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Charles
(Chas) Fox, III
Since founding the company in 1997, Chas has led Southern Sun as Chief
Executive Officer and President. Chas led the growth of the SoSun
from the research at the University to commercialization. The transition
included the implementation of the corporate management structure,
business strategy, marketing, resource acquisition, and overall company
development. Chas has fifteen years experience in the horticulture
industry as an executive, an entrepreneur, and extensive experience
with leadership and development of startups.
Prior to launching Southern Sun, Inc., Chas was the founder of Knox
Nursery, Inc. in 1990. Chas led the company to become one of the largest
ornamental growers in the state of South Carolina. In 1996, Chas was
named South Carolina Young Nursery Professional of the Year. Chas
is also a former President of the South Carolina Nursery & Landscape
Association.
Upon graduation from college, Chas was the fourth round draft pick
of the National Football League's Kansas City Chiefs and spent three
years in the NFL as a wide receiver.
EDUCATION:
B. A., Business Administration & Computer Science, Furman University,
1986.
EXPERIENCE:
President & CEO, Southern Sun BioSystems Systems, Hodges,
SC, 1997 to present. Specialized in the manufacture of micropropagation
systems.
SCNA Educational Board Member, 1995 to present. Chairman 1996 and
1997.
President & CEO, Knox Nursery, Inc., Greenwood, SC, 1990 to 1997.
Winesburg Gardens, Kiawah, SC, 1988 to 1990. |
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Robert
K. Pollock
Robert is the Chief Engineer at Southern Sun and is responsible for
The Nurseryman™ research and development. Robert is one of the
inventors and founders of Southern Sun technology and has been involved
with the creation and development of the company. Robert has been
with Southern Sun for two years and manages The Nurseryman™
product commercial development.
Prior to Southern Sun, Robert worked as a Consulting Engineer and
Graduate Research Assistant for Roy Young at Clemson University, his
research has been critical to the development of the system to date.
In combination with work at Clemson and Southern Sun, Robert has worked
with The Nurseryman™ project for nine years.
Robert has worked as a consulting engineer for ML Irrigation for 5
years designing and selling greenhouse and nursery irrigation systems.
He spent fours years with Yoder Brothers, Inc. as an engineer. His
responsibilities included planning and oversight of facility expansion
and improvement of mechanized operations of chrysanthemum greenhouses.
EDUCATION:
Ph. D., Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Clemson University,
2004.
M.S., Agricultural & Biological Engineering, Clemson University,
1992.
B.A., Psychology, Hiram College, 1970.
EXPERIENCE:
Chief Engineer, Southern Sun Propagation Systems, Hodges, SC,
1997 to present.
Consulting Engineer, Clemson University, 1996 to present.
Consulting Engineer, M.L. Irrigation, Laurens, SC, 1992 to present.
Graduate Research Assistant to Roy Young, Department of Agricultural
and
Biological Engineering, Clemson University, 1989 to 1996
Engineer, Yoder Brother, Inc., Pendleton, SC, 1984 to 1988.
PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION MEMBERSHIPS:
American Society of Agricultural Engineers
The International Society for Measurement and Control.
HONORARY MEMBERSHIPS:
Tau Beta Pi (Honorary Society for Excellence in Engineering). |
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Steven A. Kuhl As Staff Microbiologist for Southern Sun, Steve applies his extensive experience in pathogenic microbiology, microbial genetics, and molecular biology to the challenges of creating optimal tissue culture environments for plant propagation. He also mentors the laboratory staff to ensure rigorous adherence to proper research techniques, sterile procedures, and recordkeeping. Because of his success as a grant writer, Steve works closely with the Chief Engineer and researchers at external partner agencies in crafting grant proposals and funding requests. Prior to joining Southern Sun, Steve spent the majority of his career as a researcher/educator at major institutions around the US. His research results appear in publications such as the Journal of Bacteriology, Gene, American Society of Plant Physiologists, and Current Microbiology. For the majority of his academic career, Steve’s research focused on various molecular and genetic aspects of Bordetella pertussis, the organism that causes whooping cough. EDUCATION: Ph.D., Biology (Microbial Genetics), University of South Carolina, 1983. M.S., Bacteriology (Microbial Genetics), Iowa State University, 1977. B.S., Microbiology, Purdue University, 1973. EXPERIENCE: Staff Microbiologist, Southern Sun BioSystems, Hodges, SC, 2007 to present. Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, Lander University, Greenwood, SC, 2003-2007. Assistant Professor, Department of Biology, Indiana University Purdue University, Fort Wayne, IN, 1998-2003. Assistant Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, IL, 1990-1998. Research Assistant Professor, Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 1988-1990. Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Molecular Genetics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 1986-1988. Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Microbiology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, IL, 1983-1986. PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION MEMBERSHIPS: American Society for Microbiology American Association for the Advancement of Science Sigma Xi |
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