Message from Department Head, Sujaya Rao
Greetings!
Spring semester at UMN is off to a great start, and we are enjoying snowier days that we’ve missed in recent years. Last fall was an exciting semester for the department — we welcomed 10 new graduate students and continued dramatic record growth (29 new enrollments since a year ago!) in the Insect Science Minor. ESA 2024 in Phoenix, AZ, was thrilling with our faculty, students and alumni award recognitions, and the ESA Mixer a-buzz with alumni chatter as usual!
On a personal note, after an amazing and fulfilling journey as department head since fall 2017, I have decided to step down from the role now and retire by the end of the semester. When I was a graduate student here, I never dreamt that I would be back as department head — the first alum, female, and BIPOC to take on this responsibility! It has been an honor and privilege to follow in the footsteps of my PhD Advisor, Richard Jones, and serve in this role!
I am deeply grateful to everyone in the department, CFANS, UMN, alumni, donors, friends, stakeholders, and the public for all the support extended over the years. Our successes in growth of undergraduate education (>60 in the Insect Science Minor, making it the second largest minor in the College and larger than many entomology-related minors nationwide!), graduate student exposure to career opportunities through agency visits (average 1/year), and attraction of ~2,000 attendees to our signature outreach event (The Great Minnsect Show) were well beyond expectations! We also hired four exceptional faculty members! Our efforts to attract first year students to Freshman Seminars which then inspired some to seek other courses or research opportunities in entomology labs, to list our courses across programs, and draw students to the Insect Science Minor were also successful beyond expectations. I am thrilled that my final offering of Insect Pest Management drew close to 50 students, making it the largest in-person ENT course taught!
Thanks to the generosity of many donors we hired a talented Teaching Assistant Professor for transformation of entomology undergraduate education at UMN, established two new fellowships for graduate students, and the Insect Science Pathways Scholarship for drawing undergraduates to the minor.
After my return to UMN in 2017, I embarked on my entomophagy promotion endeavor which led to exciting taste tests at the MN State Fair, the TEDx Minneapolis talk, UMN Foundation invitations to share my perspectives and insect goodies at alumni and donor events in Arizona and the Heritage Society dinner, and with members of the Imperial family in Japan during the International Congress of Entomology in 2024! Another amazing journey!
Of all the awards received, the ones I treasure most are the FAME (Faculty Award for Mentorship in Entomology) presented by our graduate students, the CFANS Borealis Distinguished Alumni Award for which I was nominated by a staff member and the ESA Fellow honor in the teaching category, thanks to a nomination by a faculty member. I am deeply grateful and touched!
I will continue as an emeritus professor and would love to keep in touch via my personal email, [email protected], if at some point I lose access to [email protected].
THANK YOU for my wonderful time in the department! Have a great 2025!
Sujaya Rao
Thank you, Lori Fligge, CFANS Communications, for the great job with preparation and assembly of this farewell newsletter!
Upcoming Events
Mark your calendars and stay tuned for details!
9th Virtual UMN Ento Alumni Social
Friday, May 2, 3 p.m. - 4 p.m.
The Great Minnsect Show
Saturday, May 3, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., St. Paul Student Center, St. Paul campus
Welcoming New Graduate Students
The following commenced their programs in Fall 2024. Welcome aboard!
PhD
- Saúl Aguirre, Advisor George Heimpel
- Kylee Nissen, Advisor Dan Cariveau
- Zixia Song, Advisor Fei Yang
- Matthew Villalta, Advisor Amelia Lindsey
MS
- Cameron Garland, Advisor Matt Petersen
- Emma Hans, Advisor Brian Aukema
- Ella Maddi, Advisor Brian Aukema
- Hunter Ness, co-Advisors Fei Yang and Bob Koch
- Virginia Roberts, Advisor Dan Cariveau
MS in other programs, mentored by Entomology Faculty
- Ian Grossenbacher-Mcglamery — NRSM, Advisor Brian Aukema
Reflections by a recent Insect Minor graduate
Pablo Stilwell
I came to UMN pursuing entomology. I was immediately welcomed into the department and was able to do research in different labs and attended collecting trips, outreach events, and conferences. Faculty and students alike supported me in any way they could to help me succeed. The classes I took were all fun and informative and exceeded my hopes and expectations. All of these experiences deepened my interest in entomology and scientific research in general. I am very grateful for the experiences I was given through the insect science minor, and I know they’ve prepared me for a future in entomology. The only negative is that there isn’t an entomology major!
