Payton Davis, a Ph.D. student at Clemson University, has been honored with the prestigious Gerald O. Mott Meritorious Graduate Student Award in Crop Science. This award, presented by the Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), recognizes outstanding graduate students in crop science disciplines based on academic achievements, research, teaching contributions, leadership accomplishments, service activities, and personal qualifications.
Payton completed her MS in May 2023 at Clemson University and is currently pursuing her PhD in the Plant and Environmental Sciences Department. Throughout her graduate career, she has excelled in teaching, research, and extension, demonstrating exceptional leadership skills and community involvement.
Payton has delivered multiple presentations, including two at international meetings, two at national SSSA-ASA-CS meetings, one regional, and three at the university level. She also supervises undergraduate research assistants in the Soil Water Dynamics Lab. Her extension work includes two published articles in Land Grant Press, with two more in progress, and she has given extension presentations and hosted a farmer field day.
Her academic excellence has earned her two scholarships and a travel grant. She has also pursued a minor in statistics and completed the GIS Fundamental Workshop Series. Payton’s research focuses on soil health and soil water repellency, with two research publications in press and five more in preparation. This past summer, she was the Principal Investigator on one grant proposal and Co-Principal Investigator on two others, securing approximately $124K in funding.
As the lead teaching assistant, Payton teaches all three sections of the PES 2021 Soil Laboratory each semester and has updated two laboratory exercises, with plans to revamp two more this summer. She has co-coached the Clemson Soils Team for two years and volunteers at Mount Lebanon Elementary School, assisting with their running club. Additionally, Payton and her dog Riley participate in the Greenville Pug Meetup, raising funds for the Shriners Children’s Hospital every December.
