AMES, Iowa -- The National Council of Commercial Plant Breeders presented its 2005 Graduate Student Award to Iowa State University graduate student Brandon Wardyn, Farwell, Neb. The honor, which includes a $2,500 cash award, was given at the American Seed Trade Association's Corn and Sorghum and Soybean Seed Research Conference in Chicago, Dec. 7-9.
Wardyn will receive his Ph.D. in plant breeding and genetics Dec. 16. His research focused on understanding the quantitative genetic parameters influencing inbreeding depression, a condition that can lead to a loss in plant performance. Wardyn conducted research in the Raymond F. Baker Center for Plant Breeding, a center of the Plant Sciences Institute at Iowa State.
Following graduation, Wardyn will work as a corn breeder at AgReliant Genetics, Kearney, Neb.