Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering (FABE) faculty Dee Jepsen was recently named as the 2025 "Leader in the Field" by the Journal of Agromedicine, a publication showcasing research on agricultural health, medicine and safety in terms of behavior, mental health, climate change, rural healthcare, epidemiology, policy and technology.
The Journal of Agromedicine announces its Leader in the Field in the first issue of each volume. The recognition goes to an individual who has made significant contributions in agricultural safety and health practice, policy, and research. Jepsen becomes the first recipient from The Ohio State University.
“One of the most gratifying but simultaneously humbling tasks that our editorial board undertakes each year is to select the annual ‘Leader in the Field’ award recipient,” said Journal of Agromedicine Editor-in-Chief Matthew Keifer, M.D., M.P.H. “This annual exercise provides us the opportunity to review the work and careers of some of the most devoted and committed safety and health professionals in the field. Each year we marvel at the quality and breadth of work of the many potential recipients. Doctor Jepsen is just such a professional. She is a master of her trade, and we are proud that she accepted our nomination for Leader in the Field.”
Jepsen has been with the Ohio State Agricultural Safety and Health Program since 1992 and works tirelessly for teaching, extension, and research in occupational safety and health not just in Ohio, but around the world.
Her outreach efforts evolve around current issues in farm and rural safety, providing community training programs for high school classrooms, farm families and workers, agricultural industry groups, and the public seeking to understand safety and health issues farmers face.
She collaborates with a variety of stakeholders and organizations to design injury prevention programs that meet the needs of agricultural-industry workers across all ages and experience levels.
"This is an unexpected honor, and I am blessed to work with great colleagues," said Jepsen. "I am blessed to be entrusted with safety and health programming for Ohio State."
In addition to this recognition, Jepsen has received numerous ASABE (American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers) Blue Ribbon awards for outreach education (1998-2023), the Utzinger Extension Teaching Award (2007), Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents (2023), and Ohio’s Spirit of the Land Grant Award (2023).
Her full-length feature article appears in Volume 30 of the Journal of Agromedicine.
Visit the Ohio State Agricultural Safety and Health Website.