Director’s Corner
Welcome to the latest in School of Food Science News! In this issue, we reflect on notable moments from our department’s history, share updates on what’s happened since our last newsletter, and highlight the achievements and activities of our School from the past 2024-2025 academic year.
If you would like to support us and our endeavors fostering the next generation of food scientists, please consider donating to the School of Food Science and make a lasting impact on future leaders in food innovation. More details are provided here on our website.
We’re grateful to have you alongside us as we continue this important work.
Department History
Our food science program began in the 1960’s, but it was not until 1970 that program became the Department of Food Science and Technology. Then, in 1983, our department merged with Human Nutrition and Foods to create the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition. The human nutrition and dietetics faculty and programs moved to WSU’s new Division of Health Sciences under the College of Pharmacy in 2007. With collaboration between WSU and UI, the two universities merged to create the School of Food Science 2008, before becoming separate units again in the summer of 2020.
In 1975, our Food Science club was going strong (Figure 2)! Emeritus professor Lloyd Luedecke stands second to last in the middle row. You can learn more about the legacy he left behind in this article. To Dr. Luedecke’s right is Larry Branen, who continued to pursue Food Science after his undergrad and worked at the University of Idaho for 27 years before his retirement. Second to last in the back row is Jim Reiha, who became a Food Safety Officer at the Washington State Department of Agriculture.
In 1991, the International Wheat Gluten Association honored our department in recognition of outstanding achievement for product development and research on wheat gluten and related industry products at the 1990 AACC annual meeting.
Due to our support in the Abuela Project (1998), our department was honored in the recognition of our team excellence. The project was created in response to infections of Salmonella Typhimurim DT104 in Yakima County. More can be learned about the Abuela Project in this article.
In 2004, Elly Soeryapranata and Dewi Scott, both graduate students, and Jennifer Smith, an undergraduate, won the first prize in the inaugural Danisco Knowledge Award product development contest. More can be read about it in this article.
In 2009, our School received a Certificate of Recognition for the Nutritious Foods for Kids Competition. Disney Consumer Products presented this certificate to the WSU Product Development Team in appreciation of their participation in the Disney Consumer Products-Institute of Food Technologist Student Association Product Development Competition.
In 2014, Dr. Carolyn Ross led the extensive process of settling on the name for the now iconic Cosmic Crisp apple (Figure 3.). More can be read about it in this article.
Gladys Kidd Jennings
Over the summer, Marlene Gaynair, Assistant Professor in the Department of History, visited our office and asked us about Gladys Kidd Jennings (Figures 4 and 5). Ms. Jennings had won numerous awards for her pioneering work in the field of nutrition and dietetics, and she was also the first Black woman to earn a master’s degree at WSU (at the time, WSC) in 1948. From 1966 to 1991, she worked in the School of Food Science as an Associate Professor when we were still named the Department of Foods and Nutrition and Institute Management.
Ms. Jennings’ graduate research in 1947 focused on microwave ovens’ effect on the nutrients in food. In the 1960s, she was one of the first to examine what are now called “food deserts” and socioeconomic factors affecting nutritional health in Black communities. Ms. Jennings was born in 1925 and passed away in 2023. Despite her passing, we are still eager to honor her legacy.
In collaboration with Marlene Gaynair, Amy Grey, David Luftig, and Jessica Samuels, the School of Food Science assisted them in finding information on Ms. Jennings, which, luckily, we still had. This team of people have been working together to create a permanent exhibit for Ms. Jennings in the Owen Science Library, which will be open to the public on October 24th.
The Iconic WSU Creamery
This September marks the Creamery’s 77th anniversary! For its 75th anniversary two years ago, the Creamery released a special anniversary addition of their seasonal flavor, Cracked Pepper and Chive (Figure 6). They also had a special ice cream flavor for the occasion that consisted of red velvet with a cream cheese swirl.
