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Annual Excellence Awards
The Forest Products Society celebrated leaders and innovators in the forestry industry with its Annual Excellence Awards at the 2026 International Conference Banquet at The Graduate Hotel in Eugene, Oregon, July 16th, 2026.
Past Award Recipients
Fred W. Gottschalk Memorial Award
The prestigious Fred W. Gottschalk Memorial Award, named for the first President of the Society, recognizes exceptional service to FPS by an individual member.
Dr. Brian K. Via could not attend the conference in person, but his absence was due to his official start date as the incoming Director of the School of Packaging at Michigan State University in East Lansing. He previously served as the Regions Bank Endowed Full Professor and Director of the Forest Products Development Center at Auburn University. He currently serves as President of the Forest Products Society (FPS) and Editor-in-Chief of the Forest Products Journal (FPJ). Bridging academia with 14 years of corporate R&D, Dr. Via was Wood Quality Project Leader at International Paper Corporation, where his Pinus taeda genetics research drove a $13 million annual revenue increase. Later, as a Research Engineer at Louisiana Pacific Corporation, he managed quality metrics across 14 North American plants and was the first inventing scientist behind FlameBlock® fire-retardant composite technology. Since becoming Editor-in-Chief of FPJ in 2018, Dr. Via has significantly enhanced its academic quality and global reach. Under his leadership and to the credit of the associate editors, the Impact Factor rebounded from a 0.4 starting point to a peak of 1.26, with an estimated IF of 1.6 for the soon to be released JCR 2025. This success propelled FPJ to a JCR Q2 ranking within its category this past year. An FPS member since 1996 with over 170 peer-reviewed publications, Dr. Via holds a Ph.D. from Louisiana State University and degrees from Virginia Tech.
2026 Fred W. Gottschalk Award Winner
Brian Via, PhD
Wood Engineering Achievement Award, Young Engineer
The Wood Engineering Achievement Award recognizes accomplishments and innovations in the discipline of wood engineering including structures, structural elements, building codes, consensus standards, design procedures and education.
For 2026, the Wood Engineering Achievement Award category is "Young Engineer," honoring an individual who has provided a valuable contribution to the field of wood engineering. This award is intended to encourage young (40 years of age or younger) engineers, researchers, or scientists with promising potential for significant contribution to the field.
Dr. Laya Khademibami is an Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Sustainable Bioproducts at Mississippi State University (MSU). She earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Natural Resources Engineering, with a concentration in Wood Science and Technology, in Iran, and received her Ph.D. in Forest Resources from MSU in 2019, specializing in sustainable bioproducts. Her research focuses on the performance, durability, and engineering behavior of wood-based materials and structural systems, including mass timber, structural insulated panels (SIPs), railroad ties, timber mats, and environmentally friendly wood preservatives. She has served as principal investigator (PI) or co-principal investigator (Co-PI) on multiple research projects funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, and State and Private Forestry Wood Innovation Grants Program. Her work has advanced the understanding of long-term structural performance, creep behavior, and mechanical properties of engineered wood products, contributing to industry standards and building code development. She has authored or co-authored more than 30 peer-reviewed publications and actively collaborates with industry, government laboratories, and academic institutions across the United States. In addition to her research, Dr. Khademibami is committed to mentoring graduate students and advancing the forest products profession through service, education, and industry engagement.
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2026 Wood Engineering Achievement Award—
Young Engineer
Dr. Laya Khademibami
L.J. Markwardt Wood Engineering Award
The L.J. Markwardt Wood Engineering Award is intended to encourage research and promote knowledge of wood in the engineering field as a means of enhancing the efficient utilization of wood. This Award was established in 1969 by L.J. Markwardt, a Charter member of the Society, who was for many years an Assistant Director at the USDA Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wis. in charge of Wood Engineering Research.
The Award is presented annually to the author or authors of a technical paper published during the two calendar years prior to the award year in either the Forest Products Journal or Wood and Fiber Science that is judged to be the most outstanding research paper in the field of wood as an engineering material.
