Jan Leach

Jan Leach serves as Associate Dean for Research in Colorado State University's College of Agricultural Sciences and University Distinguished Professor in Agricultural Biology. Her leadership advances collaborative research initiatives across agricultural sciences while maintaining an active plant pathology laboratory.

The Leach Lab investigates molecular mechanisms of plant disease susceptibility/resistance with emphasis on quantitative traits. Research examines climate change impacts on rice-bacterial blight pathosystems, Russian wheat aphid microbiome interactions, and molecular diagnostic development. Current projects include NSF-funded QTL engineering and USDA-APHIS pathogen detection systems.

Honored with the Louis Malassis International Scientific Prize for Agriculture, she is a Fellow of multiple scientific academies. Graduate students explore phytobiome interactions through physiological, genomic and field-based approaches targeting sustainable crop protection solutions.