B. Rogers Leonard, associate vice chancellor for research at the LSU AgCenter, has been named the first recipient of the Insect Research and Control Conference Award for Excellence in Cotton Integrated Pest Management.

Recognizing outstanding career contributions of an individual to applied arthropod integrated pest management across the U.S. cotton belt, the award reflects excellence in industry, research, Extension or educational programs that have benefited the cotton industry.

Presented at the Beltwide Cotton Conferences in Orlando, Fla., on Jan. 5, the award is sponsored by Dow AgroSciences and consists of an inscribed trophy and a monetary award.

Leonard was cited for his contributions to cotton insect management through research and extension activities that maintain economical and environmentally acceptable insect pest management systems. Specific areas he has addressed include insect pest surveys and management strategies in conservation tillage production systems, evaluation of natural and genetically engineered host plant resistance traits, methods of insect management, chemical and microbial insecticide screening studies, and development of insecticide-resistance management plans.

Leonard’s nationally recognized status as a leader in entomology and cotton integrated pest management derives from his role as a premier researcher.

He was named associate vice chancellor for research in the LSU AgCenter effective Jan. 1, 2012.  He had been on the faculty at the LSU AgCenter Macon Ridge Research Station in Winnsboro, La., since 1990, and in 2006 he was named to the Jack Hamilton Chair in Cotton Production.