AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn University professor, researcher and Extension specialist Dale Monks has been named director of research operations for outlying units of the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Dean and Director Bill Batchelor has announced. The appointment is effective Dec. 1.
“Dr. Monks brings extensive experience in research, Extension and teaching, which will be valuable in this new role,” Batchelor said. “Each of our Experiment Station units is vital for creating new information needed to increase the profitability and sustainability of our producers. Dr. Monks will bring a unique background into this position that will allow us to work more closely with Extension in transferring vital information developed at the research stations to our producers. ”
The Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station includes 15 research stations throughout the state, as well as researchers within Auburn’s College of Agriculture, School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, College of Human Sciences, College of Sciences and Mathematics and College of Veterinary Medicine.
Monks has been at Auburn University since 1993, and currently serves as a professor in the Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences. He also holds research and Extension appointments at the university.
“This new position will be an opportunity for me to work directly with research scientists and station directors serving communities that are looking for real-world solutions in food and fiber production,” Monks said. “The efforts of research scientists, experiment stations, extension personnel and producer groups are all vital to these solutions, and I look forward to working with all of them to advance these goals in the most effective ways possible.”
Prior to his time at Auburn, Monks had served as an assistant professor at West Virginia University and as an assistant professor and Extension weed scientist at the University of Georgia Extension Service. His first work with the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station was 1985-87, when he served as a research and Extension associate for the Tennessee Valley Research and Extension Center in Belle Mina.
Monks holds a Ph.D. in weed science from the University of Georgia, an M.S. in weed science from the University of Arkansas and a B.S. in plant and soil science from Middle Tennessee State University.
