Thomas Stefaniak

Dr. Stefaniak is a Researcher 6, Breeding Specialist in the Department of
Horticultural Science. He is a plant breeder by training focusing on the
development of new high yielding cultivars with improved disease
tolerance and better quality. He began his career in plant breeding at the
age of sixteen as a student assistant in his hometown at the University of
Kentucky. Thomas earned his B.A. from Michigan State University
majoring in humanities, and his graduate degrees from the University of
Kentucky majoring in Crop Science, minoring in plant physiology. He
completed his education as a post-doctoral researcher at Texas A&M
under the supervision of Dr. Bill Rooney. Crops that Thomas has worked
with throughout his career include soybean, melon, dry bean, tobacco,
bermudagrass, sorghum, pea, lentil, chickpea, and now potato. Currently
Thomas works in the potato breeding project under the supervision of Dr.
Laura Shannon. In this position he writes grant proposals, research
papers, and trade magazine articles, in addition to managing the
tetraploid breeding program. Thomas enjoys tennis, exercise, reading, and
streaming movies and television.