Ames, IA – The 11th annual Raymond F. Baker Plant Breeding Symposium, held on March 22nd, 2024, brought together a diverse group of experts and students to discuss “The Power of Multi-Omics: Plant Breeding in a New Era.” Despite challenging weather conditions, the symposium saw around 100 in-person attendees, with many more joining virtually from 21 states and 24 countries.

The event featured a lineup of distinguished speakers, including Dr. Jamie O’Rourke from USDA-ARS-Iowa State University, Dr. Radu Totir of Corteva Agriscience, Dr. Jinliang Yang from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Dr. Clare Casteel of Cornell University, Dr. Ivan Baxter from the Danforth Plant Sciences Center, PhD student Boris Alladassi at Iowa State University, Dr. Raissa Fon from University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign, and Dr. Diego Jarquin of the University of Florida.

Highlighting the symposium were 53 poster presentations, showcasing the latest research and advancements in plant breeding. The poster presentation awards recognized the outstanding contributions of graduate students Liza Van der Laan (1st place), Juan Panelo (2nd place), and Yue Liu (3rd place), as well as undergraduate students, Kassidy Sullivan (1st place), Aubrey Hoffert (2nd place and People’s Choice Award winner), and Abigail Bryan (3rd place).

A lunch time awards ceremony also took place honoring Dr. Donn Cummings with the Extraordinary Service to Plant Breeding Community Award, acknowledging his significant contributions to the field.

The symposium is organized every year by graduate students in the general area of plant breeding from multiple graduate programs. This year’s planning committee was: Kiara Kappelmann (co-chair), Mercy Azanu (co-chair), Memis Bilgici, Samuel Blair, Naresh Boddepalli, Joseph DeTemple, Vencke Gruening, Shelly Kinney, Ann Murithi, and Karlene Negus. 

The symposium underscored the importance of multi-omics approaches in driving innovation in plant breeding, setting the stage for future breakthroughs in agricultural science.