Throughout this spring, members of the University of Wyoming College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources, the Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station (WAES), and UW Extension have been celebrated for their exceptional efforts and accomplishments.
Read more to learn about a few of UW’s most outstanding faculty, staff, and students.
Association for Communication Excellence Awards
The University of Wyoming Extension’s communications team earned national recognition from the Association for Communication Excellence (ACE) for work produced in 2024.
The 2024 Pistol & Pete Calendar created by Jeremy Cain, David Keto, and Maya Gilmore won the bronze award in the Single Marketing Item category.
Brooke Ortel, Jeremy Cain, and Maya Gilmore received a gold award in the Technical Publications category for Reflections magazine, the annual research report of the Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station.
Brooke Ortel achieved silver in the Writing for Magazines category for the article “How Do Wyoming Bumble Bees Respond to Heat Stress?” published in the 2024 edition of Reflections magazine.
Finally, Jeremy Cain and Lindsay Conley-Stewart won gold in the Covers – Graphic Design category for the cover of Roots & Ranges, the annual magazine of the College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources.
Goldwater Scholarship
Samantha Killmer, a University of Wyoming junior from Portage, Mich., was among nearly 500 students nationwide to receive the prestigious Goldwater Scholarship award. She is the first UW student in 10 years to receive the competitive award. Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/04/14/uw-student-receives-goldwater-scholarship-award/.
Promoting Intellectual Engagement (PIE) Awards
Thirty-five University of Wyoming instructors who inspire students intellectually in first-year courses are this year’s Promoting Intellectual Engagement (PIE) Award recipients, including three instructors from the College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources.
- Dana Govaerts, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences.
- Mark Lyford, Department of Botany.
- Brian Sebade, Department of Ecosystem Science and Management.
Read more at https://www.uwyo.edu/news/2025/04/uw-selects-top-first-year-course-instructors.html.
AmericaView Lifetime Achievement Award
For years, Ramesh Sivanpillai has been called upon to handle remote sensing analysis after major disasters that include fires, floods, and hurricanes. The University of Wyoming faculty member was recognized for his longtime work, which includes teaching and mentoring 200-plus students in remote sensing applications, when he recently received a Lifetime Achievement Award from AmericaView.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/05/ramesh-sivanpillai-remote-sensing-lifetime-achievement-award-americaview/.
George Duke Humphrey Distinguished Faculty Award
Sivanpillai also received the George Duke Humphrey Distinguished Faculty Award from UW this spring. Named for UW’s 13th president, who served from 1945-1964, the George Duke Humphrey Distinguished Faculty Award recognizes teaching effectiveness, distinction in scholarly work, and distinguished service to the university and state.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/19/sivanpillai-receives-uws-george-duke-humphrey-distinguished-faculty-award/.
Ecological Society of America Fellowship
Daniel Laughlin, a University of Wyoming professor in the Department of Botany, was recently selected as a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America (ESA). The ESA is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization of professional ecologists. Fellows are members who have made outstanding contributions to a wide range of fields served by ESA, including, but not restricted to, those that advance or apply ecological knowledge in academics, government, nonprofit organizations, and the broader society. Fellows are elected for life.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/06/laughlin-named-esa-fellow/.
Stewart Family Serviceship Award
Sabrina White, a third-year Ph.D. student from Orlando, Fla., in the Program in Ecology at the University of Wyoming, is the recipient of the 2025 Stewart Family Serviceship Award. She will receive $5,000 for her transformative “Bee the Scientist” program that brings cutting-edge scientific engagement directly to Wyoming’s senior communities.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/06/white-wins-uws-2025-stewart-family-serviceship-award/.
CALSNR Spring Awards
The University of Wyoming College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources (CALSNR) recognized outstanding educators and staff members at an annual awards banquet in Laramie Wednesday, April 30.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/12/uw-college-of-ag-celebrates-outstanding-faculty-staff/.
WAES Spring Awards
The Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station (WAES) recently commended faculty, staff, and students at an annual awards banquet in Laramie last month.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/12/wyoming-agricultural-experiment-station-honors-exceptional-staff-researchers/.
Presidential Scholarly Achievement Awards
University of Wyoming President Ed Seidel has recognized faculty members who demonstrate high achievement in scholarship through the 2025 Presidential Scholarly Achievement Awards, including two instructors from the College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources.
- Gabriel Barrile, assistant professor, Department of Zoology and Physiology and the School of Computing (UW-Casper awardee).
- Todd Schoborg, assistant professor, Department of Molecular Biology.
Read more at https://www.uwyo.edu/news/2025/05/uw-faculty-members-win-presidential-scholarly-achievement-awards.html.
Inaugural Faculty Leadership Institute
The University of Wyoming Presidential Fellows program has selected the inaugural cohort of participants for the Faculty Leadership Institute (FLI), including two faculty from the College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources.
- Jennifer Harmon, Department of Family and Consumer Sciences.
- Derek Scasta, Department of Ecosystem Science and Management.
The FLI is designed to prepare faculty members for leadership roles in academic administration and research and aligns with UW’s strategic plan to develop and retain faculty.
Read more at https://www.uwyo.edu/news/2025/05/uw-faculty-leadership-institute-selects-inaugural-cohort.html.
John P. Ellbogen Lifetime Teaching Award
Longtime University of Wyoming faculty member Scott Shaw has achieved international distinction in the field of entomology, but it is Shaw’s work with students in classrooms, laboratories, and the field that has earned him his latest honor from the university.
Shaw is the 2025 recipient of the John P. Ellbogen Lifetime Teaching Award, an accolade that recognizes the long, distinguished, and exemplary career of one senior faculty member who has excelled as a teacher at UW.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/14/shaw-receives-uws-ellbogen-lifetime-teaching-award/.
Laramigo Award for Community Engagement
Colleagues praise Grace Shearrer, an assistant professor in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences in the University of Wyoming’s College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources, for her innovative research, commitment to mentorship, service to the Laramie community, and overall excellence in the classroom.
That high praise has earned her UW’s Laramigo Award for Community Engagement. The award recognizes the contributions of UW faculty and staff members to the university and Laramie communities.
Read more at https://uwagnews.com/2025/05/19/shearrer-receives-laramigo-award-for-community-engagement/.
