From the Chair
In the MSU Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, our enduring mission is to "improve quality of life by integrating and applying principles of engineering and biology to systems involving food, environment, energy, and health.” This is more than a slogan to us; it is a unifying framework for all that we do — with particular emphasis on building and sustaining programs that serve our stakeholders.  
 
A service mindset permeates almost every aspect of our department, from teaching to research to extension/outreach. I am especially proud and appreciative when our faculty and students focus their creative energies on serving the public good. The stories below highlight just a few examples, including developing affordable and accessible health diagnostics for low-income communities, applying cutting-edge tools to help grape producers optimize product quality, helping farmers increase energy efficiency and reduce costs, and making low-cost soil moisture sensors more accessible to farmers for improved water management. In each of these examples, BAE faculty/staff/students are applying state-of-the art approaches at the engineering-biology interface, but they are equally focused on ensuring that the solutions they are developing are accessible, impactful, and appropriate for the audiences they serve.

Our students and alumni continue to impress with their achievements. Please join me in celebrating our Distinguished Alumni Award recipient, 2021 senior design students, a BAE Ph.D. student who received a national science communication award, and the successes of a pair of siblings who both graduated from our biosystems engineering program. Each one of these stories is further evidence of a service mindset that carries on through our students and alumni. 
 
This past year has been exceptionally challenging. I am proud of the persistence and resilience of our students, staff, and faculty, who have utilized novel tools and approaches to fulfilling our mission. As we transition back to increased in-person work and teaching this fall, we will be deliberate and creative in applying all that we have learned to continuously improve both our operational efficiencies and our mission impact. 
  
Please feel free to drop me a note anytime if you want to connect or discuss ideas or opportunities to engage. 
 
Go Green! 
Bradley Marks, Ph.D., P.E.
Professor and Department Chair
MSU Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering
 
MSU-led group aims to improve health outcomes of low-income communities
The Global Alliance for Rapid Diagnostics (GARD), led by BAE professor Evangelyn Alocilja, brings together researchers from around the world to help make technologies affordable and accessible to those who need them most.

Over 200 researchers from around the world attended GARD's first annual virtual symposium on June 25-26, 2021.
MSU researchers analyzing novel technique to improve Michigan wine production
Ilce Medina Meza, BAE assistant professor, is co-leading a three-year, $500,000 USDA NIFA study examining how removing leaves from vine canopies early in the season can help Michigan wine producers grow high-quality grapes.

MSU programs help farmers increase energy efficiency, reduce costs
Through their work with the Michigan Agricultural Electric Council and its Michigan Farm Energy Program, BAE faculty members Aluel Go and Truman Surbrook collaborate to help farmers solve energy-related issues and save money.

MSU researcher awarded grant to develop low-cost sensor monitoring system for Great Lakes farmers
Younsuk Dong, BAE specialist, is leading a project to make sensors more accessible for farmers in Michigan and Indiana.

Forbush honored with 2021 Distinguished
Alumni Award
Todd Forbush, storage systems engineer and vice president at Techmark, Inc, received BAE's Distinguished Alumni Award for 2021. Forbush earned his bachelor's (1987) and master's (1989) in Agricultural Engineering.

BAE recognized for DEI efforts

The MSU College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) honored BAE for its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion during the 2019-20 school year.

BAE researcher to present at MSU Potato Field Day
Younsuk Dong will give a presentation on improving irrigation water use efficiency utilizing soil moisture sensor monitoring tools during MSU's potato field day.

The event, co-hosted by the Michigan Potato Commission, will take place at the Montcalm Research Center in Lakeview, Michigan, on Thursday, Aug. 5 from 9 a.m. -1:30 p.m.
Virtual BE Showcase 2021
BE Showcase is a long-standing highlight of our departmental calendar.

The feature of the day is the presentation of final design reports from our two-semester senior capstone design projects. Students work with real-world clients to develop solutions to actual issue the client is facing. 
Biosystems engineering Ph.D. student receives national award for science communication efforts

Chelsie Boodoo, a doctoral student in BAE's Alocilja Nano-Biosensors Lab, was honored by the Center for Advancing Research Impact in Society for her research and outreach activities.

Spartan siblings share passion for
biosystems engineering


Alicia and Ryan Ziegler use their biosystems engineering experiences at MSU to solve real-world problems in food, energy and the environment.
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