Cornell senior Andrew Lefever of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania is the 2015 winner of the New York State Agribusiness Association (NYSABA) Outstanding Undergraduate Award. The Award was presented December 3, 2015 at the Cornell Seed School held in Geneva, NY.
The Award pays honor to one undergraduate student who has shown exceptional interest and dedication in study to the Agricultural Plant Industry particularly seed issues. Lefever is an Agricultural Sciences Major at Cornell University. “For many years, the NY Seed Association, now a part of NYSABA, and the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA), have awarded this scholarship to an outstanding student(s) in the field of plant science or plant breeding who plan to pursue further education or employment in agriculture,” said John Uveges, NYSABA Seed Committee Chair. “We were very excited to award this to Andrew this year because he has a real passion for plant breeding and seed issues.
“While he didn’t grow up on a farm, Andrew talks passionately about the neighboring farms that formed his love of agriculture—from planting and harvesting corn, soybeans, and tobacco, to equipment experience,” notes his award nomination. “Andrew is passionate about agriculture, he’s first to volunteer to help with any need, he’s given countless hours to mentor younger agriculture students, he’s articulate, polite, and honestly one of the most outstanding Cornell citizens we’ve seen.”
He has spent his summers getting to know different aspects of the industry. His freshman summer he prepared soil samples for Agri-Analysis, Inc, an agricultural testing lab. His sophomore summer, he interned for DuPont Pioneer in Lancaster working in corn research. This past summer, he was a research assistant for Cornell’s SPEAR program working on nutrient management projects.
The scholarship is provided in partnership through NYSABA and the American Seed Trade Association (ASTA).
