Wood science professor honored by international academy

Audrey Zink-Sharp

BLACKSBURG, Va., May 14, 2009 -- Audrey Zink-Sharp, a wood science and forest products professor in Virginia Tech's College of Natural Resources, has been elected a Fellow of the International Academy of Wood Science (IAWS), a non-profit assembly of scientists representing all facets of wood science.

The IAWS promotes the concerted development of wood science on the international level by honoring distinguished achievements in the science of wood and promoting a high standard of research and publication. Election as an IAWS Fellow is regarded as a high honor in the wood science community that reflects the entire membership’s recognition of the contributions made by the honoree in the field of wood science.

Zink-Sharp teaches undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education classes in wood anatomy, wood properties, and wood processing, and serves as director of the Sustainable Engineered Materials Institute at Virginia Tech. Her primary research emphasis is wood cell wall architecture and the development of improved wood-based composites. She is presently creating three-dimensional, virtual reality models of a wood cube. Zink-Sharp has coordinated the Wood Magic at Virginia Tech, a natural resource education program that has reached over 10,000 children, teachers, guests, and volunteers, since its inception in 1998.

“I highly respect the International Academy of Wood Science and its members, and am very pleased to be elected Fellow by this organization of eminent scientists,” said Zink-Sharp.

Zink-Sharp received her bachelor's and master's degrees from Colorado State University, and her doctorate from the State University of New York.

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