Raun named OSU Sarkeys Distinguished Professor

The Sarkeys award is based on outstanding contributions to agriculture through teaching, research or extension efforts. The award was established by the Sarkeys Foundation in 1980 to honor Elmo Baumann, an agronomist who worked with the foundation after his retirement from OSU.

Raun is an OSU Regents professor and holds the Division’s Melvin D. and Mary E. Jones Distinguished Professorship in Agronomic Sciences. He has been recognized nationally and internationally for his research, teaching and extension accomplishments related to precision agriculture and soil fertility.

“This is a very special honor and a well-deserved recognition of Dr. Raun’s expertise, commitment to excellence and hard work,” said David R. Porter, head of OSU’s department of plant and soil sciences.

Nutrient management technologies developed under the leadership of Raun have literally changed the way producers in Oklahoma, surrounding states and other nations grow crops, providing both economic and environmental benefits in the process.

“The new technology improves crop nitrogen efficiency by 10 percent to 20 percent while reducing nitrate leaching,” said Hailin Zhang, holder of the Division’s Santelman/Warth Distinguished Professorship and director of the Soil, Water and Forage Analytical Laboratory. “His passion for reducing world hunger is deep in his heart.”

DASNR Vice President, Dean and Director Robert E. Whitson (left) presents the 2007 Sarkeys Distinguished Professor award to Bill Raun during the Division's recent fall faculty meeting. (Photo by Todd Johnson)

The bilingual Raun consistently provides his students with opportunities for publication, professional presentations and extension activities throughout the Great Plains region and beyond. Sixty-five of his students have traveled internationally to provide cutting-edge extension education programs.

“Although he doesn’t have a formal extension appointment, his desire to serve clients in Oklahoma and around the world is unmatched,” said Jim Stiegler, emeritus head of the department of plant and soil sciences. “It’s common to overhear Bill having a phone conversation in Spanish with an Extension educator, farmer or agribusiness operator somewhere in the Americas. His service exemplifies the preeminent qualities of a professor in the Division and his commitment to the land-grant mission is incomparable.”

Raun has garnered more than $6 million in external funding as part of the Division’s Precision Sensing Team, whose work has been honored with a U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary’s Honor Award.

He has been the recipient of many prestigious honors and awards, including: Fellow of the Soil Science of America and American Society of Agronomy, the ASA Werner L. Nelson Award, Robert E. Wagner Award, the OSU Regents Distinguished Research Award and the OSU James A. Whatley Award for Meritorious Service in Agricultural Sciences.

His scholarly publications include six patents, two books, 11 book chapters, 130 refereed articles and more than 200 proceedings papers.

Raun worked with CIMMYT, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Mexico, from January 1986 to December 1991, when he joined the OSU faculty.

He earned his doctoral degree in soil science from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln in 1985 and his master’s degree in soil fertility and bachelor’s degree in agronomy from OSU in 1982 and 1979, respectively.

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