Purpose: The Travel Enrichment Experience (TEE) will provide an opportunity for WSSA graduate students to participate in a five-day, four-night educational experience with professionals in a different WSSA region.
Student Application Deadline: Dilpreet Riar ([email protected]) must receive applications by May 11, 2026. Please put “WSSA Travel Enrichment Experience” in the subject line.
Description of Scholarship: Scholarship winners will have a five-day, four-night educational experience of their choosing as described in the “Host Opportunities” table below. These opportunities for broadening each student’s knowledge of weed science include visits with industry, government, or university professionals working in field, lab, or extension settings. Each recipient will be awarded $2000 from the WSSA to pay for expenses incurred during their experience.
Eligibility Requirements: Applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Enrolled as a current degree-seeking graduate student (M.S. or Ph.D.) in good academic standing at an accredited college or university.
- Currently conducting or recently finished research in weed science.
- An active member of the WSSA at the time of application.
- Must submit an abstract and present a 10-minute oral presentation about his/her experience at the next WSSA annual meeting. Specifics will be provided directly to recipients.
Application Procedure: Submission of the following information as a single PDF file is required.
- Completed application form (the final page of this document)
- Cover letter describing applicant’s interest in weed science and the travel enrichment experience (<1 page)
- Brief resume or CV summary highlighting recent relevant experiences, include current GPA (<1 page)
- Two letters of support (1 page each), one of which must be from the applicant’s graduate advisor
- Guidance to support letter writers: please use full 1 page to detail the student’s impact on the lab and/or weed science discipline, student’s need for this experience, and their unique qualifications for it
Email the application information to Dilpreet Riar ([email protected]) by May 11, 2026 as a single PDF with “WSSA Travel Enrichment Experience” in the subject line.
Selection Criteria and Process: Applicants will be evaluated based on the contribution of their research to the discipline of weed science and to the WSSA objectives, their academic record, scholarly achievements, service to society, and their potential contributions to the future of weed science. One student from each US region and one from Canada will be selected by an independent WSSA panel with no personal or advisory affiliation with the applicants.
Timeline: The selection process will be completed, and applicants will be notified by May 31, 2026. TEE recipients and their host(s) will determine the date in 2026 for the experience to occur. The selection committee will function as a liaison between the recipients and their host(s) throughout the process.
| Host Opportunities Organized by Region | ||
| Host Name and Institution | Location | Experience |
| Canadian Weed Science Society | ||
| Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada: Dr. Andrew McKenzie-Gopsill | Charlottetown, PE | Weed biology, ecology, and management in Atlantic Canada; cover crops; invasive species management; conventional and organic hort and field crops; novel weed management tactics in horticulture crops. |
| North Central Weed Science Society | ||
| University of Illinois: Drs. Aaron Hager & Pat Tranel | Champaign, IL | Herbicide-resistant weed challenges in Midwest corn and soybean production, from the field to the lab. |
| Purdue University: Drs. Bryan Young, & Tommy Butts | West Lafayette, IN | Weed science research and extension in corn and soybeans involving herbicide-resistant weeds, integrated herbicide programs, cover crops, and advanced application technologies. |
| North Dakota State University: Dr. Joe Ikley | Fargo, ND | Exposure to an Extension weed science program and applied weed control research in corn, soybean, and dry beans in North Dakota. There will be opportunities to visit with other NDSU Weed Scientists and tour weed control research in over a dozen crops across the state of North Dakota. |
| Michigan State University: Drs. Christy Sprague & Erin Burns | East Lansing, MI | Extension weed science focusing on integrated weed management, biology, and ecology in corn, soybean, sugar beet, dry bean, alfalfa, small grains and potato production. |
| Bayer Crop Sciences: Drs. Matthew Goddard, Chandrima Shyam, Neha Rana, Mayank Malik, Alejandro Perez-jones | Creve Couer, MO & Huxley, IA | The student will gain firsthand exposure to Bayer’s weed control innovation pipeline. The experience includes meaningful interaction with Bayer scientists of the Research and Development organization working across next-generation herbicide and trait technologies, advanced weed management solutions, and applied field research. In addition, the student will have the opportunity to meet and collaborate with seed partners and product managers in the Commercial organization. This visit is designed to provide a comprehensive view of how cross-disciplinary teams at Bayer bring innovations from concept to field deployment. |
