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Ferriss Retiring After 36 Years at UW-River Falls

Terry FerrissJune 9, 2015 -- After 36 years of teaching horticulture at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, Terry Ferriss announced her retirement effective May 25 from the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences (CAFES). 

In a message to her current and former students, Ferriss noted that the discipline and industry of horticulture has afforded her a very rewarding career and she expressed confidence that they too would find that same satisfaction. 

"A strong industry only happens when all of the members work together to keep improving the industry – individuals alone cannot do this, it is a group effort and YOUR input is significant," she said. Her students will remember her as a faculty member who knew the industry well, set high standards, was inspirational and walked really fast. 

Ferriss, of Hastings, Minn., leaves a long tradition of industry service, including chairing several national committees for the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) and serving as national president of Pi Alpha Xi, the National Honor Society for Horticulture. She played a key role in the establishment and development of the national ASHS Professional Certification Program including serving on and chairing the National Certification Board for many years. 

At the regional level Ferriss served on the Greenhouse Growers, Education and Certification Committees for the Minnesota Nursery and Landscape Association (MNLA) and the Board of Trustees for the MNLA Foundation. She recently served as a member of the Invasive Species Advisory Council for Herbaceous Plants in Wisconsin. Ferriss held a strong commitment to developing a pipeline of well-educated professionals for the next horticulture industry. 

As adviser for student organizations, she annually organized and accompanied students on educational horticultural trips to other parts of the country. She engaged students in undergraduate horticultural research and has been a strong advocate for internship opportunities for students. She served as the Director of the CAFES Internship Program from 1994-2015 and made several national presentations about successful internship program structure and implementation. Beyond the university level, she co-developed a set of horticulture lesson plans for third and fourth graders that met state educational standards. 

Ferriss was active in university service and served multiple terms on the Faculty Senate and served on numerous committees including multiple years as chair of the Academic Standards Committee. She was equally committed to outreach service and gave numerous presentations for Master Gardener groups and garden clubs. In recognition of her outreach, she received the 1996 "Bronze Award" from the Wisconsin Garden Club Federation, the highest award given to non-members. 

Internationally, she used her expertise in evaluating the quality of floral plant material as she served as an international judge at the biennial Proflora in 2009 and 2013 through Centiflores, a Colombian Cut Flower Growers organization. 

As an educator, Ferriss was honored numerous times. Her peers recognized her with the Outstanding Teacher Award in CAFES (1988). Student nominations earned her the two highest awards for a faculty member at UWRF – the UWRF Distinguished Teacher of the Year (1996) and the Adviser of the Year (2003). Subsequently, she received the UWRF Compass Award for Outstanding Advising in Support of First Year Students (2009 and 2013). 

Nationally, Ferriss was recognized by ASHS with the Outstanding Undergraduate Horticulture Educator Award (1989) and named a National ASHS Fellow (2012). In 1998 she received the USDA National Excellence in Teaching Award for the North Central Region. This summer she will receive the national 2015 Perennial Plant Association Academic Award and in September the 2015 Alex Laurie Award from the Society of American Florists in recognition of her teaching, research, industry support and outreach. 

Ferriss' photo will be placed on the Wall of Honor for CAFES emeriti faculty on the second floor of the Agricultural Science Building. Even though CAFES faculty is now nearly 40 percent female, it wasn't always so, and Ferriss will be the first female faculty member on the wall. Ferriss was the first tenured female faculty in the college and the first woman to serve as a department chair and as associate dean in the college. 

This summer Ferriss will wrap up her work on a research project funded by the National Foliage Foundation and Green Plants for Green Building, "The Impact of Living Green Walls on Student Attitude, Mood and Academic Performance." The preliminary findings are significant in suggesting a positive impact of the presence of plants on student in an academic learning environment and Ferriss and her collaborators will be working on publishing the results. 

Ferriss says retirement was a rather sudden decision but she felt the time was right. Her husband retired in December and they want to continue into the next chapter of life together and have more time to spend with friends, parents, children and grandchildren. For more information, email laura.walsh@uwrf.edu or call 715-425-3535.

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