2026 PRI All-Hands Retreat
The 2026 Plant Resilience Institute (PRI) All-Hands Retreat will take place May 6-7, 2026, at the Michigan State University Multicultural Center. This event will provide an opportunity to meet other PRI members, share research, and establish common interests to facilitate collaborations.
PRI will be celebrating its ten-year anniversary in 2026! In honor of this landmark occasion, we are inviting PRI alumni and key stakeholders to join us on the first day of the retreat.
We are also pleased to welcome Professor of Agronomy and Co-Director of the Institute for Digital and Advanced Agricultural Systems (IDAAS) Dr. Ignacio Ciampitti from Purdue University as our keynote speaker.
PRI Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) members Mary Lou Guerinot, Jan Leach, Corné Pieterse, and Anne Sylvester will join us for the duration of the retreat to evaluate PRI’s research programs, progress, and impact.
Please note registration to attend the retreat is now closed.
Event Details
Date: May 6-7, 2026 (in-person only)
Times:
Wednesday, May 6: 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM EDT
Thursday, May 7: 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM EDT
Location:
Michigan State University Multicultural Center
535 N. Shaw Lane, East Lansing, MI 48824
Please be aware there is construction on Farm Lane from N. Shaw Lane to Trowbridge Road and sections of S. Shaw Lane and Wilson Road, which may impact your travel to the Multicultural Center. For more information and detailed detour routes, see the MSU Infrastructure Planning and Facilities website.
Schedule
Day 1: Wednesday, May 6, 2026 – 10th Anniversary Celebration
| Time | Session | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM | Breakfast and sign in | |
| 9:00 AM - 9:10 AM | Opening remarks | Dr. Shashank Priya, Vice President, Office of Research and Innovation |
| 9:10 AM - 9:20 AM | The state of PRI | Dr. Sue Rhee |
| 9:20 AM - 10:15 AM | PI presentations 5-minute talks from the Gilbert lab, Glassmire lab, Howe lab, Josephs lab, Lebeis lab, Lowry lab, and Lundquist lab, followed by 20-minute Q&A |
Drs. Kadeem Gilbert, Andrea Glassmire, Gregg Howe, Emily Joseph, Sarah Lebeis, David Lowry, and Peter Lundquist |
| 10:15 AM - 10:30 AM | Break | |
| 10:30 AM - 11:25 AM | PI presentations 5-minute talks from the Rhee lab, Rouached lab, Sharkey lab, Sprunger lab, Thompson lab, Topp lab, and VanBuren lab, followed by 20-minute Q&A |
Drs. Sue Rhee, Hui-Kyong Cho, Tom Sharkey, Christine Sprunger, Addie Thompson, Christopher Topp, and Robert VanBuren |
| 11:25 AM - 12:00 PM | Trainee flash talk competition 3-minute talks |
#1 - Dr. Colette Berg #2 - Andrew Bleich #3 - Jonathan Concepcion #4 - Madison Creach #5 - Shannon Donnelly #6 - Bailey Kleven #7 - Madison Plunkert #8 - Dr. Kathe Rivera-Zuluaga #9 - Dr. Anuradha Singh |
| 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM | Lunch | |
| 1:00 PM - 1:10 PM | Afternoon opening remarks | Dr. Doug Gage, Former Vice President, Office of Research and Innovation |
| 1:10 PM - 2:10 PM | Keynote presentation | Dr. Ignacio Ciampitti, Professor of Agronomy, Purdue University |
| 2:10 PM - 2:30 PM | PRIME flagship project presentation | Dr. Gregg Howe |
| 2:30 PM - 2:50 PM | EWAS-PR flagship project presentation | Dr. Addie Thompson |
| 2:50 PM - 3:10 PM | GLACIER flagship project presentation | Dr. Robert VanBuren |
| 3:10 PM - 3:50 PM | Plant and Environmental Sciences Building (PESB) tour (Sign up at registration table) |
Lindsay Lake-Hefner |
| 3:50 PM - 4:00 PM | Group photo | All attendees |
| 4:00 PM - 5:00 PM | Poster session 1 | Odd-numbered poster presenters |
| 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM | Poster session 2 | Even-numbered poster presenters |
| 6:00 PM - 7:00 PM | Dinner | |
| 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM | Reception |
Day 2: Thursday, May 7, 2026 – Internal Retreat
| Time | Session | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM | Breakfast | |
| 9:00 AM - 9:05 AM | Opening remarks | Dr. Sue Rhee |
| 9:05 AM - 9:10 AM | PRI Seed Grant Program History and Achievements |
Dr. David Lowry |
| 9:10 AM - 10:15 AM | PRI Seed Grant Cohort 5 awardees proposal presentations 8-minute talks |
Dr. Yan Chen Dr. Ian Gilman Asia Hawkins Maddy Quinlan Dr. Rajneesh Singhal Dr. Jinny Yang (Co-PI) Dr. Hiruni Weerasooriya Dr. Hui-Ching Yang |
| 10:15 AM - 10:30 AM | Break | |
| 10:30 AM - 11:15 AM | Equipment and new technology presentations 10-minute talks 5-minute Q&A |
Dr. Ian Gilman Bailey Kleven Dr. Christopher Topp |
| 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM | PRI Postdoctoral Fellows presentations 15-minute talks 5-minute Q&A |
Dr. Derek Denney Dr. Joanna Feehan Dr. Jinny Yang |
| 12:15 PM - 1:15 PM | Lunch | |
| Concurrent session 1:15 PM - 2:15 PM |
Faculty meeting | PRI faculty members |
| Concurrent session 1:15 PM - 2:15 PM |
Scientific Advisory Board (SAB) and trainee discussion |
SAB members and PRI trainees |
| 2:15 PM - 2:30 PM | Final remarks and awards ceremony | Dr. Sue Rhee |
| 2:30 PM - 2:45 PM | Break | |
| Concurrent session 2:45 PM - 3:45 PM |
Trainee brainstorming town hall | PRI trainees |
| Concurrent session 2:45 PM - 5:45 PM |
Faculty and SAB meeting Presentation by Sue Rhee SAB executive session SAB feedback session |
PRI faculty and SAB members |
End of retreat.