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Ernest Stout

Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences

Born: October 31, 1938

  • 1961 B.S. Biology, Appalachian State University, Boone, NC
  • 1965 Ph.D. Botany, University of Florida, Gainsville, FL
  • 1965-67 Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Maryland, College Park, MD

Stout joined the Biology Department at Virginia Tech in 1967.

As Assistant, Associate, and the early years as Professor of Botany (1967-96), he taught undergraduate courses in Cell Physiology and Plant Physiology; a senior-graduate course in Molecular Genetics, and graduate courses in Molecular Biology. His research in the early years at Virginia Tech was in the enzymology and regulation of DNA replication and RNA transcription of higher plants. In the mid-1970's, he began a collaboration with Robert Bates in the areas of DNA and RNA synthesis and the control of these events in animal parvoviruses. During 1978-79, he served as interim Assistant Dean for Research and Graduate Studies in the College of Arts & Sciences. From 1980 to 1988, he served as Head of the Department of Biology. In 1988-96 he became Associate Provost for Research. He retired from the university in 1996.

During retirement, he enjoys running a small beef cattle operation on his farm in Riner, gardening, travel and grandchildren. Stout is co-chairman of the OWLS [Older Wiser Learned Scientists-Biology faculty emeritii] committee.