Irrigation Association names 2023 award recipients

The Irrigation Association (IA) recently announced the recipients of its annual awards, sponsored by Hunter Industries. The IA will recognize the three recipients during the 2023 Irrigation Show and Education Week in San Antonio, from Nov. 27-Dec. 1.

The association says its awards, “honor those who have made significant contributions to the irrigation industry, and each recipient recognized this year is a true change-maker who has made unique and meaningful accomplishments toward furthering the industry and promoting efficient irrigation.”

Award winners include:

Robert Dobson, CIC, CID, CLIA, a recipient of the 2023 Excellence in Education Award. Dobson teaches irrigation for the Rutgers Professional Golf Turf Management School and the Office of Continuing Professional Education. During his 20-year tenure, he has taught more than 1,600 students in the two-year program. Dobson has worked developing irrigation courses, teaching and guiding students, and co-authoring books, including the IA’s Irrigation, Sixth Edition. He is also president of Middletown Sprinkler Company, a past member of the Irrigation Association Board of Directors and served as president in 2013 and a past chair of the IA Certification Board.

Aavudai Anandhi, Ph.D., a recipient of the 2023 Excellence in Education Award. Anandhi is an associate professor at Florida A&M University specializing in irrigation and water management. When she joined Florida A&M, a historically black college (HBCU), she developed an irrigation and water management training program with limited resources to enhance the experience of undergraduate and graduate students from underrepresented groups. Florida A&M is the is one of only two biological and agricultural engineering programs accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology at an HBCU.

Craig Borland, CIC, CID, CIT, CLIA, CLWM, recipient of the 2023 Industry Achievement Award. Borland provides irrigation technical support in the areas of product engineering, legal, marketing and landscape drip. He has served as a volunteer instructor for the Irrigation Association for the past 22 years and is a member of the IA Education Committee.