{"id":16865,"date":"2026-06-29T15:22:22","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T19:22:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/?p=16865"},"modified":"2026-06-29T15:22:23","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T19:22:23","slug":"umes-poultry-pioneer-impacted-research-pipeline-of-professionals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/sans-monthly-digest\/umes-poultry-pioneer-impacted-research-pipeline-of-professionals\/","title":{"rendered":"UMES poultry pioneer impacted research, pipeline of professionals"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"The
The late UMES poultry professor Jeannine Harter-Dennis weighs a chicken for research.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The University of Maryland Eastern Shore has bolstered the poultry industry throughout its history, including contributions by a women pioneer. The late UMES professor of poultry science Jeannine Harter-Dennis<\/strong> (1949-2026) was a dedicated researcher and educator. Harter-Dennis conducted groundbreaking research that benefited the region\u2019s broiler industry and taught countless students who have gone on to have successful careers in the field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDr. Harter-Dennis was my advisor and mentor while I was in graduate school at UMES. I have so many good memories working with her, from traveling to professional meetings to weigh days during research projects,\u201d said Dr. Jennifer Timmons, who is now following Harter-Dennis\u2019 footsteps at UMES. \u201cI would not be where I am today without her guidance and support of my career.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Dr.
Dr. Chrislyn Nicholson (UMES Class of 2000) is pictured at the live bird market in San Francisco.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Harter-Dennis helped steer her former student Chrislyn Wood Nicholson<\/strong> (UMES Class of 2000) into the onehealth focus of the Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (Michigan State University) and Master of Public Health in epidemiology and biostatistics (Penn State). The dual degree combination recognizes that clinical animal care is connected to human and environmental health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI will always be grateful for strong professors at UMES like Dr. Harter-Dennis who poured her knowledge into us as animal science\/pre-veterinary students. She immersed us in her passion for animal science,\u201d Nicholson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The alumna also worked with both Harter-Dennis and Timmons in the poultry nutrition lab, where she \u201clearned so much about the research process having the additional experience working with the chicks on the poultry farm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nicholson has worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture\u2019s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Veterinary Services for 22 years. For the past four years, she has been an epidemiologist with the agency in Pennsylvania and along the East Coast, where she provides science-based information for avian influenza response with the Joint Incident Management Team and poultry production education to farmers on flock surveillance for HPAI detection and biosecurity mitigation.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"UMES
UMES alumnus Dr. Anthony Pokoo-Aikins works in his lab with the U.S. National Poultry Research Center in Athens, Georgia.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cDr. Harter-Dennis was my first close-up experience with animal science when I arrived at UMES. She helped confirm the veterinary medicine path I wanted to pursue. She touched so many students\u2019 lives, not just through her knowledge but through her genuine care for both people and animals. Her impact will never be forgotten,\u201d said Kimberly Braxton, associate professor, pre-veterinary advisor and campus veterinarian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another former student, Anthony Pokoo-Aikins<\/strong>, said: \u201cShe challenged me to pursue excellence and instilled in me the confidence to grow as a scientist and a professional. Dr. Harter-Dennis\u2019 encouragement and support played a major role in shaping my career in poultry science and left a lasting impact on my life,\u201d he said. Pokoo-Aikins earned a master\u2019s degree in animal\/poultry science (2008-2011) and a doctorate in food science and technology (2011-2016) from UMES.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"UMES
UMES alumnus Dr. Samuel Mwangi works in his poultry lab at North Carolina State University.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

For the past six years, Pokoo-Aikins has worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. He is a research biologist at its U.S. National Poultry Research Center in Athens, Georgia.

His classmate and fellow protegee of the poultry educator, Samuel Mwangi<\/strong>, is now an assistant professor of poultry health and flock management at North Carolina State University. Mwangi earned bachelor\u2019s, master\u2019s and doctoral degrees from UMES.

\u201cMany of the values and high standards that guide my research and professional service today were strengthened under Dr. Harter-Dennis\u2019 mentorship.\u00a0I will always be grateful for the opportunities she gave me, the confidence she inspired in me, and the lessons that continue to influence my career,\u201d Mwangi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Jennifer Timmons contributed to this article.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The University of Maryland Eastern Shore has bolstered the poultry industry throughout its history, including contributions by a women pioneer. The late UMES professor of poultry science Jeannine Harter-Dennis (1949-2026) was a dedicated researcher and educator. Harter-Dennis conducted groundbreaking research that benefited the region\u2019s broiler industry and taught countless students who have gone on to…Read more UMES poultry pioneer impacted research, pipeline of professionals<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1168,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","wds_primary_category":40,"footnotes":""},"categories":[195,40],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-16865","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-july-2026","category-sans-monthly-digest"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16865","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16865"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16865\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16865"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16865"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16865"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wwwcp.umes.edu\/sans\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=16865"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}