Kimberly Morgan named David M. Kohl Junior Faculty Fellow
Kimberly Morgan, assistant professor of agricultural and applied economics in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech, has been named the David M. Kohl Junior Faculty Fellow by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors.
The Kohl Junior Faculty Fellowship supports a faculty member in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences who seeks to create and enhance undergraduate experiential learning opportunities that integrate research and service to solve real world business problems.
In turn, the Kohl Junior Faculty Fellow will lead the Kohl Agribusiness Centre, which was established to honor David M. Kohl for his 25 years as a professor of agricultural finance, small business management, and entrepreneurship in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics. Kohl, who now serves the department as professor emeritus, was well known for engaging students in hands-on research and problem solving while simultaneously addressing the needs of agricultural and rural entrepreneurs.
Morgan will hold the fellowship for a period of three years.
A member of the Virginia Tech community since 2013, Morgan has extensive experience engaging students in multi-disciplinary, research-based Extension programming and partnering with regional producers and industry groups to address real-world problems.
Her teaching and extension programs are focused on entrepreneurship, agribusiness risk management, and value-added marketing, and her research program goals are centered on seeking solutions that improve the sustainability of Virginia’s agriculture industry. She has dedicated her teaching career to providing students with practical applications of economic principles.
In addition to incorporating real-world case studies into her courses, she regularly invites her students to participate in extension programs. Her Kohl Centre students aim to provide agribusiness managers with creative solutions to a variety of business issues based on what they have learned in academic courses, original research they conduct, and a team approach that is based on the experience, knowledge, and skills of diverse student groups.
Morgan received her bachelor’s degree in animal science, and her master’s degree and Ph.D. in food and resource economics from the University of Florida.
Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech takes a hands-on, engaging approach to education, preparing scholars to be leaders in their fields and communities. As the commonwealth’s most comprehensive university and its leading research institution, Virginia Tech offers 240 undergraduate and graduate degree programs to more than 31,000 students and manages a research portfolio of $513 million. The university fulfills its land-grant mission of transforming knowledge to practice through technological leadership and by fueling economic growth and job creation locally, regionally, and across Virginia.
