Successful Alumni Evening held May 5th

Successful Alumni Evening held May 5th

Pictured are Pragya Gupta, Esha Kaler, Edith Ikuze, Kashish Verma, Neil Spomer, Heena Puri, Sanket Shinde and Natasha Umezu (L-R).

Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Nearly ninety people attended the Entomology Department's Alumni Recognition Evening on May 5th at the Nebraska East Union.

The evening recognized Dr. Neil Spomer as the 2023 Distinguished Alumnus of the Year. Spomer is a Crop Protection Field Sciences Innovation & Modernization Leader with Corteva Agriscience, Indianapolis. His presentation was titled “My UNL Journey - From Business to Entomology and Beyond.”  

Spomer received both his Ph.D. in Entomology (2005) and his M.S. degrees (2001) in Entomology from the University of Nebraska Lincoln. Under the mentorship of Dr. Shripat Kamble, Spomer's research focused on termite baiting and the environmental fate of liquid termiticides. He also earned his Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration (1994) from UNL.

In his current role at Corteva AgriScience, Spomer established the global team structure and strategy to enable digital technologies and tools to accelerate the Corteva product development pipeline. In early 2023, Spomer accepted an additional role of Technology Characterization Leader for an early-stage discovery insecticide. With these additions to his career responsibilities, Spomer coordinates budgets, strategy, and global deployment of field trials.  In 2010, he became a Board Certified Entomologist. Spomer also has 20 refereed publications, one book chapter, 27 submitted Invention Disclosures, and five patents published to date. 

Dr. John Ruberson, chair of the Entomology Department, observed that, "It is an honor to have the department represented by such an excellent graduate as Dr. Spomer. He exemplifies the value of committed effort and adaptive resilience in building a high-impact career.  We're very proud of him and his accomplishments."

The Department of Entomology has been a part of UNL since 1895, and has trained many exceptional scientists since that time, Ruberson said. The department's Insect Science undergraduate major has grown to nearly 40 students, and the resident MS and Ph.D. programs are strong and vibrant. The online entomology MS program - the first of its kind in the nation - is also strGrowing & Glowing Imageong, Ruberson said, with students all over the world contributing in all walks of life.  

Organized by the Lawrence Bruner Graduate Student Club the Insect Science Club and the department, the theme for the reunion was “Growing and Glowing.”

Photos of the event were taken by Shianne Lindsay, M.S. student, and are shared on Google Drive at https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1E1jTix23xk8790YleTBo6taXHHeyWujb?usp=sharing

Feel free to email the Bruner Club for more information at brunerclub@unl.edu.