The concept and challenge of building successful teams has been a focus of Janet Scanlon for decades. It started during the Penn State graduate’s years of volunteering with Penn State Extension, continued during her family’s time in Florida where she worked in community education, inspired her doctoral thesis, and was a focus of her career as a teacher and principal in the State College Area School District.
When the opportunity arose to create an award recognizing research teams in the College of Agricultural Sciences, Scanlon found it aligned with her background, interests and philanthropic priorities. The Dennis and Janet Scanlon Integrated Team Research Award will recognize an integrated research and outreach faculty team within the College of Agricultural Sciences that demonstrates innovation in translating research to be shared and used through activities leading to partnerships and collaboration within the college and beyond.
“The generous support of Janet Scanlon represents an essential part of our effort to recognize the outstanding contributions of our faculty,” said Blair Siegfried, associate dean for research and graduate education in the college and director of the Pennsylvania Agricultural Experiment Station. “Integrated research and extension activities are critical to the mission of our college and provide a mechanism whereby our science immediately informs our recommendations that promote agricultural production and a safe and nutritious food supply while, at the same time, protecting our natural resources. We are extremely grateful to Janet Scanlon for the opportunity to recognize the integrated work of our faculty.”
This award is part of a group of five proposed new awards from the Office for Research and Graduate Education designed to recognize excellence and innovation in the college, as well as address pressing and emerging critical issues facing agriculture, the environment and society.
As a 1966 graduate the College of Education with a degree in elementary and kindergarten education, Scanlon met her late husband, Dennis, who majored in agricultural education, when they were third-year students at Penn State working in the Johnston Commons dining hall in the East Halls housing complex.
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