Kingsley R. Stern,
California State University, Chico
ISBN: 0072830670 Copyright year: 2008
About the Authors
In late 1999 / early 2000, Kingsley Stern and McGraw-Hill Publishers initiated a search to find outstanding scientists to join the author team for Introductory Plant Biology. With nearly three decades of publishing this successful textbook, it was clear to Dr. Stern and the people at McGraw-Hill that new botanists would help to further enrich the content and continue the dedication and hard work needed for future editions. Many professors using the text came to mind but several, in particular, had expressed the desire, knowledge and enthusiasm to become successful authors. After review of these individuals, Dr. Stern hand-picked two botanists, Dr. Jim Bidlack and Dr. Shelley Jansky, to work with him. Over the years, the team has corresponded directly through personal meetings, dozens of phone calls, and hundreds of e-mails, to improve upon and update content in the book. This 11th Edition reflects their continued team work and dedication to the profession of plant biology and related disciplines.
Kingsley R. Stern
Kingsley R. Stern received his undergraduate education at Wheaton College, where he majored in botany. In graduate school, he continued his studies in botany, while minoring in zoology and horticulture. He received his Master's Degree from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and his Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis. He took additional graduate courses at the University of Illinois in Urbana, and at the Hopkins Marine Station of Stanford University in Pacific
Grove, California. While pursuing his studies, Dr. Stern held part-time positions as an instructor in biology at Hamline University, and an instructor in botany at the University of Minnesota, where he received a Conway McMillan Research Fellowship. After accepting a position as Assistant Professor of Botany at California State University in Chico, he was promoted to Associate, and then Full Professor. In 1987, while on leave, he was a Visiting Professor of Botany at the Manoa campus of the University of Hawaii. During his tenure at California State University, Dr. Stern taught eight different courses, several of which he introduced to the curriculum, and has been on the committees of over 50 graduate students. To date, an estimated 15,000 students have enrolled in his classes. He has received several grants from the National Science Foundation in support of biosystematic investigations in Fumariaceae (Fumitory family). These investigations, which included studies at the Swedish National Pollen Laboratory in Stockholm, eventually led to the publication of about 20 research papers in professional journals. Dr. Stern's academic awards include being named Outstanding Professor at California State University in 1993, and receiving the school's Distinguished Service award in 1999 for establishing and developing the University Herbarium, which grew from 2,000 to more than 95,000 specimens. Dr. Stern was most recently honored at the 100th Meeting of the Botanical Society of America, where he accompanied many world-famous botanists in recognition with the Society’s Centennial Award.
Editor’s Note: Known as a dedicated botanist and teacher, Kingsley passed away a few days after completing final revisions on the Eleventh Edition.
James E. Bidlack
Jim Bidlack received a B.S. Degree in Agronomy, with a Soil & Crop Option, from Purdue University in 1984 and continued his education with a Master's Degree in Crop Physiology at the University of Arkansas in 1986. Upon completing a Ph.D. in Plant Physiology at Iowa State University in 1990, Jim joined the teaching faculty at the University of Central Oklahoma (UCO) where he is a Professor of Biology. His first paper was published from undergraduate research at Purdue University on the use of synthetic growth regulators to stimulate seed germination. Subsequent work at Arkansas, Iowa, and Oklahoma focused on soybean physiology, cell wall chemistry, and alternative crops, as well as teaching responsibilities in plant biology. Equipment and student salaries for Jim's research projects have been funded by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). About a dozen refereed publications, as well as 40 popular articles and abstracts have resulted from this work. Jim has been active with campus organizations, serving two terms as the local President of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and sponsoring Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity, Circle K International Club, and Mortar Board Honor Society. He has been recognized with UCO's Presidential Partner's Excellence in Teaching Award, University Merit Awards in Service, Research, and Teaching, Biology Club Teaching Award, and Pre-Med Teaching Award, as well as AAUP's Distinguished Scholar and Service Awards. Some of Jim's additional responsibilities have included participation on NSF and USDA Review Panels, membership on the National Biology Editorial Board for the Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching (MERLOT) Project, and Executive Directorship of the Metabolism Foundation. He and his wife, Amy, enjoy hiking and fishing, and spend free time with their daughter, Hanna, at family farms in Oklahoma and Nebraska.
Shelley H. Jansky
Shelley H. Jansky received a Bachelor's Degree in Biology from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point in 1982, and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Plant Breeding and Plant Genetics from the University
of Wisconsin-Madison in 1984 and 1986, respectively. Her graduate work focused on developing methods to incorporate genes from wild relatives of potato into the cultivated potato. Then, she spent
four years as an Assistant Professor at North Dakota State University, teaching courses in plant breeding and plant propagation, and performing research in the potato breeding program. She taught courses in botany, genetics, horticulture, and plant genetics at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point from 1990 until 2004. In 2004, she moved to Madison, Wisconsin, where she is a Research Geneticist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and a professor in the Department of Horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her potato research program focuses on utilization of wild potato relatives for improvement of cultivated potato varieties. She received the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point Excellence in Teaching Award in 1992 and the University Scholar Award in 2000. She lives near Madison, where she enjoys fishing, gardening, sailing, and swimming with her husband, John, and two children, Mark and Kristin.
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