13 Iowa college students among World Food Prize fellows

Thirteen Iowa college students are among those working at research centers across the country under the Wallace-Carver Fellowship sponsored by the World Food Prize Foundation and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The fellowships began in June and enable students to study agricultural and economic policy to address food insecurity with renowned scientists and policymakers.

'These students are among the brightest and most passionate young people in the country, and we are thrilled to connect them with these opportunities that put them on track for promising careers in agriculture and international development,” said a statement Monday from Kenneth Quinn, president of the World Food Prize Foundation, which is based in Des Moines. 'I am sure they will be the leaders of the future in global food security.”

The students, some entering college and others having completed one or two years, received the fellowships after being selected from World Food Prize Youth Institutes. They are studying projects such as disease- resistance fruits and waterway protection, said Keegan Kautzky, director of national education programs for the World Food Prize.

The students from Iowa include Brandon Beall, Anger Dok and Lander Geadelmann from the University of Iowa; Theresa Brehm and Leah Lucus from Grinell College; Mikel Wright from Des Moines Area Community College; and Cinthia Wilkinson, Thomas Wilgenbusch, Laura Tucker, Morgan Smith, Bradley Pickhinke, Raegan Hoefler and Taylor Hintch from Iowa State University.

The fellowships culminate in a leadership symposium at the USDA headquarters in Washington, D.C., in August.

'Their experiences as fellows will prepare these exceptional young leaders to carry out the vital research and innovation we will need to address the challenge of feeding a growing global population,” USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a statement.