Gould Gets Top UNC System Honor

Dr. Fred Gould, William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Entomology, is the 2012 recipient of the O. Max Gardner Award, the most significant universitywide honor given to faculty by the University of North Carolina Board of Governors.

The award is presented each year to a faculty member from one of the system’s 17 campuses who is recognized as having “made the greatest contribution to the welfare of the human race.”

An elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, Gould studies the ecology and genetics of insect pests to improve food production and human and environmental health. One of his research projects involves genetically modified mosquitoes that have reduced capacity to carry and spread dengue fever. He has received funding from the National Science Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, among others, for his work.

Gould has authored or co-authored more than 160 refereed publications. He has been invited to present papers at numerous conferences, symposia and seminars.

In 2007, he won the George Bugliarello Prize from Sigma Xi for his article on genetic manipulation of pests for control of human disease vectors. In 2004, Gould received the Alexander von Humboldt Award, which is presented annually to the person judged to have made the most significant contribution to American agriculture during the previous five years.

In 2011, Gould received NC State’s Holladay Medal, the university’s highest award for faculty achievement.

Gould has served on National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council committees to study the environmental effects of the commercialization of genetically modified plants and develop recommendations on genetically modified pest-protected crops. He has also served on Environmental Protection Agency panels on genetically modified crops.

Gould is a member of the Entomological Society of America, the Society for the Study of Evolution and Sigma Xi.

Born in New York, Gould earned his bachelor’s degree in biology from Queens College and a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He came to NC State as a research associate in 1978, was named full professor in 1990, and was named Reynolds Professor in 1993.

Gould is the 10th faculty member from NC State to win the O. Max Gardner Award since 1996.