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Dr. Joseph Awika | Dr. Clifford Hall | Dr. Silvana Martini
Dr. Joseph Awika
Dr. Awika is Professor and Head of Food Science & Technology Department at Texas A&M University. Prior to joining Texas A&M in 2008, he previously worked on faculty at University of Missouri-Colombia, and Arkansas State university. Dr. Awika’s research focuses on examining how the chemical structure and properties of plant-derived bioactive food constituents affect food attributes relevant to human health, with the goal of maximizing the ability of foods to prevent chronic disease. His international research program focuses on technological innovations to address food insecurity among vulnerable populations. Dr. Awika is a 2018-2019 Fulbright Faculty Fellow, and the recipient of the 2021 Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) International Food Security Award in honor of W.K. Kellogg and Bor S. Luh. He has been invited speaker at more than 100 national and international forums. He currently serves as editor of Journal of Cereal Science, and on the National Academies Committee exploring the link between soil health and human health. He obtained his PhD from Texas A&M University in 2003, and BS at Egerton University, Kenya in 1996.
Dr. Clifford Hall
Dr. Hall’s professional academic career extends 28 years, including 23 years at North Dakota State University (NDSU) and five years at South Dakota State University (SDSU). Dr. Hall is currently a professor in the Dairy and Food Science Department at SDSU and was previously the Food Science Coordinator at NDSU for 17 years. In that role, he successfully led reapproval of the Food Science program by the Institute of Food Technologists in 2005, 2010, and 2015. Dr. Hall served and is currently serving as the assessment coordinator for the Food Science programs at NDSU and SDSU. He also led efforts in drafting the foundational documents for the NDSU School of Systems. His other leadership roles at NDSU include Interim Technical Director for the Northern Crops Institute and Interim Associate Director of the Great Plains Institute of Food Safety.
Dr. Hall has taught every core food science-related competency except for food microbiology and food engineering. His teaching efforts have been recognized through receipt of the student-nominated Odney Excellence in Teaching Award in 2016. Dr. Hall has mentored 13 Ph.D. and 20 M.S. students and served on 31 Ph.D. and 40 M.S. graduate examining committees, including examination committees of students from several Canadian universities. He has mentored fifty-eight undergraduate researchers. He and his collaborators have obtained funding totaling over $6.2 million for research and curricular development projects. Currently, Dr. Hall oversees research activities in pulse quality and utilization of pulses in food systems. His efforts in pulse research were recognized by the pulse growers with the receipt of the 2024 Northern Pulse Growers Excellence Award in Research.
As a service component, he oversees the annual U.S. Pulse Quality Survey for the U.S.A. pulse growers. Additional outreach efforts include the Field to Fork webinar series, many presentations to trade groups to promote crops from the Northern Plains, and leading activities such as STEM for Kids and Nurturing American Tribal Undergraduate Research and Education (NATURE) Sunday Academy. Dr. Hall holds a B.S. degree (1988) from the University of Wisconsin - River Falls, and a M.S. (1991) and Ph.D. (1996) from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the area of Food Science and Technology.
Dr. Silvana Martini
Dr. Silvana Martini is a Professor Department of Nutrition, Dietetics, and Food Sciences at Utah State University. She obtained a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina (1997) and a PhD in Chemistry from the same institution (2003). She was a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Food Science at the University of Guelph, Canada, before joining Utah State University (2005). In 2018 Dr. Martini was appointed as director of the Aggie Chocolate Factory at Utah State University.
Dr. Martini is a pioneer in the use of high-intensity ultrasound to change the physical properties of fats. Over the years Dr. Martini published more than 130 papers in peer-reviewed journals, participated in more than 200 conferences, was an invited speaker in more than 30 international conferences, and published 11 book chapters. Dr. Martini has trained several undergraduate researchers, PhD, and MS students and received various international scholars in her lab. Dr. Martini received several local and international awards such as the Young Scientist Award from the Agricultural and Food Chemistry Division of the American Chemical Society and the Robins Award for Faculty Researcher of the Year for Utah State University, the Timothy L. Mounts Award, the 2024 Alton E. Bailey Award from the American Oil Chemists’ Society and Fellow Award from the American Oil Chemists’ Society. Dr. Martini serves as Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of the American Oil Chemists’ Society and is the past President of the American Oil Chemists’ Society.