Field Notes from Frenatae
Submitted by President Sarah von Gries
Hi all! The graduate students participating in Frenatae have almost doubled in size this year with the newest joining cohort in Entomology! This year, Frenatae's goal was to foster more community within Frenatae by holding more social events. Graduate students have enjoyed social events run by Frenatae Officers ranging from a Needle Felting workshop, a Spooky Movie Night, Gingerbread House Making Contest, Game Nights, and more!
That’s not all! We have been sharing our insect knowledge with local schools and Senior Living homes, helping Girl Scouts get their Bug Badges, participating in summer camps at the Bell Museum, showing off our Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches at the State Fair, and more!
Up Next: we will be making candles for our annual Honey Sale with help from the Bee Lab, hosting a booth at the upcoming Minnsect Show, visiting the MN Zoo for a behind the scenes tour of the Dakota Skipper Conservation Project, participating in the MN State Fair this summer and prepping for our annual Honey Sale this fall! Stay tuned for some sweet deals on honey, candles, stickers and more!!
Undergraduate Highlights
Insect Science Minor Spotlight
Submitted by Dr. Matt Petersen, Undergraduate Coordinator and Advisor, Insect Science Minor
We are pleased to welcome, since Fall 2023, 29 students from 15 majors across five colleges to the Insect Science Minor — a new record! This year we had over 60 students enrolled in the Insect Science Minor — another new record!
College of Biological Sciences (CBS)
Biology
- Lauren D'Costa
Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior
- Aidan Williams
- Lilja Anderson
Neuroscience
- Arya Lucht
College of Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS)
Environmental Sciences, Policy and Management
- Chase Holmstrom
- Edward McManus
- Michael Leehan
- Meghan Lysaght
- RJ Martell
Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology
- Carson Pankow
- Bee Eskola
- Jazper Simonson
- Genevieve Satre
Nutrition
- Nova Delapp
Plant Science
- Hayden Mros
- Sam Wessling
- Abigail Hooge
- Nicole Lesieur
- Anna Worden
- Garrik Martin
Undeclared
- Nicholas Anderson
College of Liberal Arts (CLA)
Biology, Society and Environment
- Althea Kuzniewski
Communication Studies
- Maddi Portner
Sociology of Law, Criminology and Justice
- Katie Kolar
Studies in Cinema and Media Culture
- Kelsey Felling
College of Science and Engineering (CSE)
Aerospace Engineering
- Zachary Elliott
Environmental Geosciences
- Miles Sterner
Mathematics
- Sylvia Croatt
College of Design (CDES)
Landscape Architecture
- Hazel McKinney
Insect Club
Submitted by President Jena Ostendorf
Contact: [email protected]; Instagram: @insectclub_umn
Hello! The Undergraduate Insect Club has hosted numerous events this fall semester! With our club continuously expanding in members, the Insect Club officer team has expanded from six officer positions to eight.
In September, over 25 Insect Club members attended a field trip to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. We toured the Farm at the Arb and the Tashjian Bee & Pollinator Discovery Center. We were also able to watch a presentation learning more about ‘planting for pollinators’ and beekeeping! One of the highlights of this trip was finding an aggregation of Augochlora sp. that was found along the forest trails.
Before the weather became too cold, we hosted a coloring and insect-watching event at the UMN Living Learning Gardens. Members were able to sit outside and color insect themed coloring pages and tour the gardens for insects.
