Prof. Dr. Dean Hesterberg earned a B.S. degree in Plant and Soil Science from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale (1981), an M.S. degree in Agronomy from Purdue University (1984), and a Ph.D. degree in Soil Chemistry from the University of California – Riverside (1988). He was a Research Chemist at Chevron Oil Field Research Company in La Habra, CA (1988 – 1990) and a Soil Chemist at the Institute for Soil Fertility Research in Haren, the Netherlands (1990-1992). In 1993, he was appointed Assistant Professor in the Department of Soil Science at North Carolina State University, and was promoted through Associate Professor to his present position as Professor of Soil Science. He has authored or co-authored 57 journal publications and book chapters. Dr. Hesterberg served as an Associate Editor of Journal of Environmental Quality (1998-2001), he is presently Chair of the Soil Science Society of America Division S-9 (Soil Mineralogy), and he has served on various other committees of the Soil Science Society of America, including the Emerging Issues Committee. He is a member of the Clay Minerals Society and has served as a member of the User Executive Committee and Proposal Review Panel of the National Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven National Laboratory. His research program focuses on the molecular chemistry of phosphate and trace element in soils, and its relationship to the fate and transport of these potentially detrimental contaminants. He teaches graduate-level courses in Soil Chemistry and Soil Mineralogy.