After nearly 35 years of dedicated service to students in the Financial Aid and Scholarships Office, Adeline Ford will retire from her role as senior financial aid counselor at the end of the year.

Over the years, Ford has been an asset to our office and has had her hand in many different areas. She has played a large part in administering the Cal Grant program, overseeing the customer service team and service to students, leading colleagues, and has also spent several years as a liaison for the Renaissance Scholars Program. Her hard work and dedication has made a significant difference in many students’ lives, not only helping them fund their educational goals, but providing the information to help them be successful along the way.

Following her retirement, she plans on spending as much time with her family and friends as possible, including her grandson, Myles, while also doing some traveling. She is looking forward to getting back into scrapbooking and turning those memories into priceless scrapbooks.

While we will miss Ford's friendly demeanor and historical knowledge, we are very excited for her in this next chapter of her life.

The Craig School of Business is saying goodbye to two dedicated educators who made a difference both inside and outside the classroom. Associate Professor Dr. Va Nee L. Van Vleck and lecturer Jeff Brueggemann, both of the Economics Department, are retiring at the end of the fall 2021 semester. While we are sorry to see them go, we celebrate their newly won leisure time and the accomplishments of their distinguished careers.

Dr. Va Nee L. Van Vleck has taught principles of microeconomics, intermediate microeconomic theory, health economics, economics and crime and other applications of microeconomic analysis for 17 years.

For Van Vleck, economics is not a dry academic subject, but a window into human life. “Economics is a power lens to see the patterns and forces that shape the places we work, our communities and the wider world we live in. Economics is not esoteric; it is real and valuable to everyone’s lives,” she said.

Van Vleck said that teaching and transforming students’ lives has been the best part of her career. “My focus has been on teaching because I believe it can empower students to achieve remarkable, inspiring goals. I have truly enjoyed watching graduates become professionals in well-recognized companies and public agencies and leaders in Valley communities. Fresno State's mission to offer transformational education to the diverse and hard-working students and families in the Valley has been the key reason I have worked at Fresno State,” Van Vleck said.

Her retirement plans include welcoming two new grandchildren in early 2022 and continuing her research in applied microeconomics and the social forces of compliance, enforcement and adjudications for public safety/public health with respect to drunk driving.

Jeff Brueggemann has taught international business and microeconomics for the last 10 years, after a varied career as a professional baseball player, international baseball coach, mutual fund manager, hedge fund manager and international business consultant. Brueggeman’s career has taken him all around the world, to nearly every province of China, and to all 50 U.S. states. This international perspective has helped Brueggemann relate to a diverse student body and bring broader perspectives to his students.

“I have had students from at least 51 nations, which is pretty cool. I started marking a globe with their countries. I have had business associates and friends from countries all over the world speak to my classes. It reveals to students that one professor does NOT have all the answers, that they must hear viewpoints from many sources and then make their own decisions,” Brueggemann said.

Brueggemann intends to spend his retirement trout fishing in the mountains, reading and writing and continuing to travel internationally.

The Jordan College sincerely thanks three retiring faculty and staff members who have made valuable contributions to students, faculty, staff and their programs for several decades.

Dr. Sanliang Gu is the longest-tenured member among current viticulture and enology faculty. He joined the program in 1999.

Gu served as the program’s Ricchiuti Chair of Viticulture Research, and has studied topics related to climatic analysis, fruit quality improvement, plant nutrition, plant-water relations, vineyard irrigation, cold hardiness, cultivar evaluation, trellis systems and canopy management.

He also taught courses in winegrape production, general viticulture, rootstocks and research methodology and communications.

He received the Jordan College’s Outstanding Research and Scholarly Activity Award in 2004, and the American Society of Enology and Viticulture Best Paper of the Year Award in 1995.

Prior to his 23 years of service at Fresno State, he worked as an assistant research processor of fruit science for three-and-half years at Southwest Missouri State University.

He received his doctoral and master’s degrees in horticulture from Oregon State University and his bachelor’s degree from Shandong Agricultural University.

To see more about his scholarly research and background, visit this page.

Viticulture and enology program specialist Cynthia Wood has served as a vital link for students, faculty, staff, alumni and industry supporters with 40 years of service.

She was hired in 1981 by Dr. Vincent E. Petrucci, the program founder and then-director of the Viticulture and Enology Research Center, and has handled administrative, outreach and event coordinator needs for one of the nation’s leading viticulture and enology programs.

She has played equally important roles in fundraising for the department library that is named in Petrucci's honor. She has also organized a host of events like its Grape Day, a biyearly event that showcases faculty research with industry partners, alumni and students.

In 2016-17, she received the Jordan College’s Distinguished Service Award for her exceptional service and commitment to the college.

Born in Fresno and raised in Easton, she graduated from Fresno State with a bachelor’s degree in liberal studies in 1988, and is proud that several family members also work in the grape and wine industry.

To learn more about her career and background, read this recent interview.

Research technician Tim Jacobsen has utilized a wide range of agronomy experience to manage Center for Irrigation Technology (CIT) field research for 21 years. Jacobsen has made major improvements to CIT’s field research facilities by implementing procedures to minimize the variability in field conditions with the goal to maximize the potential for obtaining quality research data especially in soil management and health — an area that is often neglected.

The Saratoga native started on campus in May 1988 and has worked in various capacities for the internationally-respected center, and also assisted with many of its education and outreach programs.

He holds a plant science master’s degree from Fresno State and began work as a research technician as a student for faculty members Dr. Jeff Steiner and Dr. Gary Ritenour. After he graduated in 1991, he continued to work on campus for several years. He left campus in 1993 to work in the agriculture industry as a consultant and pest control adviser and consultant. He returned for follow-up stints at CIT that started in 2000 and again in 2015.

Among the many programs he worked on, he helped develop a chemigation education program for the California Department of Pesticide Regulation that has been shared throughout the state. He was also a valuable initial contributor to the Advanced Pumping Efficiency Program that CIT manages for PG&E to encourage more sustainable practices and assist growers and other industry members. Both programs took the educational message across the state using mobile education centers that were designed and constructed at CIT.

Former CIT Director David Zoldoske said, “Tim is an outstanding agronomist and his field experience greatly added to CIT's research capabilities. He was always a team player, who worked well with staff and students. Furthermore, he would always put in the time to be sure the research plots looked professional and worked closely with clients to solve their research questions. Much of CIT's field research success can be directly attributed to Tim's contributions. He certainly will be missed.”

To learn more about his career and background, read this recent interview.

Do you have a faculty or staff member in your department retiring soon or recently retired? If so, Campus News wants to share their accomplishment.

Please send a short paragraph about the employee to campusnews@csufresno.edu with years of service, the department or departments they worked in, any special memories or details about that person and retirement plans along with a photo (horizontal preferred).