In October, the Insect Club tabled at the annual CFANS Haunted Hallway event on Halloween! While we did have candy at our booth, the live beetles and cockroaches were the star of the show! We also hosted a Halloween movie night, where popcorn, candy and cricket snacks were provided for members to try! Members also had another opportunity to eat insects at our Entomophagy guest lecture event with Dr. Sujaya Rao.
Our last event of the semester was our biggest club event yet! The Insect Club collaborated with the FWCB Club, EEB Club, and Marine Biology Club to create an event called ‘The Great Animal Get-together’! At least 50 students attended! Members were able to view all sorts of animals including a Jerusalem Cricket, New Caledonian Giant Gecko, various leeches, and a bunch of garden snails! The Marine Biology Club had also opened up their ‘Touch and Feel’ tank so some members had the opportunity to hold Chocolate Chip and Brittle Starfish! At the end of the event all of the club officers took a group photo together. The Insect Club and the other clubs hope to continue this event and make it an annual tradition, as well as initiate further collaborative events across the University and beyond.
Achievements, Awards, Honors
UMN Entomology Successes at ESA 2024
ESA 2024 at Phoenix, AZ, once again featured excellent presentations by UMN entomologists with several of our students winning awards in the student competitions for the President’s Prize. Faculty, students and alumni were recognized for their achievements while alumni and friends connected again during the Minnesota-Wisconsin Mixer.
Congratulations to all award winners!
Faculty
- Elaine Evans — Distinguished Achievement Award in Extension
P-IE (Plant-Insect Ecosystem) Awards
- William (Bill) Hutchison — Lifetime Achievement Award in Entomology
Undergraduates
P-IE (Plant-Insect Ecosystem) Awards
- Jenalyn Ostendorf — Undergraduate Student Achievement in Entomology Award
Alumni
Professional and Student Awards
- Michelle Boone (Pollinator Project Manager, National Park Service) - ECP (Early Career Professional) Extension, Outreach, and Engagement Award
- Deborah G. McCullough (Professor, Michigan State University) - Award for Excellence in Integrated Pest Management
- Hailey Shanovich (Postdoctoral Fellow, US Geological Survey) - NCB (North Central Branch) John Henry Comstock Award
Student Competitions for the President's Prize
10-minute oral presentation
Graduate Students
- Sarah von Gries — First Place, P-IE: Biocontrol - Parasitoids
- Tatum Dwyer — First Place, P-IE: Insecticide Resistance
- Hunter Ness — First Place, P-IE: IPM - Field Crops 1
- Alyssa Gooding — Second Place, SysEB: Ecology
- Laura Fricke — Second Place, SysEB: Systematics and Evolution
Undergraduate Students
- Jenalyn Ostendorf — First Place, P-IE: Behavior, Biodiversity, Climate Change, and Conservation
- Pablo Stilwell — Second Place, PBT: Behavior, Chemical Ecology, and Physiology
Overseas Chinese Entomologists Association Student Competition
Poster presentation
- Yucheng Wang — First Place
ESA Minnesota/Wisconsin Mixer
The well-attended ESA Mixer jointly hosted by Entomology Departments at the University of Minnesota and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, gave us an opportunity to catch up in-person with alumni and friends.
Congratulations on Their Retirements
Prof. Marla Spivak was hired as a non-tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Department of Entomology in 1992 with research, teaching and Extension responsibilities related to honey bees. The position was converted to tenure track in 1994. Her research, focused on protecting and enhancing the health of honey bees, ranged from basic studies on the mechanisms of social immunity to applied studies on honey bee breeding and management. Her legacies include findings from her research on the antimicrobial properties of propolis and honey bee hygienic behavior, and success with developing disease-resistant bee strains to protect entire colonies. Her service legacy is the 5 M Endowed Chair in Honey bee Research including her vision for the position and outstanding fund-raising efforts. Her extraordinary achievements led to over 20 national and international recognitions and honors including selection as a MacArthur Fellow, McKnight Distinguished Professor, McKnight Land-Grant Professorship, and Siehl Laureate for Excellence in Agriculture from the University of Minnesota, Fellow of the Entomological Society of America, and the WINGS World Quest Women of Discovery Earth Award (for women making pioneering discoveries in science, exploration and conservation. Marla published >100 per-reviewed articles and 6 book chapters besides editing a book on ‘The “African”Honey Bee’. At UMN she mentored 8 postdoctoral research associates and 23 MS and PhD students. Marla’s Honey Bees and Insect Societies course was very popular with students. Marla retired on December 31, 2024.