| University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Dr. Amit Jhala | Lincoln, NE | |
| University of Missouri: Dr. Kevin Bradley | Columbia, MO | |
| Iowa State University: Dr. Wes Everman | Ames, IA | |
| Corteva Agriscience: Dr. David Simpson | Indianapolis, IN | Interaction with weed scientists in Application Technology, Biological Characterization, Regulatory, and Crop Protection Development and Discovery. Discover how we bring products from the lab to the field. |
| Northeastern Weed Science Society | ||
| Syngenta: Drs. Larissa Smith & Erin Hitchner | King Ferry, NY | A snapshot into the world of agricultural research and innovation. Students will receive an introduction to Syngenta’s research facilities and current projects in New York and New Jersey, including field trial visits to observe and participate in experimental design and data collection firsthand. Students will engage in team meetings, participate in discussions, and network with scientists from various disciplines. This immersive week not only showcases the day-to-day responsibilities of an R&D Scientist but also highlights Syngenta’s role in addressing global food security challenges. Through innovative research, students will gain insight into how the company tackles real-world problems and provides impactful solutions. |
| Virginia Tech: Drs. Shawn Askew, Jacob Barney, & Michael Flessner | Blacksburg, VA | Exposure to multiple disciplines, including environmental, chemical, and cultural effects on weed management in turfgrass (Dr. Askew); propagule pressure and ecological/niche/habitat impacts of invasive species on natural landscapes, as well as perennial grass bioenergy potential (Dr. Barney); and high-residue cover crops for managing herbicide-resistant weeds with consideration for herbicide carry-over from the cash crop to the cover crop (Dr. Flessner). |
| FMC: Drs. Chris Rouse, Zahoor Ganie, Samuel Rodrigues Alves, & Sandeep Rana | Newark, DE | Students will engage with FMC scientists across weed science discovery and development, chemical genomics, and application technology. Through immersive visits to FMC’s research laboratories, greenhouses, and field research sites, students will gain firsthand insight into how innovative herbicides progress from early discovery to late‑stage development. Additionally, students will get to see a unique behind‑the‑scenes experience where they will also explore formulations chemistry and engineering, the innovation engine that transforms an active ingredient into a high‑performance crop protection product growers around the world. This rare end‑to‑end view, from molecule to market, offers students an unparalleled opportunity to see how FMC integrates cutting‑edge science, engineering excellence, and real‑world agricultural impact. |
| Rutgers University (Dr. Thierry Besançon) and Cornell University (Dr. Lynn Sosnoskie) | Chatsworth, NJ (Rutgers) and Geneva, NY (Cornell) | Dr. Besançon and Dr. Sosnoskie’s labs focuses on the evaluation of novel technology for weed suppression including targeted vision-spraying (Weed-It), electric weeding (Zasso Electroherb), and autonomous weeding robots (Naio Oz, Farm-ng Amiga). TEE awardee w will have the opportunity to work with both Dr. Sosnoskie at Cornell University (2 days) and Dr. Thierry Besançon at Rutgers University (2 days). Students will be exposed to a wide range of specialty crop systems important to the Northeastern US, including fresh and processing vegetables, fruits, and horticultural commodities and production conditions ranging from coastal plain herbs and vegetables to pine barren cranberry bogs to Hudson Valley apples to Finger Lakes vineyards. |
| Cornell University: Dr. Antonio (Toni) DiTommaso | Ithaca, NY | Experience may include participation in research on the impact of climate change on the biology and ecology of weeds; Weed seedling emergence modeling; Strategies for increasing biodiversity and ecosystem services in cropping systems; Agrivoltaics- growing crops and managing weeds on solar farms. Facilitating interactions with other Cornell weed scientists and agroecologists. Cornell Weed Ecology & Management Lab |
| Southern Weed Science Society | ||
| Mississippi State University: Dr. Te-Ming (Paul) Tseng | Starkville, MS | The students will engage in cutting-edge research on herbicide resistance and weed competitive traits. Through interdisciplinary approaches, including molecular biology, genetics, remote sensing, and agronomy, they will explore genetic resistance mechanisms and use remote sensing to detect weeds and assess herbicide crop injury. This hands-on experience offers valuable insights into the forefront of weed science. |
| Texas A&M University: Dr. Muthu Bagavathiannan | College Station, TX | Computer vision and machine learning for weed recognition; drones and ground robots for precision weed control; weed image repository activities; weed ecology, gene flow, modeling and decision-support tools; Non-chemical weed management tactics/IWM. |
