Friends of IPM Awards
The mission of the Southern IPM Center is to champion the development and adoption of integrated pest management (IPM), the science of managing pests while protecting people, the environment and economy. Each Regional Center engages broadly with stakeholders to identify and address regional pest priorities in agriculture, communities and natural areas.
Since 2003, the Southern IPM Center (SIPMC) has worked with USDA, Land Grant universities, Extension, and many other partners in promoting and facilitating the development and implementation of IPM in many settings across the region.
Many of these partners have contributed to the region’s well-being for years or even decades.
The IPM Hall of Fame Award, 2026
The Southern IPM Hall of Fame award recognizes individuals who have contributed to any important aspect of Southern IPM over many years with a documented history of career achievements in IPM.
Along with authorship of educational materials, research papers, manuals, books, and presentations of IPM material, Hall of Fame award candidates have greatly impacted IPM in the Southern region over the lifetime of their career.
This year, three exceptional Entomologists were inducted into the Southern IPM Center’s IPM Hall of Fame.
Dr. Ronald H. Smith, Auburn University
Written by Abbey Stewart
Dr. Ronald H. Smith was a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology at Auburn University. He specialized in managing cotton insect pests, including boll weevils, silverleaf whiteflies, and cotton jassids.
Dr. Smith spent 54 seasons developing applied research and Extension programs focused on cotton insect management for Alabama growers. His career spanned major shifts in cotton, from the era of boll weevils and DDT to genetically engineered cotton varieties and modern insect management technologies. He developed scouting techniques and economic thresholds for emerging pests such as fall armyworm, stinkbugs, and silverleaf whiteflies while helping growers adapt to evolving pest pressures. Dr. Smith also contributed to insect management expertise for soybeans, corn, grain sorghum, and peanuts.
Since joining the Alabama Cooperative Extension System at Auburn University in 1972, Dr. Smith has built a distinguished career as an Extension entomologist, applied researcher, and Professor Emeritus. He became Alabama’s leading authority on cotton insect management, conducting over 700 grower meetings and training more than 8,000 attendees through cotton scouting schools. Dr. Smith also mentored consultants, participated in field tours across every cotton-producing county in Alabama, and helped establish the long-running Lee County-East Alabama Cotton Tour. In addition to his Extension and research responsibilities, he served in leadership roles, including Acting Head of Pest Management Staff Group and Acting Head of Auburn University’s Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology.
Dr. Smith helped transform cotton IPM in Alabama and across the Cotton Belt by guiding growers through decades of changing pest pressures and evolving management technologies. His programs helped Alabama maintain some of the lowest cotton insect losses and control costs in the United States. Dr. Smith played a key role in Alabama’s boll weevil eradication campaign and helped growers adopt new insecticides, genetic technologies, and environmentally safer pest management strategies. Through his practical, grower-focused approach, Dr. Smith became one of the most influential voices in cotton IPM over the past five decades.
Demonstrating a long-standing commitment to advancing cotton IPM, Dr. Smith published 10 refereed scientific journal articles and co-authored chapters in two cotton insect reference journals. He produced 25 Auburn University Extension publications. Impressively, he contributed 724 articles and pieces to regional and national agricultural media outlets.
Dr. Smith frequently presented invited talks to cotton growers in Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Texas, Arizona, and California. He delivered 204 papers at conferences and professional meetings, including the Beltwide Cotton Conference and the Entomological Society of America meetings. He also served as an expert witness several times, once in an international patent case involving pyrethroid chemistry.
Dr. Ronald H. Smith devoted more than five decades to advancing cotton IPM, becoming one of the most influential voices in cotton entomology across Alabama and the broader Cotton Belt. His career spans the full evolution of modern cotton insect management, from the boll weevil era to genetically engineered cotton technologies, and he consistently helped growers adapt to each new challenge. After an extensive, impactful career in cotton entomology, Dr. Smith is beyond deserving of this honor.
help me out with this one
Ron Smith and Tom Ingram, Cotton grower and WWII Veteran, discussing cotton insect management