Fernanda Krupek joined the Department of Horticulture and Crop Science (HCS) at Ohio State University in August 2023. Prior to her arrival in Wooster, Fernanda was a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln working with Midwesterner growers to implement soil health management practices. Fernanda's degrees in inter and transdisciplinary programs in horticulture (M.Sc., University of Florida) and agronomy (Ph.D., University of Nebraska and BSc., University of Sao Paulo, Brazil) solidified her interest in food systems and applied research integrated with Extension.
As the state extension specialist and urban food system horticulturalist, Fernanda leads the Urban Food Innovations Team with the main goal of cultivating horticultural food production systems serving urban and regional markets that are productive and nutritive, resource-use efficient, economically viable, and socially responsible. She partners with OSU Urban Ag Extension Team, members of HCS and other OSU departments to further our knowledge about urban agriculture. She is currently developing research and extension programming focused on ethnic crops/world vegetables as well as scale-appropriate systems for irrigation scheduling, cover crop, and nutrient management strategies. Fernanda is also part of the advisory team supporting a Student Farm program where she hopes to support the creation of cohorts of trainees and a sustained experiential training program on urban agriculture.
Personal and professional fulfillment to Fernanda comes from balancing work, community, family, and faith. Fernanda enjoys spending time reading books related to leadership as well as traveling to discover and learn new places and food systems. Volunteering in community efforts and going out for bicycle rides have been Fernanda’s favorite pastime since she moved to Wooster. If you would like to connect, contact Fernanda via email (krupek.1@osu.edu), phone (352-573-5340), or stop by her office in Williams Hall, 110A.
