Barbara Christ, professor in Penn State’s Department of Plant Pathology, is the new head of the department. “Barb Christ is a distinguished scientist and scholar,” says Robert Steele, dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences.“Through her research, her teaching, and her involvement in college and departmental affairs, she brings to this position a legacy of leadership and service to the state’s agricultural industry, our students, and the department.”

Christ received her bachelor’s degree in plant science from Penn State in 1977. She earned her master’s degree in plant pathology from the University of Minnesota in 1980 and her doctorate in botany from the University of British Columbia in 1984.

Christ joined the plant pathology faculty as an assistant professor in 1984. She became associate professor in 1990 and attained the rank of full professor in 2000.

Christ’s research has focused on potato breeding and disease management. She has co-released 11 potato varieties developed for such traits as disease resistance, adaptation to Pennsylvania growing conditions, and suitability for processing into such products as chips and French fries. She also has helped develop disease-forecasting systems that have enabled growers to reduce fungicide use.

An active member of the American Phytopathological Society and the Potato Association of America, Christ has published 46 papers in refereed journals, 76 abstracts, seven book chapters, 133 articles in nonrefereed journals, and 41 extension fact sheets. She won an Award for Excellence from the Northeastern Regional Association of State Agricultural Experiment Station Directors and the Award of Merit in Plant Pathology from the Northeastern Division of the American Phytopathological Society.

Christ will oversee a department with more than 50 faculty and staff, and more than 40 graduate
students and postdoctoral associates.

The mission of the Department of Plant Pathology is to engage in quality research, education, cooperative extension, and outreach in phytopathology, mycology, and mushroom science, with emphasis on the management of plant diseases and the understanding of relationships among plants, pathogens, and the environment.

The department offers a graduate program in plant pathology and participates in interdepartmental graduate programs in ecology, environmental pollution control, genetics, and plant physiology. The department also offers courses in the interdepartmental agroecology undergraduate major and is home to minors in plant pathology and mushroom science.

—Chuck Gill