Learn more about Prof. Spivak in this MPR piece that covers her career.
Prof. William (Bill) Hutchison joined the Department of Entomology in 1989 as a tenure-track assistant professor with research and extension responsibilities. In addition, he served as the department head for five years and as the Statewide IPM Coordinator for another five. His research and extension activities spanned several horticultural crops (sweet corn, apple, grape, blueberry, raspberry), pests (European corn borer, spotted wing Drosophila, Japanese beetle, brown marmorated stink bug to name a few), and diverse IPM topics ranging from sampling and life tables to invasion biology and risk assessment of GM corn. One of his legacies is his research on Bt corn and European corn borer Areawide Suppression. After 16 years of Bt corn adoption, economic savings were greater for non-Bt ($4.3B) vs Bt corn growers ($2.6B) across 5 states, with significant population suppression (Halo effect) leading to greater savings for non-Bt growers, due to pest suppression and a lack of Bt technology fees (published in the prestigious journal Science). Over his career, Bill published >200 peer-reviewed articles including 2 each in PNAS and Science, and 23 invited book chapters; he also served as a mentor for 25 undergraduate and graduate students, and 7 postdoctoral associates. Bill was recognized for his achievements with numerous regional and national awards and honors including the Legacy Contribution Award from ESA NCB (Entomological Society of America North Central Branch), the Lifetime Achievement award in Entomology from ESA’s P-IE (Plant-Insect Ecosystem) section, and the Distinguished Achievement Award in Extension from ESA. Bill was elected as Fellow of ESA and Fellow of the Royal Entomological society, England. He will retire on March 3, 2025.
Thank you, Marla and Bill, for your countless contributions to entomology and the department. Happy retirement!
Staff who have moved on — Ellen Reed
Ellen Reed moved to the position of administrative associate in the Office of the UMN President in early January. Congratulations!
Ellen joined the entomology department as Office Manager in December 2022. She was a fast learner, quickly became the ‘go-to’ person in the main office, and gained a reputation for excellence in many areas including event organization, e-newsletter development, and customer service.
The Department of Entomology was a real home for me over the last few years. I truly loved supporting the students, staff, and faculty and working with others across the college. As I move into my role in the President's Office, I hold so much CFANS pride and have a deep appreciation for all I learned as your office manager. I continue to share the insect facts I picked up from you all, and look forward to seeing everyone at The Great Minnsect Show! — Ellen Reed
Thank you, Ellen, for all your contributions to the entomology department and for the exceptional organization of The Great Minnsect Show! We wish you great success in your new position!
Alumni
Get involved!
Alumni, get involved! The UMN Alumni Association recently developed and funded the Maroon and Gold Network, a free, online platform for career-related advice and networking that has grown to more than 5,000 alumni and students in 44 countries and 46 states plus Washington DC!
Join the Maroon & Gold Network today!
Thank You for Your Support
Give to the Max Day
Thank you for all your support on Give to the Max Day, whether you got the word out or personally donated! Because of the generosity of our alumni and friends, the department raised $2,795 to support the Great Minnsect Show and nearly $15,000 to support excellence in bee research and outreach by the Bee Squad. To see the impact of your support, join us at the Great Minnesect Show at the St. Paul Student Center on Saturday May 3, 2025!
Thank you also for your donations to our various other funds which support our faculty, staff, graduate and undergraduate students, and which help us achieve our mission of providing world-leading research and education that inspires society to value the environmental contributions of insects and their relatives, and to use best management practices to protect our food, health, and environment.
Thank you to all donors and their support of our faculty, staff, graduate, and undergraduate students!