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News for the Plant Pathology Department Community » Spring 2026
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» Chair's Message
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The Pathogen is back!
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The first departmental newsletter was distributed in 1918 by Department founder L.R. Jones, who had "come to realize that [he] was missing much of this pleasure and...some of you might also be getting out of touch...’’ Read on.
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Holland, DiGennaro Promoted
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Assistant Professors Leslie Holland and Peter DiGennaro were both recently recommended for promotion to associate professor with tenure by the Biological Sciences Divisional Committee and these recommendations were supported by CALS Dean Glenda Gillaspy.
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Plant Pathology Grants 21 Travel Awards
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Due to generous donor support and support from the UW-Madison Graduate School, Plant Pathology was able to award six staff and 15 student travel awards totaling over $10,000 to various conferences and workshops around the country during the 2025-2026 academic year.
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New Faculty: Marc Chevrette
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Marc Chevrette joined the department in August 2025 as an assistant professor. His position is part of RISE-EARTH, the sustainability-themed focus area of UW's RISE Initiative strategic hiring effort. Learn more about Marc's lab in this post and in this
eCALS profile.
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Updates from the Graduate Students
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What's Eating My Plants?, more colloquially known as WEMP, is celebrating its Sweet 16! We’re grateful for the opportunity to contribute to The Pathogen so we can provide updates on — and perhaps brag about — some of our recent efforts. Read more about WEMP's activities.
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Student Honors
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Undergraduate Plant Pathology majors Amanda Bender and Anna Maina won awards at the college and department level, respective, while PhD student Amit Sharma won three awards this semester! Learn more about the awards.
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Staff Recognition
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Stephen Jordan, Outreach Specialist in the Amanda Gevens Lab, received the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Research. Emily Laabs, Graduate Student Services Coordinator for Russell Labs, won a CALS Academic Staff Excellence Award. Read More.
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Faculty Accolades
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Claudia Solis Lemus received the Robert Spitzer Teaching Excellence Award while Erin Silva and Paul Koch all received recognition at the campus level through Vilas Awards. Read more about the awards.
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» Congratulations, Graduates!
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We are proud to recognize all 11 graduates from Plant Pathology and Plant Pathology-affiliated programs this spring and summer. This includes one undergraduate Plant Pathology major, eight recipients of the Organic Agriculture certificate, and two Plant Pathology PhD students.
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Plant Pathology at UW–Madison has a rich history dating back to its founding in 1910. Much of this history is detailed on the ‘History’
page of our website. However, I’m happy to report that six new ‘History Note’ publications have been published on our web page this year, each providing a deeper dive into a topic of particular, and perhaps overlooked, historical importance to the department. Special thanks to Emeritus Professor Douglas Maxwell for leading the efforts in creating these fascinating documents.
I encourage you to visit the departmental History webpage and scroll down to view the History Note Fact Sheets and learn even more about the contributions our department has made to the advancement of Plant Pathology!
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Quoted: Dr. Mehdi Kabbage and Dr. Damon Smith, Grow, Summer 2025
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Quoted: Dr. Paul Ahlquist, Morgridge Institute News & Notes, March 2, 2026
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Featured: Dr. Jo Handelsman, eCALS, April 2, 2026
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Quoted: Courtney Meeks, cals.wisc.edu, Spring 2026
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UW–Madison Plant Pathology greatly benefits from the generous donations from our community. Your gift helps support:
- Graduate research assistants and teaching assistantships
- Professional development awards for students and staff
- Participation in the annual Graduate Student Seminar Exchange Program with collaborating universities
- Weekly seminar program
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Do you have ideas for news to be included in upcoming editions of The Pathogen? We’d like to hear your suggestions and submissions — contact Paul Koch, professor and chair, at plkoch@wisc.edu with your insights.
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© Copyright 2026 The Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
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