Dr. Rogers Leonard (right)
Dr. B. Rogers Leonard of Louisiana State University was named the 2012 winner of the Insect Research and Control Conference Award for Excellence in Cotton Integrated Pest Management.
This award recognizes the outstanding career contributions of an individual to applied arthropod integrated pest management across the U.S. Cotton Belt, excelling in industry, research, extension, or educational programs that have benefited the cotton industry. The annual recognition is sponsored by Dow AgroSciences and consists of an inscribed trophy and a monetary reward. The 2012 award was presented to Dr. Leonard at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences in Orlando, FL on January 5.
Dr. Rogers Leonard’s impact on cotton insect management has been directed toward research and extension activities that maintain economical and environmentally acceptable insect pest management systems for cotton. Specific areas he has addressed include insect pest surveys and management strategies in conservation tillage production systems, evaluation of natural and genetically engineered host plant resistance traits, cultural methods of insect management, chemical and microbial insecticide screening studies, and development of insecticide resistance management plans. He has also forged new pathways in the adoption of precision agricultural methods through his research in geo‐spatial techniques for pest management. The information he has generated has been used to refine IPM recommendations and is directly transferred to agricultural consultants and producers.
Rogers’ nationally recognized status as a leader in Entomology and specifically in Cotton Integrated Pest Management derives primarily from his role as a premier researcher, as well as an effective communicator to the agricultural industry. Dr. Leonard has 125 publications in refereed journals, 378 proceedings or abstracts, 160 newspaper and magazine articles, produced 26 extension bulletins, written over 200 pesticide screening reports, and delivered over 500 presentations which is a testament to the large body of research he has conducted on behalf of cotton producers and in a never‐ending quest to inform cotton production stakeholders on the latest developments and results of his and other peer‐reviewed research. Rogers’ has also been active in mentoring the next generation of IPM specialist, producing 25 graduate students. He has demonstrated integrity as an academic researcher and worked collaboratively with pesticide manufacturers and distributors.
Dr. Leonard derives much of his success to his experience early in his career as an independent crop consultant. The perspective gained has influenced his later research, enhanced his ability to communicate with stakeholders, and provided him with the ability to foresee potential issues and understand agronomic challenges from a producer’s and consultant’s perspective. Despite his relentless schedule, Rogers has consistently made time for his primary clientele, the producers and consultants of his state. Rogers was recently named the new associate vice chancellor for research in the LSU AgCenter effective Jan. 1, 2012.