DR. CHUCK RICE
University Distinguished Professor
Lab coordinator
Charles (Chuck) Rice is a University Distinguished Professor and holds the Vanier University Professorship at Kansas State University. He is a Professor of Soil Microbiology in the Department of Agronomy. He earned his degrees from Northern Illinois University and the University of Kentucky. Dr. Rice teaches courses and conducts research on soil carbon and nitrogen, soil health, microbial ecology, and climate change impacts on agricultural and grassland ecosystems.
DR. PRISCILA J. R. CRUZ
Post-doc fellow
​Priscila, currently a post-doc fellow in the Agronomy Department at Kansas State University, is originally from Brazil. She earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in Animal Science from the Universidade Federal dos Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri. Her doctoral studies, focused on Ruminant Nutrition within Grass and Forage Science, were conducted at the Universidade Federal de Lavras. Her research concentrated on nitrogen metabolism, nitrogen cycling, animal grazing behavior, and mixed pasture management. During her academic journey, Priscila was an undergraduate exchange student at the University of Wisconsin – River Falls and a doctoral exchange student at the North Florida Research and Education Center – University of Florida. Prior to her current position, Priscila served as a research assistant at the Range Cattle Research and Education Center - University of Florida, within the Soil, Water, and Ecosystem Sciences Department. There, she was actively engaged in sampling, analyzing, and reporting on soil nutrient stocks, greenhouse gas emissions, and grazing management strategies.
DR. PENG CHEN
Post-doc fellow
Peng Chen is a post doc in the Department of Agronomy at Kansas State University enthusiastic to guide agriculture toward a sustainable future with the guiding principles of biology, data science, and agronomy. He started his research journey as a junior-year student in college and has since authored ten peer-reviewed publications and a dozen conference abstracts. His current focus is on analyzing regenerative agriculture with techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment to make recommendations to stakeholders, researchers, and policymakers. He also became interested in the soil amendment and carbon sequestration properties of returned crop residues and the potential of biochar production from these waste materials. He plans to continue his endeavors in transdisciplinary study to transform agriculture and meet the sustainable development goals set by the UN.
ENDY LOPES KAILER
Ph.D. Student
Born and raised in a small-scale farm in Brazil, Endy is a PhD student in the Agronomy and Soil Science program at Kansas State University. Endy’s research focuses in the use of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) in enhancing soil health, aggregation stability and carbon sequestration. Endy received her B.S. degree in Agronomy from Federal University of Viçosa and University of Kentucky and her M.S. degree in Agronomy/Plant Science from Federal University of Viçosa as well. Working with soil science since her first semester as an undergraduate student, Endy has great experience in soil fertility and microbiology. In her free time, Endy enjoys cooking, swimming and playing with her dog.
NICHOLAS DETTER
Extension assistant
Nick is our extension assistant. Originally from Butler County, KS, he completed his undergraduate degree in Sustainability & Environmental Studies at Southwestern College in Winfield, KS and earned an M.S. in Agronomy at Kansas State University. His graduate research was on cropping systems in Western Kansas. Nick briefly worked at the NRCS before starting his current position at K-State. He is passionate about working with Kansas farmers to improve the profitability, sustainability, and resiliency of their operations while promoting agricultural practices that improve soil health.
JESSICA BEZERRA
Ph.D. Student
Originally from the Midwest of Brazil, Jessica is a Ph.D. student in the Agronomy and Soil Science program at Kansas State University in the Soil Microbial Agroecology Lab. Jessica received her B.S. degree in Agronomy from the Federal University of Mato Grosso and her M.S. degree in Agronomy/Plant Nutrition from the University of Sao Paulo and the University of Queensland, in Australia. Her master’s thesis focused on studying soybean to evaluate biological nitrogen fixation under different Nickel sources, working with different techniques, such as XRF (X-ray fluorescence) and synchrotron in Melbourne. Currently, her research focuses on nitrogen-15, and nitrogen mineralization under different on-farm practices.
CESAR A. GUARESCHI
Ph.D. Student
Cesar Augusto Guareschi is a master student majoring in Agronomy at Kansas State University in the Soil Microbial Agroecology Lab. He received his B.S. in Agronomy from the University of Passo Fundo, Brazil. Cesar’s research focuses on on-farm soil health across Kansas.
WAGNER SQUIZANI
Ph.D. Student
Wagner Squizani de Arruda is a Ph.D. student in the Agronomy department at Kansas State University. He received his BS in Forestry Engineering from the Federal University of Santa Maria, Brazil, in 2021. Wagner worked as a visiting scholar at KSU in 2021 and began his research on the effect of root-associated bacteria on corn nitrogen use efficiency as a Graduate Research Assistant in 2022. He is also the field manager for a regenerative agriculture model farm at Kansas State University (started in 2024), which will feature a series of regenerative ag practices intensively instrumented to quantify water, nutrient, and energy use efficiencies and soil health.
MUAZZAMA MUSHTAQ
Master's Student
Muazzama Mushtaq is a master’s student in the Agronomy and Soil Science program at Kansas State University. She received her bachelor’s degree in forestry from Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, India. Her research focuses on assessing soil biological characteristics and soil carbon and nitrogen storage from a long-term (34-year) experiment.
VYDEHI GADIPARTHI
Master's student
​“I’m a master’s student in Agronomy at Kansas State University, working in the Soil Microbial Agroecology Lab as a Graduate Research Assistant. My B.Sc. (Hons) in Agriculture is from Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University, India (2023). My research focuses on Regenerative Agriculture, particularly geospatial analysis of soil health properties."
PRISCILA MARCHIORO
Lab Manager
Priscila has a bachelor’s degree in Biology from Federal University of Parana and a master degree from Federal University of Viçosa. She has experience working with citogenetic techniques, molecular biology, DNA extraction, real-time PCR applied for the detection of diseases and the analysis of physical, physiological and health quality of seeds. She is currently working as a Research Scholar in the Soil Microbial Agroecology Laboratory at K-State.
EDUARDO KUMMER
Research Scholar
Born in the city of Selbach in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, Eduardo is an agronomy student at the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM). He is currently doing a non-compulsory internship as a visiting scholar at the Soil Microbial Agroecology Lab, seeking theoretical and practical knowledge in the field of microbiology.
CHARLES CAUDILL
Undergraduate Student
Charles grew up in Manhattan, KS and is a returning undergrad student majoring in Microbiology. His prior degrees from K-State include a BS in Biology, a BS in Secondary Education and a Masters in Adult and Continuing Education.
CHAKRAPANI GAJJI
Masters in Data Analytics
Grew up in a small village in India, holding a Bachelor’s degree in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning from Sri Indu College of Engineering and Technology, India (2024). Currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Data Analytics at Kansas State University and serving as a Data Manager in Agronomy, where I organize and compile data for the RAIN Project. Recently, transitioned to working on Regenerative Agriculture initiatives.