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Grijalva is an assistant professor of precision pest management in the Department of Entomology. He specializes in using machine learning, geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing technologies to detect insects, weeds and diseases. He has published research on using machine learning to automate object detection — a significant contribution to the advancement of automation across diverse disciplines. Grijalva earned his doctorate in entomology at Kansas State University, where he studied precision pest management and digital agriculture. He later worked as a postdoctoral fellow at K-State, developing machine learning-based computer vision models and digital tools to automatically detect pests in field crops using remote sensors. His appointment is 80% research and 20% teaching.
Huang, an assistant professor in the Department of Plant Pathology and Crop Physiology, hopes to delineate plant defense mechanisms and develop effective, environmentally friendly strategies for crop disease management and improved yields. Huang is exploring the master regulators of defense response against important soybean fungal diseases, including Cercospora leaf blight and aerial blight. She also is developing new tools for managing fungal and bacterial diseases with plant-derived antimicrobial molecules. Huang’s doctorate in plant biology is from the University of California, Riverside. She studied the structure, function and evolution of lipid droplets in primitive and advanced plants and engineered lipid droplets to enhance plant lipid production. She continued her work there as a postdoctoral research associate, examining plants’ disease resistance responses. In addition to her research responsibilities, Huang teaches a graduate-level course on plant molecular biology.
Castro is an assistant professor focusing on agronomic issues in soybeans and sugarcane. His multifaceted research program includes work on biostimulants and biological products. He wants to see what effects they have on plant tolerance to abiotic stress, root growth, nutrient availability and nitrogen fixation. A native of Brazil, Castro grew up in a farming family, which sparked a passion for agriculture. “Therefore, my scientific career was and continues to be dedicated to finding solutions to farmers’ problems,” he said. Castro holds a doctorate in agronomy from the Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture at the University of São Paulo, where he studied foliar nitrogen applications in sugarcane. He also has worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Copenhagen. Castro is domiciled at the Dean Lee Research and Extension Center, and he has additional responsibilities at the Iberia Research Station. His appointment is 75% research and 25% extension.
