CLEMSON, S.C. — An entomology professor with a record of administrative success and a passion for leadership has been named chair of Clemson University’s department of plant and environmental sciences.
Carlyle C. Brewster comes to Clemson from Virginia Tech, where he has been a faculty member in the entomology department since 1999 and served as the department’s graduate program director since 2013. He will begin his Clemson tenure Sept. 1.
Brewster said he plans to deploy the department’s diversity of research, teaching and extension interests in agricultural entomology, horticulture, turfgrass science, sustainable crop production, agronomy and agricultural biotechnology to increase its local and global stature.
“Faculty in Clemson’s department of plant and environmental sciences have demonstrated their dedication to tackling the grand challenges of global food supply and safety and agricultural systems efficiency, and to preparing students to become leaders in the agriculture and agribusiness industries. I am extremely excited to lead the department’s continued efforts in undergraduate and graduate teaching, global engagement and multidisciplinary research,” Brewster said.
Brewster’s research focuses on developing advanced mathematical and statistical tools for managing arthropod pests in natural, urban and agricultural ecosystems. He earned his master’s and Ph.D. from the University of Florida and his Bachelor of Science from the University of West Indies. Brewster brings with him a history of global engagement. He has served as adjunct professor at Universite de Bamako, Mali, West Africa, and was acting head of plant and animal inspection service for the research division of the Ministry of Agriculture in Trinidad, West Indies.
“We are excited to welcome a scholar of Carlyle’s stature to the Clemson family. He has demonstrated a sustained passion for the land-grant mission of teaching, research and extension in the agricultural sciences and will be a great fit to chair our department of plant and environmental sciences and a valuable member of the college’s leadership team,” said Timothy Boosinger, interim dean of Clemson’s College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences.
As graduate program director for the Virginia Tech department of entomology, Brewster was responsible for managing graduate student affairs, including ethics training, collecting data and reporting on teaching outcomes; and mediating faculty-student conflicts. Brewster is a graduate of Lead21, which provides leadership and professional development training for faculty and professionals in the land-grant system. He has won multiple awards for his teaching and research, including the 2014 Distinguished Teaching Award from the Entomological Society of America Eastern Branch, the 2012 Academy of Teaching Excellence Award from Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the 2009 Teaching Award of Merit from the Virginia Tech Chapter of Gamma Sigma Delta.
Brewster will be joined by his wife, Robin Williams, who is federal project coordinator for the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station.
–Jonathan Veit, Clemson University