| Louisiana State University: Dr. Connor Webster | Crowley, LA | Applied rice weed management research at the H. Rouse Caffey Rice Research Station in Crowley, LA and various research stations across the state. In addition to research, you will see firsthand the responsibilities of a statewide extension weed specialist. |
| University of Tennessee: Dr. Jim Brosnan | Knoxville, TN | Weed management in turfgrass systems |
| Valent: Mallory Scott | AR, West TN, MS, North AL, & bootheel of MO | Students will travel with our Field Market Development representative within the territory to better learn about their daily activities. Duties may include evaluating research trials, visiting with research cooperators, providing technical support to sales, etc. |
| Syngenta: Dr. Jason Adams | Syngenta Vero Beach Research Center, Vero Beach, FL | Work alongside the herbicide development team conducting greenhouse and field trial work. Opportunity to meet with and have exposure to other disciplines as well. |
| Bayer Crop Science: Dr. Gary Schwarzlose | Corpus Christi, TX | Research and demonstration trials in multiple crops and disciplines; field tours; operation on an industry research and demonstration facility. Exposure to Trait and Crop Protection R&D, Development, and Technical Services aspects of the organization. |
| Texas A&M University: Dr. Mithila Jugulam | Beaumont, TX | Students visiting Jugulam’s program at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Beaumont, TX receive hands-on training in weed physiology and molecular biology, with emphasis on herbicide resistance and herbicide‑tolerant traits in crops. Through field, greenhouse, and laboratory work, they explore plant responses to herbicide stress using physiological and molecular tools. The program connects core scientific concepts to real-world weed-related challenges in crop production. |
| University of Georgia: Dr. Lauren Lazaro | Tifton, GA | Exposure to Extension precision agriculture and applied research in a variety of row crops, including corn, cotton, and peanuts. Students will have the opportunity to visit with other weed scientists and precision agriculture specialists and tour research across the state of Georgia. |
| University of Florida: Dr. Eli Russel, Dr. Lyn Gettys | Gainesville, FL | Explore the field of aquatic plant management research and its unique challenges. Visit the Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants to gain insight into both small-scale and field-scale approaches to managing invasive aquatic species under the guidance of Dr. Russell. Travel across Florida to observe its diverse aquatic ecosystems and the invasive species that threaten them. Learn about native species restoration with Dr. Gettys while experiencing the distinct environments of South Florida waterbodies. |
| North Carolina State University: Dr. Navdeep Godara | Raleigh. NC | |
| Western Society of Weed Society | ||
| Syngenta: Dr. Marty Schraer | Meridian, ID | Marty Schraer is a field development scientist with responsibility for developing herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, biologicals, & seed treatments in Idaho, Oregon, Utah, & Nevada with a about a 50:50 split in in-house versus external (university & contracted) research trials. The bulk of his in-house research projects are conducted on a 40-acre, irrigated, research farm in southwest Idaho within eyesight of the Snake River. On-site crops can include wheat, barley, onions, potatoes, sugar beets, peas, lentils, chickpeas, sunflowers, corn, & sweet corn. Research projects target the control soil borne and foliar pathogens, insects, and of course weeds. |
| Corteva Agriscience: Dr. Marc Fisher | Sacramento, CA | Inside look at the role of an industry Field Scientist; applied field research in CA specialty crops (tree nuts, tree fruit, rice, leafy vegetables, tomatoes, and many more); field trial establishment, applications and data assessments, meetings with growers and distributor customers, and diagnosing problems. |
| Colorado State University: Drs. Franck Dayan & Todd Gaines | Fort Collins, CO | Molecular genetics lab experience includes DNA extraction, genotyping assays, and qPCR for gene copy number; weed genomics for understanding competitiveness and hardiness. |
| Oregon State University: Dr. Steve Young | Aurora, OR | |
Scholarship Application Form
Send all documents to Dilpreet Riar ([email protected]) by May 11, 2026 as a single PDF with “WSSA Travel Enrichment Experience” in the subject line. Applications that are not submitted by the deadline as a single PDF with the correct subject line may not be considered.
- Applicant Name:
- Associated Region (WSWS, SWSS, etc.):
3. Selection of Host Institution for the WSSA Travel Enrichment Experience:
First Choice: _____________________________________________
Second Choice: ___________________________________________
Third Choice: ____________________________________________
4. Cover Letter (max 1 page):
5. Resume or CV Summary (max 1 page):
6. Include two letters of support (max 1 page each), including one from your academic advisor.