SIU Grad Students Receive $40k for Agriculture Research
Southern Illinois University
News
Friday, October 2, 2026
Two Southern Illinois University Carbondale graduate students, Sowmya Koduru (left) and Moein Javid (right), were selected as Illinois recipients of the 2026 Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) grants. The funding will enable them to expand their research to cooperating farm fields. ( Photo by Brooke Keltner)
October 01, 2026
SIU grad students receive $40k for agriculture research
by Brooke Keltner
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Two Southern Illinois University Carbondale graduate students received nearly $40,000 from the United States Department of Agriculture to support their research projects, focusing on the benefits of malting barley in double-crop soybean systems and efforts to utilize fertilizers more efficiently for winter wheat.
Moein Javid and Sowmya Koduru
They were selected as Illinois recipients of the 2026 SARE grants. Since 1988, only 204 projects in Illinois have received SARE funding. The program aims to introduce new, sustainable ideas to farms and ranches nationwide.
Kristina Boone, dean of the College of Agricultural, Life, and Physical Sciences, expressed pride in Javid and Koduru's recognition and the additional funding that will aid their research.
“Putting together a competitive proposal is a great experience and gives them a leg up as they continue their careers,” Boone said. “I also appreciate how hard our faculty work to mentor them in this process. We really are working to develop the next generation of scientists and industry leaders.”
Experimenting with Malting Barley
Javid, pursuing a doctorate in agricultural sciences, is exploring whether winter malting barley could be a more profitable and sustainable alternative to winter wheat in double-crop soybean systems.
“Winter wheat is commonly grown before soybeans in the Midwest, but relatively low wheat prices, high nitrogen fertilizer needs, and its later harvest can limit profitability and delay soybean planting,” Javid explained. “Malting barley may offer farmers a better option because it requires less nitrogen, can be harvested about two weeks earlier, and may receive a higher market price.”
So far, preliminary research at SIU indicated that soybeans following winter malting barley yielded approximately 8% more than those following winter wheat, Javid said.
Javid received $19,806 in SARE grant funding, which will be utilized to extend his research from SIU’s University Farms to commercial farming conditions.
“It’s rewarding to see our research idea recognized, and I am excited about the opportunity to expand the project and work directly with farmers,” he said. “This grant will also help us share our findings directly with farmers through field days and other outreach activities.”
Utilizing Nitrogen Efficiently in Winter Wheat
Meanwhile, Koduru is investigating ways to support farmers who grow winter wheat as a cover crop by efficiently utilizing nitrogen fertilizer while minimizing environmental nitrogen losses to enhance yield.
“We are studying fertilizer application timings, nitrification inhibitor rates, and sulfur fertilization to determine which combinations can maintain or improve wheat yield and grain quality while reducing nitrogen loss and improving profitability,” said Koduru, who is from India and pursuing a doctorate in environmental resources and policy.
Her field experiment began at SIU's Belleville Research Center in the fall of 2025, comparing different nitrogen management strategies, nitrification inhibitor rates, and sulfur fertilization.