Since 1948, the Ferdinand’s Ice Cream Shoppe has produced dairy products for the Pullman community and consumers across the nation. The Creamery provides hands-on experience to the student employees who work in production, at the university cheese shop, and in marketing. The Creamery also supports students through the WSU Creamery and Food Science Scholarship. Established in 2008, the scholarship is funded by setting aside a portion of all cheese and ice cream sales from the WSU Creamery to support undergraduate students majoring in food science
The iconic Cougar Gold cheese has earned numerous national and international awards and has been featured on the Food Network and Fine Living Network Program, Food Finds, since 2000 to today!
As of 2022, the Creamery has also received the American Society of Animal Science’s coveted Big Scoop Award five times. The Huckleberry Ripple ice cream flavor (Figure 7) took top honors against ice cream samples from several other institutions.
Student Success
Since 2019, we have had 66 undergrad and 64 graduate students graduate within our program, and around 30 students have received a Cascadia IFT scholarship.
Ph.D. student, Caleb Wagner (Figure 8), scored the first prize in the “Food Engineering Division Graduate Oral Competition” at the IFT FIRST 2024 event for presenting his research on heat and mass transfer modeling of the extrusion cooling die. Caleb is now a Senior Product and Process Development Engineer at Mars.
Ph.D. student, Aniket Kamboj (Figure 9), won second place in the Ph.D. level research poster competition at the Conference of Food Engineering, held last August of 2024 .
Fall 2024 graduate, Steven Verver, carried the College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences gonfalon banner during Washington State University’s fall commencement ceremony. Steven started his graduate program under Dr. Ganjyal in January.
The Food Science club went to the Tri-Cities for their Industry Trip this past February (Figure 10). They toured a total of 6 companies: Tree Top, Lamb Weston, Reser’s Fine Foods, Sage Brewing Co., Wheat Head Brewing Co., and AJ’s Edible Arts.
In March, Doctorate student Yuan Su competed in the CAHNRS 3-Minute Thesis Competition and tied for first place.
Food Science students embarked to Vancouver, B.C. late March, to compete in the IFT College Bowl Competition. The team consisted of Christine Chen, Lauren Crisostomo, Nicholas Conner (team captain), and Steven Verver. The team scored 4th place.
The spring semester ended on a high note with multiple significant recognitions to our students. Undergraduate student, Kimberly Baxley (Figure 11), was our Outstanding Senior this year.
“It was an honor to be nominated as the department’s outstanding senior,” Kimberly stated. “It was rewarding in a way where I felt recognized in my academic and personal journey over the past few years. It made me feel proud of my hard work and grateful for the support of my mentors, peers, and family to be able to excel in this program.” Kimberly has started work for Nestlé as an associate product development specialist, where she will be innovating and renovating products in the Global Culinary Kitchen division.
Undergraduate student, Lauren Crisostomo (Figure 11), received the Emerging Leader in Agricultural Sciences award. Lauren is also the new Food Science club President starting this Fall, with Oscar Wise acting as Vice President.
Undergraduate student, Sherine Ortiz (Figure 12), received the Virginia Dare Award for academic excellence and outstanding achievement in the study of food science.
For the month of May, Graduate students Katherine Rehberger and Osasere Igbinoba won the American Dairy Products Institute’s Make it with Dairy competition. The post was shared on the institute’s LinkedIn page.
Closing out the month, graduate student Edmund Afari received the 2025 Professional Development Award from the Center for Produce Safety.
We are so proud of all the hard work our students do, and we are so excited to see the amazing things they accomplish during the 2025 to 2026 academic year!
Staff Strength
Mariana Castro
John Haugen
Jane Lawford
Brian Nyquist
Angella Osinde
Simon Rogers
Faculty Excellence
Dr. Thuy Bernhard
Dr. Thuy Bernhard has been promoted to Teaching Associate Professor in 2025, in recognition of her dedication and expertise. Dr. Bernhard serves as the director of both the Food Science Certificate program and the M.S. in Agriculture Food Science Management option here at WSU, working remotely from Texas. Her and her husband also welcomed their son, Benjamin, into the world early this spring!
