Former Entomology Student Ascends the Ranks at EPA

 Kimberly Nesci, a 1996 entomology graduate and former graduate student of Dr. Galen Dively has provided over 20 years of excellent services in the world of pesticide regulation, 17 of which she worked directly in the Office of Pesticide Programs for the Environmental Protection Agency. Now, Nesci has advanced further into the pesticide sphere, accepting the position as the acting associate director for the Environmental Fate and Effects Division within the EPA.

Nesci graduated from University of Maryland with a Master of Science in Entomology. Her career started at the EPA’s Office of Pesticides as a Chemical Review Manager. A short four-years later, Nesci became a team leader in SRRD contributing her expertise to organophosphate reregistration actions/mitigations and the cancellation of lindane (a formerly common pesticide revealed to cause neurotoxic effects). After these accomplishments, Nesci joined the Registration Division as a Product Manager in the Insecticide Branch where she worked on the pet spot-on mitigation efforts, an intricate plan produced by the US-Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council to assess the risks of insect treatments on pets. Simultaneously, she served as a member of and chaired meetings for the Food and Agriculture Organization’s Panel of Experts on Pesticide Management, a group that initiated best management practices for pesticide application in developing countries.

Her resume continued to grow thereafter. Beginning in 2013, Nesci has served as Chief of the Microbial Pesticides Branch in the EPA’s Biopesticides and Pollution Prevention Division, in which she was responsible for the scientific evaluation and constructing regulations for microbial pesticides and Plant-Incorporated Protectants. Her multi-disciplinary work in this position made her an influential component on the policy making, science, and regulatory decisions on new RNA-interference-based pesticide technologies and the development of resistance to certain proteins in genetically engineered crops.

On September 19, 2016 Nesci ascended once more within the EPA by accepting a position as the acting Associate Director for the EPA’s Environmental Fate and Effects Division. The Department of Entomology is sending our best wishes to this astounding member of our alumni community. We are proud of what this Terp has accomplished and what she will continue to achieve well into the future.