UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Heather Grab, assistant professor of entomology in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, has been awarded the Lorenzo L. Langstroth Early Career Professorship in Entomology.
The professorship was created in honor of Lorenzo L. Langstroth, an apiarist, clergyman and teacher who was considered the “Father of American Beekeeping.” Langstroth made many discoveries in beekeeping and contributed greatly to the industrialization of modern beekeeping, and the preference is to award the professorship to a faculty member whose research and teaching focuses on honey bees.
Troy Ott, Peter and Ann Tombros Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences, said Grab was awarded the professorship to recognize her research contributions, commitment to student teaching and mentoring, and engagement in Extension and public scholarship.
“On behalf of the College of Agricultural Sciences, I am delighted to congratulate Heather on this well-deserved professorship,” Ott said. “Heather’s work reflects the very best of Penn State — scientific excellence paired with a deep commitment to helping farmers, protecting pollinators, and turning research into practical solutions that strengthen agriculture and communities. We are proud to celebrate her achievements and excited for the impact she will continue to make.”
Grab said she was honored to receive the professorship, and that like Langstroth, she believes that practical innovation begins with curiosity about how natural systems work.
“Nearly two centuries later, I am inspired by that same spirit of curiosity, asking many of the same questions about how pollinators support agriculture, but with tools that allow us to observe ecological systems across landscapes and seasons in ways that were unimaginable even a decade ago,” she said.
By combining ecological insights with advances in sensing technology, environmental data and artificial intelligence, Grab added, her research seeks to reveal new understanding of pollinator biology while developing tools that help anticipate changes in pollinator communities and support informed decision-making in agriculture.
Grab’s research focuses on understanding the factors that predict the abundance and distribution of beneficial insects like wild pollinators — and applying that knowledge toward advancing the productivity and sustainability of agroecosystems.
Some of her lab’s projects include co-managing pest and beneficial insect populations on farms through integrated pest and pollinator management, as well as leveraging long-term monitoring data sets in combination with environmental data to predict short- and long-term populations of pests and beneficial insects.
Grab said the professorship will help provide students and postdoctoral scholars in her group with opportunities to explore new questions, develop emerging technologies and address some of agriculture’s most pressing challenges.
“Our goal is to translate scientific discovery into practical tools that help people make informed decisions, and one of the things I value most about Penn State's land-grant mission is the opportunity to work directly with growers and conservation partners to address real-world challenges,” she said. “I am excited to continue the legacy of the Lorenzo L. Langstroth Early Career Professorship by advancing discoveries that deepen our understanding of pollinators while helping ensure that scientific innovation continues to benefit agriculture and society.”