Ames, IA (March 21, 2025) – The Plant Breeding and Genetics Student Organization, within the Department of Agronomy at Iowa State University, hosted the 12th Annual Raymond F. Baker Plant Breeding Symposium. This year’s theme was: Transformative Research: Pushing the Genetic Frontiers of Plant Breeding and showcased groundbreaking advancements in plant breeding, drawing a wide audience.
The symposium welcomed 133 in-person attendees and 52 virtual participants, representing 14 U.S. states and 8 countries. Attendees engaged in meaningful discussions, explored 28 poster presentations, and benefited from an impressive lineup of expert speakers.
The speaker roster highlighted leaders in plant breeding including: Dr. Luca Comai (Distinguished Professor of Plant Biology at the University of California- Davis), Dr. James Schnable (Professor of Agronomy & Horticulture at the University of Nebraska- Lincoln), Dr. Gaganpreet Sidhu (Chief Technology Officer at Meiogenix), Dr. Rita H. Mumm (Plant Breeder and Quantitative Geneticist), Dr. Kan Wang (Distinguished Professor and Global Professor of Biotechnology at Iowa State University), and Dr. Jon Reinders (Research Scientist at Corteva Agrisciences). Additionally, Ashlyn Rairdin, Graduate Student at Iowa State University and Yizhou Mao, Graduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, presented on their research, adding a valuable student perspective to the program.
A lunch time awards ceremony also took place honoring Dr. Thomas Hoegemeyer with the Extraordinary Service to Plant Breeding Award, acknowledging his significant contributions to the field.
Preceding the symposium, the “Navigating Your Future Workshop” offered attendees an opportunity to develop career strategies and explore pathways for professional growth with sessions on career exploration and preparation.
The Symposium planning committee included: Vencke Gruening (Co-Chair), Joseph DeTemple (Co-Chair), Memis Bilgici (Poster Chair), Heidi Dornath (Field Day Co-Chair), Shelly Kinney (IT Chair), Yue Liu (Workshop and Awards Chair), Karlene Negus (Media Chair), Yanben Shen (Field Day Co-Chair), Hernan Torres Pacin (Food and Venue Chair) and Thomas Young (Speaker Chair).
For more information about the annual symposium, please visit Raymond F. Baker Center for Plant Breeding website: https://www.plantbreeding.iastate.edu/symposium.