Dr. Girish Ganjyal
Dr. Girish Ganjyal’s Extension and Research Program provides technical assistance and training to food processing companies of all types and sizes across the state of Washington, the PNW region, the nation, and internationally, with a measured long-term impact of over $120M as of 2022. Dr. Ganjyal was honored with the Sahlin Faculty Excellence Award – Outreach & Engagement in 2023, in recognition of the highest level of excellence in the pursuit of the University’s goals. Dr. Ganjyal was also elected to serve on the Board of Directors of IFT, starting September 2024. As of July 2025, Dr. Ganjyal and his team of collaborators trained over 8,225 food industry professionals on the various topics of food processing and food safety.
Dr. Soo-Yeun Lee
Dr. Soo-Yeun Lee joined the School of Food Science in 2023 as Director and Professor after 22 years of tenure at the University of Illinois. Dr. Soo-Yeun Lee has been designated as a 2025 IFT Fellow. This recognition honors Dr. Soo-Yeun Lee’s accomplishments in sensory science, her dedication to mentoring the next generation of food scientists, and her commitment to advancing the field through research, education, and service.
Dr. Youngsoo Lee
Dr. Youngsoo Lee joined our School as Associate Professor in 2023 after 22 years of tenure at the University of Illinois. He has a split appointment between the School of Food Science and Biological Systems Engineering. Dr. Youngsoo Lee was awarded a LIFT faculty fellowship in 2024 and served as a keynote speaker at IFT FIRST 2025, presenting in the session “Reducing Fat, Salt, and Sugar for Healthier Foods.”
Dr. Claire Murphy
Dr. Claire Murphy joined our school in 2023 as an Assistant Professor, working from Prosser. She was one of four presenters selected to give a Masterclass at the 2025 Center for Produce Safety Annual Meeting, where she spoke on “The Challenges and Opportunities Around Brushes as Food Contact Surfaces.” Over Dr. Murphy’s past two years at WSU, she has provided extension trainings to 641 stakeholders, helping to build knowledge around produce safety, microbiology, and the FSMA compliance.
Dr. Adam Quinn
We are also welcoming our new faculty member, Dr. Adam Quinn, who started in July of 2025 as a Teaching Assistant Professor. He finished his Ph.D. in Food Science from Purdue University in May of this year. Dr. Quinn is interested in food science pedagogy, authentic undergraduate research experiences, and gut microbiome and dietary fiber interactions.
Dr. Carolyn Ross
Dr. Carolyn Ross has been promoted to Regents Professor in 2025, which can be held by no more than 30 Washington State University faculty members at any one time. From 2019 to 2025, Dr. Ross published 63 research articles with her graduate students and collaborators in Economics, Biological Systems Engineering, and Horticulture, with a total of 157 publications during her tenure at WSU. From these articles, Dr. Ross and her collaborators were awarded the Tanner Award three times, once in 2019, 2020, and 2022, for the most highly cited paper published in that specific year by IFT.
Dr. Stephanie Smith
Dr. Stephanie Smith was awarded a LIFT faculty fellowship in 2023. Then in July 2024, Dr. Smith was awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor. Dr. Smith was also an invited speaker to the International Association for Food Protection conference in 2024 and again in 2025 where she spoke on tailoring strategies to prevent future foodborne illness and on advancements in Bacillus cereus cell and toxin detection.
Dr. Gülhan Ünlü
Dr. Gülhan Ünlü joined the WSU’s School of Food Science in August of 2024 after her tenure at the University of Idaho for 24 years. Dr. Ünlü was invited to speak at the Cheesemaking Short Course held at Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center in October 2024. The Ünlü Lab attended the BUILD Dairy Annual Meeting at Utah State University in May 2025, where they launched a new research collaboration on white cheddar cheese aging with colleagues from Oregon State University and a farmer-owned industry partner.
Dr. Meijun Zhu
Dr. Meijun Zhu was honored with the 2025 IFT Achievement Award for Achievements in Microbial Research for Food Safety, in memory of Gerhard J. Haas. She also received the WSU CAHNRS Land Grant Mission Award and was one of seven Washington State University faculty members elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences in 2025.
Thank You!
We are grateful to have you alongside us as we continue into the next academic year! There is much to look forward to, especially with the upcoming Crossroads Summit in partnership with Cascadia section of IFT, previously Industry Expo, this October. We have hosted the Summit for the past three years and we are looking forward to the fourth. We hope to see you there.
Go Cougs!
