WSU Viticulture & Enology Program
Director, WSU Viticulture & Enology Program

Number of employees you oversee:
11 faculty, 4 staff

Brief background of
your organization:

The WSU Viticulture & Enology (V&E) Program provides educational opportunities for those interested in grape growing and winemaking.

We offer undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degrees as well as online certificate programs to educate the next generation of wine industry professionals. We support the Washington wine industry through our comprehensive research program focused on quality and sustainability.

Our extension services work with various industry associations and directly with industry members to answer questions and to translate the latest research and extend it to the wine and grape industry through seminars, publications and other educational tools.

How did you land your current role? How long have you been in it?

I was hired as director of the WSU V&E Program in 2009. At that time, I was director of the Australian National Wine & Grape Industry Centre at Charles Sturt University, Australia. Prior to this, I worked for Cornell University and the New York wine industry for 20 years as assistant, then associate and full professor at Cornell University, building the research and education program there.

Why should the Tri-Cities care about the Washington wine industry?

Washington is the second largest producer of grapes/wine and largest juice grape producer in the U.S.

We are growing premium wine grapes and making award-winning wines at a lower price point than our competitors nationally and internationally. This industry has an economic impact of over $8 billion annually.

Eastern Washington is home to many of the state’s vineyards and wineries which translates into jobs, business revenue, tax dollars and tourism for this area!

In addition, the WSU V&E Program is quickly emerging as one of the top educational and research programs in the nation.

Our faculty are world-renowned, and our facilities are cutting edge.

In fact, the state-of-the-art Wine Science Center on the WSU Tri-Cities campus is a leading wine research and educational facility in the world!

What is one characteristic that you believe every leader should possess?

Honesty.

What is the biggest challenge facing business owners/managers today?

Currently, disruption of winemaking due to Covid-19. In the long term, we need to develop technologies to adapt to climate change.

If you had a magic wand, what would you change about your industry?

Make the achievements of WSU V&E Program and the Washington wine industry better known. We have a great collaborative relationship in research and education, an amazing record of innovation and consistently produce high-quality, distinctive wine.

What advice would you give someone going into a leadership position for the first time?

Listen and be honest. Be an example.

How do you keep your employees motivated?

Support them, listen and acknowledge their contributions.