Candidates should be actively involved in a distinguished research program in basic or applied sciences which has gained significant recognition. It must be clear that the awardee has made a valuable contribution to science. All faculty and staff with an appointment with the Agriculture Experiment Station (AES), either in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, or in departments outside of the college (such as Entomology) are eligible for this award. Candidates may be located in academic units on campus, or at off-campus components of the research and education centers. The same person may receive this award more than once during his/her career in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.
| Year | Recipient |
| 1970 | Marvin K. Aycock, Jr. |
| 1971 | Raymond L. King |
| 1972 | Hugh G. Grant |
| 1973 | A. Morris Decker |
| 1974 | Emory C. Leffel |
| 1975 | J.H. Axley |
| 1976 | S.B. Mohanty |
| 1977 | D.S. Fanning |
| 1978 | S.B. Mohanty |
| 1979 | Joseph Soares |
| 1980 | Amihud Kramer |
| 1981 | James L. Heath |
| 1982 | F.W. Wheaton |
| 1983 | Wayne J. Kuenzel |
| 1984 | Dennis Stimmart |
| 1985 | Hugh D. Sisler |
| 1986 | Ian H. Mather |
| 1987 | D. Scott Glenn |
| 1988 | N/A |
| 1989 | N/A |
| 1990 | Inder K. Vijay |
| 1991 | Kenneth McConnell |
| 1992 | Robert G. Chambers |
| 1993 | Richard E. Just |
| 1994 | Jay Scott Angle |
| 1995 | Bruce L. Gardner |
| 1996 | Phylis B. Moser-Veillon |
| 1997 | Thomas W. Castonguay |
| 1998 | Richard A. Erdman |
| 1999 | Mary Ann Ottinger |
| 2000 | Erik Lichtenberg |
| 2001 | Tom Porter |
| 2002 | Ramon Lopez |
| 2003 | Nancy E. Bockstael |
| 2004 | Richard Kohn |
| 2005 | John A. List |
| 2006 | Yang Tao |
| 2007 | Siba Samal |
|
2008 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 |
Liangli (Lucy) Yu Xiaoping Zhu Nadine Sahyoun Utpal Pal Erik Lichtenberg Shirley Micallef Daniel Nelson Kate Tully |