The 65th annual Southern Forest Health Work Conference will be held 4-6 August 2026 (Tuesday – Thursday) on Jekyll Island, Georgia!
Meeting Hotel Details
Date: 15-17 July 2025
Place: Hyatt Regency Tulsa Downtown
Address: 100 East Second Street, Tulsa, Oklahoma
Reserve by Phone: 888-591-1234, group code G-ASFH
Reserve Online: Hyatt Booking Link
Room Rates: $119.00 per night plus tax for either double queen or king room. Valid for the nights of 14-17 July, 2025, with an additional 3 days pre- and post-conference, depending on availability. Book by June 23, 2025.
Self-parking is available for overnight guests at the hotel for $12 per day. Visit the website for Hotel Information.
Remember, this low rate is valid only until June 23, 2025, and only for the rooms in our block. Make your reservation right away!
Program
This year’s Final Program is now available!
Please contact SFHWC 2025 Program Co-Chairs, Zach Bragg (zachary.bragg@uga.edu), Carrie Fearer (cfearer@vt.edu), and Tyler Dreaden (tyler.j.dreaden@usda.gov), with any questions.
Graduate Student Session
The SFHWC 2025 Graduate Student Session will be held during the morning of Wednesday, July 16th. Please see the button for presentation submission details – only 14 spots are available! Titles, authors, affiliations, and abstracts (REQUIRED; 350-word limit) should be sent to Samantha Kennett (skenne7@g.clemson.edu), Lauren Gonzalez (lmgonza7@ncsu.edu), Zachary Bragg (zachary.bragg@uga.edu), and Ashley Schulz (as5112@msstate.edu) by Friday, May 16.
Open Sessions
There will be 2 open sessions with no defined topic for those wishing to make a presentation at SFHWC. Please send your title, name(s), and affiliation(s) to Open Session moderators, Abby Ratcliff (arratcli@ncsu.edu) and Katy Moretti (kcrout@g.clemson.edu), as well as Program Co-Chair, Zach Bragg (zachary.bragg@uga.edu). Time slots will be approximately 15 minutes, including questions. Titles due by Friday, June 6.
Poster Session
The poster session and reception will be held on Wednesday, July 16. The deadline for poster title submissions is Friday, May 16. Please send your title, authors, and affiliations to Forest Palmer (jpalme5@clemson.edu), and use the following format:
John Doe1, Jane Doe2, and Jean Doe3. 1State University, 2State Agency, and 3USDA-FS-Research Station. Studies of southern pine pests and diseases.
Posters should be no larger than 4’ x 4’. Mounting materials will be provided. Posters can be set up starting Tuesday, July 15 and will be displayed throughout the meeting.
A.D. Hopkins Award & Roger F. Anderson Award
Nominations for the 2025 A.D. Hopkins Award, which recognizes outstanding record of service to Southern forest health, should be sent to Bud Mayfield (albert.e.mayfield@usda.gov) by Friday, June 13.
The 2025 Roger F. Anderson Award will be presented to an outstanding graduate student in Southern forest health; send nominations to Lynne Rieske-Kinney (lrieske@uky.edu) by Friday, June 13.
Please see the included links for detailed information on nomination submissions.
SFHWC Food Drive
We will be collecting food and donations for the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma (Homepage – Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma ). Cash, checks (made out to “Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma”), and non-perishable food items can be dropped off at the registration table. Please be generous towards those in need.
Photo Salon
Contact Brittany Barnes (brittanybarnes8@gmail.com) and Abby Ratcliff (arratcli@ncsu.edu) with any questions or pictures that you would like to submit to the 2025 SFHWC Photo Salon. Please see the included link for submission details. Only digital submissions will be accepted, and they must be received by Friday, June 13.
Field Trip
This year’s field trip is at Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness Area. One of the managers over River Parks Authority (owner of Turkey Mountain) will talk about the difficulties of managing the natural resources as well as the community that heavily uses this publicly available forest. Also leading the tour will be at least one member of the fire mitigation team and Dieter Rudolph (Forest Health Specialist with the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry). The tour will last from 1:30-3:00 PM on July 16. Lunch is not part of the tour, so be sure to eat before or have plans to eat after the tour. There will be two 15-passenger vans for transportation. Any additional participants can drive themselves, as there is plenty of available parking.
Frustrana Cup
The Frustrana Cup will begin at 4:00 PM on July 17 at NEFF Brewing. Be prepared for an exciting cornhole tournament! Let Abby Ratcliff (arratcli@ncsu.edu) know if you have any questions.