American Phytopathological Society

Potomac Division

The recipient of this award is judged GUILTY by the committee, of Distinguished Service to the Potomac Division in numerous capacities, AS WELL AS meritorious contributions to teaching, research, AND extension in the discipline of plant pathology.

If the recipient has a full middle name, it is still a mystery to us what the P stands for.  Dr. Arvydas P. Grybauskas earned his undergraduate degree in forestry--an inauspicious beginning--from the University of Illinois in 1976, his M.S. degree--things start to look up--in seed pathology from the same university in 1977, and his Ph.D. degree in--yes!--plant pathology from Oregon State University in 1983.  He joined the Department of Botany (now Natural Resource Sciences & Landscape Architecture) at the University of Maryland as a field crop pathologist with responsibilities in Extension, Research, AND Teaching.  His research has centered on epidemiology, including crop loss models, of gray leaf spot of corn, and scab and powdery mildew of winter wheat.

Arv has a wide-ranging extension program, with talks and workshops, fact sheets and scouting guidelines, and control recommendation, and is well respected by his Extension clientele on both sides of the Bay for his knowledge of field crop diseases and control measures as well as his practical field work.

Arv also teaches a graduate level Epidemiology class, Introductory Plant Pathology, and contributes to several other courses.  According to a colleague, "Arv is an open, personable teacher that students enjoy and respond well to. He draws upon his diverse background in plant pathology to provide examples not found in books and other readings. His relaxed style around students belies his rigor in what he expects from the students."  Arv has chaired graduate committees for 5 Ph.D and 5 MS students and has been a member of many others.

Arv has served our parent society on several committees, including Common Names, Extension, Phytopathology News, and Placement where he was committee chair in 1990.  He is currently our Division Councilor to the national society.  In the Potomac division, Arv has served many times on a dizzying variety of committees, such as the Program, Extension/Industry, Local Arrangements, Resolutions, and fundraising  committees, as well as as a graduate student paper judge. Arv can always be counted on to ask a good question of graduate students presenting in the student competition, so judges can evaluate the students' performance.  The questions are vintage Arv: thoughtful, friendly, and provide the student some scope to explain their work.

With respect to elected offices, Arv joins only 6 other people in the history of the division who have held ALL of them, and he has carried out the duties of all of them with dedication, energy, endurance, and skill.  To illustrate, we can cite him as the inspiration for a new officer training program when the 1993 meeting Resolutions stated "Whereas Arvydas Grybauskas has trouble with plaques and certificates to the point of near panic, our Secretary-Treasurer kept making mistakes in spelling on certificates and generally lousing up the plaques--note the entomological metaphor, even though it was not a joint meeting with entomologists--be it resolved that a new training program be established ... Anyway, since he knows that nothing came of that training program, he is undoubtedly curious now whether his name will be upside down on the plaque! Let us wait no longer, and please join us in a resounding THANK YOU to Dr. Arvydas Grybauskas as we bestow the Potomac Division Distinguished Service Award upon him!

Nichole O'Neill received her M.S in botany from the University of Maryland in 1973, and her Ph.D. in plant pathology from Louisiana State University in 1976.  After a post-doctoral appointment with Dr. George Papavizas, she joined the USDA-ARS Field Crops Laboratory in Beltsville as a Research Plant Pathologist.  Since then, this has morphed into a position in the Molecular Plant Pathology Laboratory.

Nikki's research has focused on diseases of grasses and forage legumes.  She has characterized a number of pathogens and the diseases they cause, including some that were new to the country.  A principal focus has been to find sources of genetic resistance to diseases damaging alfalfa. In characterizing alfalfa diseases and their races, Nikki contributed new insights in the phylogenetic relationships of the fungal pathogens.  In another interesting area, she has advanced progress in biological control of certain undesirable plants.

Nikki has been an active member of APS, having served on various committees including: Placement (chair), Biochemistry, Physiology, and Molecular Biology, Editorial Board of Plant Disease, ad hoc committee on Women in Plant Pathology (Chair), APS Office of International Programs, and Ornamentals and Turfgrass.

In the Potomac Division, she has also served on or chaired the Program Committee, Resolutions committee, Local Arrangements committee, and Graduate Student Award committee.  From 1993 to 96, she was our admirably efficient Secretary-Treasurer, and from 1997 to 99 she served as our energetic and conscientious Vice President and President.  In those five years, she was, although not solely by herself, nevertheless in significant measure, the life of the Division.  It was she who organized the joint meeting with the northeastern division in Annapolis that pioneered the outreach symposium, and managed to evade a severe snowstorm by just one day.  If the room count at our current meeting was a bit of a cliffhanger, Nikki went through similar nailbiting moments at that meeting, but her dogged, tenacious, and skillful negotiating saved the financial "posterior" of the Division.

Nikki couldn't be here today, so we are awarding this Distinguished Service Award in absentia, but let us all join in a round of applause for Dr. Nichole O'Neill

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