- The department hosted their annual graduation party and celebrated 29 undergraduate students, 1 master’s student, and 5 PhD’s who graduated during spring semester. We also published a special edition graduation newsletter that gave the graduates a chance to share some of their favorite memories as well as acknowledge some of the people who supported them. Congratulations and best of luck to our newest alumni.
- Faculty and staff in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) were recognized for their years of service during the 2025 CFAES Awards and State of the College event. Congratulations to the faculty and staff in our department who celebrated milestone years of service: 5 years – Osvaldo Campanella, Rachel Cole, Molly Davis, Diana Paola Forero, Eddison Tello Camacho; 10 years – Steven Simmons; 15 years – Kelly Elisar, David Kasler; 20 years – Monica Giusti; 30 years – Valente Alvarez, Gary Wenneker.
- Congratulations to Rinky Ghosh who placed 1st in the OSU Materials and Manufacturing Research poster competition. Rinky was recognized during the awards presentation held at the Institute for Materials and Manufacturing Research. Rinky is a PhD student and is advised by Dr. Yael Vodovotz.
- Congratulations to Jessica Lau who has been awarded the 2025 Virginia Dare scholarship. This scholarship goes to an undergraduate student who has demonstrated a strong interest in a future career in food science and has shown exceptional scholarship and leadership as a student. Jessica is a Spring 2025 graduate of the department.
- Congratulations to Shirley Rupert Brandao who has been named the 2024-2025 Outstanding Teaching Assistant. The Outstanding TA award recognizes TA’s who have made distinguished contributions to our department by demonstrating excellence in any number of areas such as assisting with lab instruction, recitation, or discussion sections, or assisting faculty members with high-enrollment courses. Shirley is a PhD student and is advised by Dr. Osvaldo Campanella.
- Congratulations to Dr. Shreya Nuguri who has been awarded the Pamela Parker Garten and Tom Parker Graduate Scholarship. This award is given to a student(s) with a high caliber of leadership experience in addition to significant research experience and activity. Shreya graduated with her PhD in December and is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School. She was advised by Dr. Luis Rodriguez-Saona.
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Dr. Jessica Cooperstone and External Advisory Board member Stephen Hirzel talk with The Ohio Newsroom about the history of tomato breeding in Ohio.
- Dr. Rafael Jimenez-Flores speaks to the growing demand for protein in dairy manufacturing in a recent story with Spectrum News. Also, the Journal of Dairy Science published a special issue that included an article titled “Dairy Foods: A Matrix for Human Health and Precision Nutrition—The relevance of a potential bioactive ingredient; The milk fat globule membrane.” Authors include FST graduate student Celeste Miller and Dr. Jimenez-Flores.
- Dr. Devin Peterson recently published findings from a study that identifies molecules that suppress heat of some foods and was featured in several articles including Where the Food Comes From, WOSU, and Ohio State News.
- Dr. Monica Giusti is using her research expertise in natural colorants to engage in conversations on a national level about the FDA’s approval of natural colors in food and beverage products. Her insights appear in several articles including The New York Times, CNN, the Chicago Tribune and CNN Wellness.
- The Phi Tau Sigma Buckeye Chapter hosted their 5th annual ‘Phive’-K fun run/walk earlier this month. Faculty, staff, and students turned out to participate in the event which took them through many beautiful outdoor spaces on the Ohio State campus. This year’s event was dedicated to Dr. Denny Heldman. Dr. Heldman was a tremendous supporter of Phi Tau Sigma, and he could always be counted on to participate in the fun run.
- Nominations are open for the 2025 FST Hall of Distinction. Established in 2013, the Hall of Distinction seeks to recognize graduates and friends of the Department of Food Science and Technology at The Ohio State University who have made significant contributions to the food science and technology profession. Click here for more information and the nomination form. Click here to see the 2024 Hall of Distinction celebration.
- On May 19 - 23, the Food Industries Center trained FDA, NOAA, U.S. Army, and state regulators through the FD152 Food Processing & Technology course. Dr. Valente Alvarez led a team of collaborators from FST, FABE, and the food industry, including numerous staff and graduate students, and the following faculty: Dr. V.M. 'Bala' Balasubramaniam, Dr. Osvaldo Campanella, Dr. Rafael Jimenez-Flores, Dr. Melvin Pascall, Dr. Mary Kay Pohlschneider, and Dr. Sudhir Sastry. The 5-day course provided an overview of the basic principles in food processing, technology, and awareness of associated equipment used to ensure the safety of manufactured foods.
- Attention FST alumni: If you receive this newsletter from your Ohio State BuckeyeMail, please note that alumni email service will discontinue after June 1st. Please contact elisar.1@osu.edu with an alternate address if you’d like to stay subscribed to our department’s alumni listserv.
Upcoming Events
June 10-12 Food Industries Center Training Course
FSPCA Preventive Controls for Human Food Participant Course Version 2.0
https://go.osu.edu/fspca
August 19-22 Food Industries Center Training Course
Better Process Control School (Hybrid)
https://go.osu.edu/bpcs