Dr. Dilpreet Bajwa is currently serving as a Professor and Head of the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA. Before joining academia, he worked in the engineered biocomposites industry (International Paper Company, Masonite Corporation, Greenland Composites) for 12 yrs. in various R&D leadership roles. He served as an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Agriculture and Biological Engineering at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, and a Professor at North Dakota State University. He graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2000 with a doctorate in Wood Science and Engineering. Dr. Bajwa’s research area focuses on developing novel, sustainable, multifunctional materials from renewable feedstocks and agricultural byproducts. Currently, his research focuses on the application of nanocellulosic materials to engineer wood properties, synthesizing bio-based thermochemical energy storage materials, developing safe fire-retardant systems for polymer composites, and processing and characterizing biopolymers, carbon fiber, and natural fiber composites. He has presented his research at various international conferences and meetings and authored over 160 research papers and technical articles in various journals and books. He serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Industrial Crops and Products Journal.
2026 L.J. Markwardt Award Winner
Dr. Dilpreet Bajwa
FPS Wood Award
The Forest Products Society’s Wood Award (first and second place) recognizes and honors the most outstanding research in the field of wood and wood products conducted by graduate students. The Wood Award is the most prestigious award in the area of graduate research in wood and wood products. The 1st Wood Award was presented in 1948, and with the exception of the years 1951 and 1952, it has been given annually since its inception.
First Place: Roselle Barretto, Ph.D., is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the USDA Forest Service–Forest Products Laboratory, where he conducts research on sustainable protein-based wood adhesives and bio-based materials. His work focuses on understanding and developing plant protein adhesives through protein modification, adhesive formulation, and wood composite testing. He earned his Ph.D. in Biological and Agricultural Engineering from Kansas State University in 2025. Barretto's research has been recognized through numerous honors, including the 2025 University Distinguished Professors Excellence in Doctoral Studies Award, the 2024 Biological and Agricultural Engineering Graduate Student of the Year Award from Kansas State University, and the 2026 Pharos of Alexandria Global Learning Award from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE). He has authored more than 13 peer-reviewed publications and several industrial magazine articles and serves as a reviewer for numerous international journals. Beyond research, Barretto is an active leader in professional organizations. He currently serves as Publications Council Representative for the ASABE Young Professionals Community and previously led international initiatives promoting global collaboration in agricultural and biological engineering. His contributions to research, leadership, and outreach have earned more than 60 international, national, and university honors throughout his academic and professional career.
Second Place: Haoran Ye is a Ph.D. candidate in Wood Science and Technology at Nanjing Forestry University. His research focuses on developing sustainable, high-performance wood-based functional materials, with particular emphasis on electromagnetic interference shielding composites. He is especially interested in integrating metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) with wood-derived materials to improve their electromagnetic shielding effectiveness, thermal conductivity, mechanical strength, and multifunctional performance. Haoran has published several papers in SCI-indexed journals and has contributed to research on wood-based electromagnetic shielding composites and other advanced functional materials. His work seeks to combine the renewable nature and hierarchical structure of wood with emerging functional materials, providing environmentally friendly solutions for advanced engineering and industrial applications. His academic and innovation achievements have been recognized through several awards, including a Gold Medal at the China International ‘Internet+’ Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition and the National Third Prize in the 17th ‘Challenge Cup’ Competition. He has also participated in national and provincial research projects and has led projects supported by the Jiangsu Provincial Graduate Research and Practice Innovation Program and the Doctoral Youth Support Program.
Distinguished Service Award
The Distinguished Service Award is presented to the individual who has demonstrated outstanding dedication to the Forest Products Society and biomaterials industry as a whole. The award recipient will have contributed to the society and the industry throughout their career through research, society leadership positions, and service.
Bob Breyer earned his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of New Orleans and completed postdoctoral studies at Duke University. In 1991, he joined Georgia-Pacific Resins, now Bakelite Synthetics, where he has contributed for nearly 35 years. Throughout his career, Bob has been an active member of the Wood-Based Composites Center and the Forest Products Society. Within the Forest Products Society, he has served in several leadership roles, including Vice President and President. During his tenure, he helped guide the organization through a transition to a new Executive Director, strengthening its financial stability and improving member support. Bob has also been deeply committed to student development, working through both the Wood-Based Composites Center and the Forest Products Society to help prepare students for successful careers in the industry. Professionally, his work has focused on resin development as well as the digital and data-driven transformation taking place within Bakelite Synthetics and the broader industry.
2026 Distinguished Service Award Winner
Bob Breyer, PhD
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