Dr. John C. Owens
University of Nebraska

Biography:

John C. Owens is vice chancellor and vice president for the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska.

Owens began his career as an assistant professor of entomology at Iowa State from 1971 to 1975, then served one year as an associate professor of entomology at Texas Tech and one year as an entomologist for Pioneer Hi-Bred International before going to New Mexico State University. At NMSU, he rose to the rank of professor and served one year as head of the department of entomology and plant pathology before serving 12 years as dean and chief administrative officer for the College of Agriculture and Home Economics, the New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service and the New Mexico Agricultural Experiment Station and executive vice president and chief academic officer for three years, the first two in an interim appointment. He is immediate past president of the Southwestern and Rocky Mountain Division of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Owens earned his bachelor's degree in biology at West Texas State University (now Texas A&M University at Canyon, 1966), his master's in entomology at Texas Tech University (1969) and his doctorate in entomology at Iowa State (1971).