Millennium Magazine_4th Ed

117 Millennium - A Marquis Who’s Who Magazine EDUCATION G rowing up on a farm in his early years, Dr. Robert Dale Riggs recognized the need for solutions for the diseases he noticed on the farm’s plants. Earning a Bachelor of Agriculture and Master of Science in plant pathology from the University of Arkansas in 1954 and 1956, respectively, he subsequently obtained a PhD in plant pathology fromNorth Carolina State University in 1958. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree, he served as a graduate assistant at the University of Arkansas for one year before serving in the same role at North Carolina State University for three years. Graduating to the rank of assistant professor at the University of Arkansas, a role he held from 1958 to 1962, he became an associate professor at the university from 1962 to 1967. Beginning in 1967, Dr. Riggs was notable as a plant pathology and nematology educator and researcher at the University of Arkansas. Retiring in 2019, he also chaired the College of Agriculture, Food and Life Sciences. During his tenure, he contributed articles to professional journals related to nematology and plant pathology, having served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Nematology from1987 to 1990. Likewise, he co-edited “Biology and the Management of the Soybean Cyst Nematode” and edited “Nematology in the Southern United States.” The former president and vice president of the Society of Nematologists, Dr. Riggs also maintained affiliation with the American Phytopathological Society, the Southern Soybean Disease Workers and the Organization of Nematologists of Tropical America, among other organizations. Asa testament tohis longevity in thefield, Dr. Riggs received theOutstanding Researcher Award from the Arkansas Association of Cooperative Extension Specialists, the Honor Award for Research in Environment Protection from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the District Faculty Achievement Award from the University of Arkansas Alumni Association. Further, he was the recipient of the John W. White Award from the College of Agriculture and Home Economics, the Distinguished Service Award from the Southern Soybean Disease Workers and the Outstanding Plant Pathologists Award from the Southern Division of the American Phytopathological Society. ROBERT DALE RIGGS, PHD PLANT PATHOLOGY AND NEMATOLOGY EDUCATOR, RESEARCHER University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR