Dr. J. Scott Angle was sworn in as director of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture on Oct. 29, 2018. President Trump appointed Angle for a six-year term at the agency on Aug. 31.

“Dr. Angle has more than 35 years of experience in scientific research and administration, and I am confident that he will move NIFA forward in many ways,” said Chavonda Jacobs-Young, USDA’s Acting Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics. “His academic track record of providing practical solutions to local, regional and national challenges, as well as his globally focused experience, will help NIFA as it supports the science required to help U.S. agriculture and rural communities achieve sustainable economic prosperity.” 

Angle most recently served as the president and CEO of the International Fertilizer Development Center, an organization that helps agriculture in developing countries use fertilizer and other technologies. He oversaw a staff of more than 800.

J. Scott Angle

Angle worked for 24 years as a Professor of Soil Science and administrator (Director of the Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station and Maryland Cooperative Extension) at the University of Maryland. His early work focused on the study of losses of nutrients from agro-ecosystems, and their impact on the Chesapeake Bay. He also studied the impact of heavy metals on the food chain with the goal of protecting our food supply from these harmful elements. Later he concentrated his studies on phytoremediation, the use of plants for extraction of heavy metals from soil. In 2005, he moved to Athens, Georgia, where he served as Dean and Director of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at the University of Georgia for 10 years. He is a fellow in the American Society of Agronomy and the Soil Science Society of America. He is also a Fulbright Fellow having worked at the Rothamsted (Research) Experimental Station, in the United Kingdom. 

Angle received his B.S. and M.S. at the University of Maryland in Agronomy and Soil Science, respectively. He obtained his Ph.D., from the University of Missouri with an emphasis on Soil Microbiology.

Prior to Angle’s arrival, NIFA was led by Acting Director Thomas Shanower.

NIFA invests in and advances agricultural research, education, and extension to help solve national challenges in agriculture, food, the environment, and communities. 

Source: USDA NIFA