Research Assistant Professor - Crop Science

The Research Assistant Professor is responsible for coordination and management of research to improve planting, growing, and marketing of crops. Research responsibilities will include developing key plant physiological parameters and under changing climate conditions for adoption and sustainability of local and alternate crops suitable to the region. The incumbent will establish a program of research geared to incorporate innovative state-of-the-art digital agriculture approaches to defining, understanding, and influencing sustainable crop growth around the energy-food-water nexus. The research will be geared to help improve farm management practices for efficient crop production using cutting-edge technologies. The candidate will collaborate on interdisciplinary research projects and provide service at department, college, and university levels. The successful candidate will be required to seek and secure extramural research funding, contribute scholarly literature, and effectively communicate research results to stakeholder groups. Teaching responsibilities include the mentoring and supervision of students in the areas of crop production systems. This position complements other Departmental and inter-Departmental programs, and USDA statewide and regional initiatives on production including crop genetics, variety development, disease resistance, and postharvest biology. This position will help strengthen North Carolina's small farm economic viability and environmental integrity by offering relevant, valuable, and timely information that is generated and aggregated from CAES, agriculture-related agencies, and organizations. Within these systems, this position will connect a diverse set of actors including farmers, traditional extension professionals, consultants, non-profits, government agencies, and others. These networks will include both face-to-face personal relationships and those mediated by communication technology. This position will help connect farmers to a number of support agricultural production agencies and organizations that will be critical to a farming success and sustainability. This might include investigation of producing different crops, or low-cost effective approaches to reestablish the vitality of damaged croplands or pastures or developing barriers that would help withstand major weather events.