Ron Reuter, an associate professor in the natural resources program at Oregon State University - Cascades was recently named OSU's 2012 Elizabeth P. Ritchie Distinguished Professor. The award is the highest teaching honor given by Oregon State University and encourages and recognizes outstanding contributions to undergraduate education. The late Elizabeth P. Ritchie was an OSU library staff member from 1920 to 1944, and bequeathed to the OSU Foundation $130,000 for student scholarships, faculty awards, and library material.
Reuter arrived in Central Oregon in January of 2003 from a lecture position at Humboldt State University in Northern California. He holds a Ph.D. in soil science and water resources from the University of Minnesota, an M.S. in soil science from the University of Idaho and a B.S. in environmental resource management from Penn State University. He worked as a landscape ecologist for the Environmental Protection Agency in North Carolina and Stillwater Sciences in Arcata, California.
Reuter's teaching is consistently highly regarded by students both for the course content and the real world application of academic principles. In spring 2011, Reuter co-led the 51st National Soil Judging Contest that brought 200 soil science students from around the country to Central Oregon.
The natural resources program at OSU-Cascades provides students a broad-based approach to natural resources. Graduates pursue careers in resource ecology, land use, water resources, environmental policy, resource technology and natural resource education.
Posted July 16, 2012