News release issued October 11, 2001, effective immediately.
For media inquiries, contact Caroline Booth Lara, Communications Specialist, (580) 224-6379.
  email: cblara@noble.org

New Faces in NF Agricultural Division

ARDMORE, Okla. - The Noble Foundation's Agricultural Division is pleased to announce the addition of eight new members to its staff. The new employees almost put the division at full-staff.

"We are very fortunate to fill new and vacant positions with these very highly qualified people," said Wadell Altom, Agricultural Division administrative coordinator and support manager. "They will not only help us continue the work of this division, but will help us provide additional services."

The division's new employees are: David Annis, soil fertility and crop discipline assistant; Chan Glidewell, forage discipline assistant; Bryce Moore, livestock discipline assistant; Shawn Norton, research assistant; Brian Preston, agricultural technician; Lindsey Testerman, economics discipline assistant; Wade Thomason, soil fertility and crop specialist; and Bryan L. Unruh, research and demonstration manager.

Unruh hails from southern Kansas where he was active in 4-H and FFA and worked at a local dairy through high school. He received his bachelor's degree from Kansas State University in 1985, his master's degree in 1987 and a doctorate in soil science from Oklahoma State University in 1992.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Unruh worked as a research associate in the cotton agronomy program at the University of Arizona from 1992 to 1995, and then as an assistant professor and extension agronomist for Texas A&M University.

Unruh's responsibilities is to evaluate and approve research projects initiated on Foundation properties, manage scheduling and implementation of the projects, facilitate data analysis and reports of results, and oversee Ag Division farm resources, including research, demonstration and farm budgets.

Wade Thomason, from Mangum, Okla., was a senior agriculturist at Oklahoma State University, where he implemented and managed statewide soil fertility research experiments on various crops and forages including wheat, alfalfa, cotton, sorghum, peanuts, soybeans, bluestem, bermudagrass, and corn, while also monitoring water quality. Thomason obtained his bachelor's, master's and doctorate degrees from OSU.

He will be interacting with producers and producer groups in the 47-county Noble Foundation consultation area by assisting them in making crop and soil management decisions which are both more profitable and conservation-oriented.

Lindsey Testerman received her bachelor's degree in animal science with a minor in agricultural economics from OSU. She grew up in Cushing, Okla., and briefly worked in the OSU Plant and Soil Sciences Department before accepting the job in Ardmore.

She assists the Foundation's agricultural economists with the input and analysis of information obtained from area producers working with the division's consulting teams.

Brian Preston, from Dickson, Okla., moved to a fulltime position after working part-time for the Foundation since 1997. He also continues to work on his family's farm. Preston is supervised by Russ Gentry, Noble Foundation farm coordinator, and performs assorted tasks on the Foundation's ranch properties, such as baling hay, handling cattle and farm maintenance. He attended Murray State College.

Shawn Norton joined the Foundation after working as a research assistant at RiceTec, Inc., in Alvin, Texas, where he assisted in increasing parent rice seed lines and worked with various seed lines improvement and purity.

He will be managing various research and demonstration projects on the Foundation's properties. Norton, who is from Mangum, Okla., holds a bachelor's degree from Oklahoma State University in plant and soil science.

Bryce Moore of Roby, Texas, received his bachelor's degree with emphasis on animal science from Texas A&M University and followed with a master's degree in the Beef Industry Leadership Program at Colorado State University. He has interned with the National Cattlemen's Beef Association in Washington, D.C., and the National Western Livestock Show in Denver.

Moore supports the Foundation's livestock specialists by collecting producer data and working on beef cattle projects.

Chan Glidewell received an associate's degree from Murray State College, a bachelor's from Oklahoma State University, and his master's degree from the University of Idaho. Originally from Mannsville, Okla., Glidewell has worked as a rangeland management specialist with the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, and as a research technician at the USDA-ARS Grazinglands Research Laboratory near El Reno, Okla.

He is currently secretary of the Oklahoma Section of the Society for Range Management. Glidewell's responsibilities include working with NF forage specialists to prepare maps and aerial photos along with establishing initial carrying capacities and stocking rates for producers.

David Annis works with the Foundation's soil fertility and crop specialists. Originally from Earle, Ark., Annis received his bachelor's degree in plant protection/pest management from the University of Arkansas and his master's degree in agriculture from Arkansas State University.

Before joining the Agricultural Division, Annis worked for Bayer AG, and the Northeast Research and Extension Center and the Cooperative Extension Service, both affiliated with the University of Arkansas. He said he looks forward to the opportunity to help improve people's lives through the Foundation's research and consultation practices.

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Photos in TIFF format: Annis | Glidewell | Moore | Norton | Preston | Testerman | Thomason | Unruh

The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, headquartered in Ardmore, Okla., is a non-profit organization conducting agricultural, forage biotechnological, and plant biology research; providing grants to numerous non-profit charitable, educational and health organizations; and assisting farmers and ranchers through educational and consultative agricultural programs.

To learn more, check out the Noble Foundation Web site at http://www.noble.org.

More news releases available at www.noble.org/Press_Release