cts, studying pest issues in cotton, corn, and citrus, the use of remote sensing technology for identification and mapping of native vegetation, agricultural crops and invasive weeds, detection and monitoring of incipient pest infestations on glasshouse crops, and documenting the extent of wind- and water-caused erosion occurring within inland and coastal areas of the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas. He had over 70 publications in his years with the USDA and was very well known for his research.
In 2000, he was appointed as Assistant Professor in the Biology Department, the University of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg, and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2005. He taught 11 different courses and served as Chairman of 11 graduated student MS committees during his tenure at UTRGV. He continued extensive research and ended his career with a total of 106 publications, including a textbook titled "Effective Speaking and Writing Techniques".
Rod was an active member of the Sub Tropical Plant Society, serving as its President in 2012, and as the editor of the Subtropical Plant Science journal since 2007. He and Laura attended Grace Episcopal Church in Weslaco. He was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed traveling and camping, but his obvious passion was research and learning.
Rod is preceded in death by his parents, Kenneth and Olga Summy.
He is survived by his loving wife of 46 years, Laura, sons Andrew Summy (Samantha) of Minnesota and Patrick Summy (Melissa) of San Antonio, sisters Marilyn Jenkins (Ike) and Suzanne Russell (Kenny), and two grandchildren
To read the full obituary, please click here: https://www.mccalebfuneralhome.com/obituary/264074/Kenneth-Summy