NDSU alumna Kacie McCarthy, PhD ’19, is the recipient of the 2020 Young Scholar Award from the Midwest Section of the American Society of Animal Science.

McCarthy, now a beef cow-calf specialist in the animal science department at the University of Nebraska, received the award at the joint Midwest ASAS and American Dairy Science Association meeting in Omaha, Nebraska.

The award recognizes and features the research accomplishments of recent doctoral degree graduates or current doctoral students in the advanced stages of their program.

McCarthy earned her bachelor’s degree in animal science from Colorado State University. During her Master of Science program at New Mexico State University, she helped evaluate the effects of early implantation with Ralgro on performance and profit margins of Holstein bull calves.

As part of her doctoral program at NDSU, she worked with Carl Dahlen, associate professor of animal sciences. In her research, McCarthy evaluated supplementation strategies for grazing beef cattle. Her teaching efforts included multiple teaching assistant assignments. She also was the instructor of record for a capstone course.

Her Extension involvement at NDSU included assisting with needs assessment, survey development, program organization and evaluation, and reporting of impacts. She began working at the University of Nebraska in January.

“Kacie was a model student,” said Marc Bauer, interim head of the NDSU Department of Animal Sciences. “In addition to contributing to all aspects of the land-grant mission at her institutions, Kacie provided service in terms of committees, organizations and boards to all of her institutes and to her professional society.”

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