Staniar Joins Penn State Equine Faculty

W. Burton Staniar has joined the Penn State Department of Dairy and Animal Science faculty as an assistant profession of equine nutrition. Prior to coming to Penn State, he was an assistant professor at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, based at the Middleburg Agricultural Research and Extension Center, Middleburg, VA. The Middleburg Research Center is a Thoroughbred breeding operation in northern Virginia with 40 - 50 broodmares, four stallions, producing approximately 30 foals annually. Through his post-doctoral and graduate work, Staniar worked at the Center for 10 years.

He received his B.A. degree in biology from the University of Richmond, and his M.S. and Ph. D. degrees from Virginia Tech.

Head of the Department of Dairy and Animal Science Terry Etherton said, "Dr. Staniar brings a wealth of knowledge to our equine program, and will provide valuable leadership in both research and undergraduate programs. He is extremely talented, and we welcome him as a strong addition to our growing equine program."

Staniar said, "I look forward to being a part of the well-established equine program at Penn State, and working with the accomplished group of equine faculty and staff. In addition to teaching existing undergraduate courses, I will be working to help develop new courses for undergraduate students." He said he is especially interesting in ensuring that students are well prepared for professional careers linked to the equine industry, both directly and indirectly. One way to support students is to expand the opportunities for them to gain experience outside the classroom through hands-on work in the industry and in ongoing research.

Staniar noted that Pennsylvania's equine industry ranks in the top ten in the nation, with the value of Pennsylvania's horses being $1.3 billion. With its steady growth expected to continue, it becomes much more important to focus research and other efforts on gaining information that is valuable not only to Pennsylvania but also nationally and internationally.

He welcomes the opportunity to work towards expanding the current research being done at Penn State and to continue his work studying nutritional and management influences on improving equine development and reproduction. He also emphasizes that communicating the applicable results of research to professionals within the industry is critical to the health of the equine industry and will work with the already strong extension program to meet this goal.

Staniar is active in the Equine Science Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Society of Animal Science, the Comparative Nutrition Society, the Pennsylvania Equine Council and the American Forage and Grasslands Council.