognition including 3rd place in the Bayer Graduate Student Research Pitch Competition and an Editor’s Choice Award from the Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science.

At MSU, Chalise is supported by several competitive awards, including the Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences Endowed Graduate Assistantship in Turfgrass (twice), the Billy M. Olsen Endowed Fund, the Chris Stiegler Travel Award and Fellowship, and a Graduate Research Assistantship in Dr. Emily Merewitz-Holm’s lab. These awards have supported his research, travel, and professional development—support he says reflects the strong community within the MSU PSM department and turfgrass program.

Chalise’s current project centers on how cool-season turfgrasses survive winter stresses, especially ice encasement—one of the biggest causes of winterkill in northern climates. He investigates stress pathways such as anaerobic metabolism, antioxidant activity, reactive oxygen species dynamics, and cuticular wax changes in species like perennial ryegrass, annual bluegrass, and creeping bentgrass. Alongside this physiological work, he is developing rapid viability assessment tools using dye-based assays, laser scanning confocal microscopy, and spectrophotometry to help turf managers determine survival quickly after ice melt.

Looking ahead, Devendra plans to pursue a postdoctoral position focused on plant stress physiology and longer-term hopes to become a faculty member leading research on plant resilience and sustainable agricultural systems, toward his ultimate goal:  to bridge fundamental science with practical solutions.

See All other PSM 2025 fellowship awardee profiles here:

 

 

 

 

Did you find this article useful?

You Might Also Be Interested In

Tag List
  • psm graduate spotlight,
  • department of plant soil and microbial sciences