UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Dennis Decoteau, professor emeritus of horticulture and plant ecosystem health, recently retired from Penn State after a distinguished 26-year career in the College of Agricultural Sciences.
Decoteau joined the University in 1998 as head of the then Department of Horticulture (now Department of Plant Science). After stepping down from that post in 2004, he remained on the faculty as a professor of horticulture and plant ecosystem health.
Before his tenure at Penn State, he was on the faculty of the Department of Horticulture at Clemson University from 1985 to 1997, serving as chair of the department for the last two years.
Decoteau received his bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from the University of Maine at Fort Kent and his master’s and doctoral degrees in plant science/physiology from the University of Massachusetts. While at Clemson University, he conducted groundbreaking research on light-regulated growth of plants.
As a professor, Decoteau focused on engaging students through meaningful learning experiences inside and outside the classroom.
“While I always expected high levels of intellectual engagement and mastery in the subject area, I also wanted students to become empowered to ‘live’ the class material and, more importantly, see their roles in enhancing our current knowledge of the subject matter and subsequently improving society,” he said.
He taught introductory and upper-level courses, including a popular general education course on plants and society, a mid-level course on environmental effects on horticultural crops, and an interdisciplinary, upper-level course on air pollution impacts on terrestrial ecosystems.
Decoteau developed courses with international travel components to enable students to explore important topics firsthand, such as the causes of the great potato famine in Ireland and Mediterranean food crop production techniques in Spain. He also participated in numerous activities within the Schreyer Honors College, including as a distinguished honors faculty member and a global honors faculty member.
“The diversity of the courses that Dennis offered speaks to his capability and versatility in delivery of knowledge via different mediums and to diverse student populations,” said Erin Connolly, professor and head of the Department of Plant Science. “Throughout his career, he demonstrated excellence in teaching by providing his students with creative content, innovative teaching approaches and integrative experiential learning,”
In addition to teaching, Decoteau served as the undergraduate program coordinator for the plant sciences major from its inception in 2012. In that role, he chaired the undergraduate curriculum committee and advised students. He also was involved in recruiting and educating high school students through his involvement with the Pennsylvania School for Excellence in the Agricultural Sciences.
Decoteau served on the faculty for the environmental resource management major, the Institute of Energy and the Environment, and the environmental pollution control graduate program.
Decoteau received numerous teaching awards during his career. Among them were the 2019 U.S. Department of Agriculture National Excellence in College and University Teaching Award for Food and Agricultural Sciences (the only recipient ever at Penn State), the Innovation in Teaching Award from the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities, the Outstanding Teacher Award from Gamma Sigma Delta Honor Society for Agriculture, the Educator Award from the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture, the Education Award from the American Society for Horticultural Sciences and the George W. Atherton Award for Excellence in Teaching from the Penn State Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence.
Research was another important component of Decoteau’s career. He directed research programs investigating air pollution injury to plants, air quality and ecosystem responses, and environmental plant physiology. He also was responsible for the outreach efforts of the Air Quality Learning Center in the Arboretum at Penn State.
Decoteau noted that he was dedicated to providing research experiences for undergraduate and graduate students. “These out-of-classroom experiences are critical to our students’ career development,” he said.
Decoteau received many honors for his research and outreach, including the L. M. Ware Distinguished Research Award from the American Society for Horticultural Sciences, the Pioneer Award from the American Society for Plasticulture, and the Innovation Award from the Environment and Natural Resources Institute at Penn State.
He authored two popular college textbooks and hundreds of peer-reviewed journal articles, abstracts and newspaper and industry columns. He also directed the theses and dissertations of numerous undergraduate honors students and graduate students.
“Dennis has had a long and distinguished career in teaching, research and administration,” Connolly said. “He is an exceptional educator and is truly dedicated to improving the educational experiences of our students through teaching, advising, recruiting and curriculum revision. His students knew him to be invested in their education and futures. He touched every part of our program in one way or another and is simply an outstanding educator.”
Decoteau said he observed many changes in students, curricula, advising and mentoring over the years.
“But none of these experiences prepared me for the changes that evolved in me during my career,” he said. “As a new faculty member, I would never have imagined how devoted I would become to improving the overall experience for our undergraduates. While I may have taught thousands of students in my career, I have experienced at least tens of thousands of incredible student interactions.”
During retirement, Decoteau said, he and his wife, Chris, look forward to spending time in Ohio with children and grandchildren. Most of all, he added, they plan to spend more time at their family camp on Schoodic Lake in rural northern Maine, swimming, kayaking and enjoying sunrises and sunsets over the water.