Beech Wins Career-Boosting Award in Soil Science

Ava-Rose Beech, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Plant Sciences, has been selected for the Bridge Scholars Program. The selection was made in collaboration with three organizations: the American Society of Agronomy (ASA), the Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) and the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA). Beech was honored at CANVAS, the annual agronomy conference held by the three organizations. This award is a major accomplishment for Beech and a step along her academic journey. 

“The Bridge Scholars Award was an honor to receive and was a very impactful experience for me in terms of my leadership and career development,” Beech said. “I was able to make many connections through this program, including direct mentorship with a professor through a mentorship matching program, networking with faculty member leaders and connection with other graduate student participants in the program.”

The selection included a monetary award covering lodging and a $600 travel scholarship to attend the CANVAS conference, a one-year membership to the Soil Science Society of America and any fees for abstract submissions at the conference.

Beech’s leadership qualities, past work and a personal essay highlighted her capabilities as one of eight students selected out of the 137 who applied. In her essay, Beech talked about the importance of improving diversity, equity and inclusion in the soil science field. 

“For this essay, I wrote in part about my work and involvement with the UC Davis Undergraduate Soil Judging Team, as well as my role as a graduate student mentor for the UC Davis Minorities in Agriculture and Natural Resources program and the UC Davis Guardian Scholars program,” said Beech. 

Beech is a part of the UC Rangelands Lab under Leslie Roche, a professor of Cooperative Extension in the Department of Plant Sciences. Beech is also a member of the graduate group in ecology. She previously co-led an undergraduate team at the 2025 National Collegiate Soil Judging Contest as a graduate student.