J. Scott Angle, former dean and director of the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, received the Earl Douglas Harris Memorial AGHON Award from AGHON at UGA. Angle, who now serves as president and CEO of the International Fertilizer Development Center, is one of only a few to be given the award in the past 30 years.

“It is a rare occasion to have the opportunity to present the Earl Douglas Harris Memorial AGHON Award, and the AGHON membership couldn't think of a more deserving recipient than Dr. Angle,” said Weston Quintrell, AGHON president.

“He has excelled as an internationally known soil scientist and as dean and director of CAES,”Quintrell said, “but most importantly, his dedication and loyalty to his family, friends, colleagues and students have made an impact on us all. Dr. Angle was selected to receive this award based on his lifetime of service to AGHON and the agricultural sector.”

Angle left the college this fall after 10 years as dean and director of the CAES.

“I am delighted that Scott Angle will receive the coveted AGHON Harris Memorial Award,” said Josef Broder, interim dean for CAES and associate dean for academic affairs. “This is a true testament to his years of dedicated service to the College and to Agriculture. In the spirit of AGHON, Dean Angle represents the highest recognition our colleges have to offer.”

AGHON was founded in 1920 to recognize students on the UGA campus with outstanding leadership and character and a passion for agriculture. AGHON also awards honorary membership to leaders with these same characteristics who have made an impact in some field of agriculture. 

The Earl Double Harris Memorial AGHON Award was created in the 1980s to give signal recognition to those AGHON members who have rendered exemplary and dedicated service. The award is named for former two-time AGHON president Earl Harris, who devoted his life to the advancement of AGHON. He was Georgia’s deputy commissioner of agriculture upon his untimely death.

AGHON is the highest honor a student in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, the College of Veterinary Medicine and the College of Engineering may attain at UGA. They are nominated and selected by their peers to participate in a semester-long commitment to enhance their understanding and appreciation of UGA and the agriculture history.

Angle was dean and director of the UGA CAES from 2005-2015. During his time as dean, the college enrollment grew by 30 percent, and major increases were realized in both the quality and diversity of those students. CAES students had a greater opportunity for international and internship experiences through the Dean’s Promise, a program Angle started to provide funding for extended learning opportunities.

He spearheaded the expansion of courses at UGA’s Griffin and Tifton campuses, allowing CAES students to stay close to home while earning a UGA degree. Attending classes at these historically strong agricultural experiment stations allows students to work with some of the best agricultural researchers in the world.

He was recognized often in the state as an outstanding leader and was a perennial name in Georgia Trend Magazine’s list of 100 Most Influential and Notable Georgians.