Contact Information:
919-513-2058
2126 Plant Science Building
Dr. Joe Gage
Assistant Professor
Joe was a communications major as an undergraduate, did brief stints as a rice geneticist and resident plant expert in a microbiology lab before beginning to work with maize in 2013. When he’s not running, climbing, hiking, camping, parenting, or playing with his dog, he studies genomics in maize and other crops as a member of the Crop and Soil Sciences department at NCSU.
Katelyn Rumley
Research Specialist
Katelyn grew up on a hobby corn farm in central Iowa and then spent most of her undergraduate degree trying to get as far away from working in corn as possible. As hard as she tried, she still ended up working at a small NGO in Guatemala studying, you guessed it, corn. After graduating, Katelyn moved to NC to pursue a master’s degree studying quality traits in peanuts. After completing her master’s, Katelyn finally gave in and decided to embrace her corn destiny, joining the Gage Lab in the summer of 2022.
Dr. Nate Korth
Postdoctoral Scholar
Nate Korth came to us from the land of corn (Lincoln, Nebraska), where he earned his PhD in Complex Biosystems. His previous work focused on identifying breeding targets in plants (maize and sorghum) for compositional traits that affect utilization by human gut microbes. He’s transitioned to studying the rhizosphere (root) microbiome of grains and how it underlies plant adaptation to new and harsh environments. Nate was the first microbiome scientist to join the Gage lab, and since then has been trying to convince us that all problems begin (or end) at the microbiome.
Dr. Sontosh Deb
Postdoctoral Scholar
Sontosh did his BS and MS in Forestry at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology in Bangladesh, where he also worked as a faculty member before joining the University of Alabama for his PhD in 2017. He studied evolutionary genomics at UA, focusing on the structural and functional impacts of whole-genome duplication in maize and palms. He joined the Gage Lab in August 2024 to study allelic gene regulation and its effects on gene-environment interactions. Sontosh enjoys watching movies and traveling in his spare time, but nothing beats a cozy evening with a cup of tea and a good book.
Dr. Sergio Perez Limon
Postdoctoral Scholar
Sergio is a young professional scientist with his roots in México. As corny as it sounds, he’s been working with corn during most of his professional career. He obtained a degree in biotechnological engineering at UPIBI-IPN, a masters degree in Plant Biotechnology at UGA-LANGEBIO and a PhD in Plant Sciences at Penn State. Now, he’s working in Joe Gage’s a-maize-ing lab as a postdoc, continuing with the study of the genetic architecture of adaptive traits in Native Maize. Sergio breaths, cooks, eats and dreams about corn.
Dr. Jill Love
Postdoctoral Scholar
Jill earned her PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Tulane University, where she studied how phenotypic plasticity shapes adaptation in Mimulus (monkeyflowers). She is particularly fascinated by how plants adapt to harsh environments. Jill joined the Gage Lab in 2026 as a postdoctoral scholar working on the collaborative NSave project, where she uses genetics, genomics, and phenotyping to identify and combine maize traits that improve nitrogen use efficiency. She is especially interested in bringing an evolutionary perspective to crop genetics and understanding how naturally occurring variation can be put to work in sustainable agriculture. Outside of the lab, Jill enjoys hiking, creative endeavors, and spending time with her wife Chloe and dog Basil.
Ty Thomas
PhD Student
Ty grew up in small town Iowa surrounded by agriculture. After two years serving others in Mexico, he started a bachelors degree at BYU-Idaho in Music and switched to Agronomy as soon as he took a class in plant science. He focused his bachelors in data science and genetics to prepare for graduate school. He spends all his spare time with his Wife and 3 boys at their new home near NCSU, where he studies plant genetics in the Gage Lab.
Jordan Cummings
PhD Student
Jordan grew up in North Eastern Wisconsin and was always interested in science. For undergrad, she attended UW-Madison, first as a Biological Systems Engineering major, until she learned what engineering entailed. By her sophomore year, Jordan was a Genetics and Genomics major and soon after picked up Agronomy as a double major. She worked for Dr. Bill Tracy during her undergraduate career on Team Sweet, where she discovered her love for plant genetics and plant breeding. For graduate school, she made the big jump from sweet corn to field corn. Jordan joined the Gage Lab in the Fall of 2023 with Dr. Jim Holland as a Co-advisor for her Crop Science PhD. She is also a Genetics and Genomics Scholar. In her free time, you can find her exploring Raleigh, crocheting, or painting!
Laide Rasaki
PhD Student
Laide, raised in Southwestern Nigeria, developed a keen interest in agricultural systems amid productivity challenges in his locality, leading to a Bachelor’s degree in Animal Science with a focus on Animal Nutrition. Following this, he interned at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), gaining experience in forage breeding, goat improvement breeding, and poultry feed formulation. Motivated by the effects of climate change on forage production, he pursued a dual master’s degree in molecular plant breeding under the Erasmus Mundus Plant Breeding program (emPLANT+) at two European Universities. Currently, he is a Doctoral student in the Crop Science program, co-advised by Dr. Amanda Hulse-Kemp, Laide is also a Genetics and Genomics Scholar. His research involves the development and integration of genetic tools and computational methods into plant breeding systems for accelerated crop improvement. In his leisure, he enjoys table tennis and reading spiritual and financial books.
Jaswinder Kaur
PhD Student
Jaswinder hails from a small town of northern India, where being always surrounded by agriculture she found her passion for the field. She persuaded BSc in Agriculture from Punjab Agricultural University. For her graduate school, she got her MS in Plant Science, with focus on plant pathology. By the end of her MS, she realized that want to work with plant breeding and genetics. Jaswinder joined Gage lab in Spring of 2024 with Dr. Susana Milla-Lewis as her co-advisor for her PhD in Crop Science. Her research is focused on turf-grass breeding and genetics. She spends all her spare time drawing, sketching, hiking and painting
Sofiya Arora
PhD Student
Sofiya grew up in a small town in Punjab, the “food bowl of India,” where agriculture was always a part of everyday life. Being surrounded by fields and farming from an early age shaped her curiosity about plants and agriculture. She went on to get her undergraduate degree in Agriculture at Punjab Agricultural University, where she discovered her interest in plant genetics. She later earned her M.S. in Plant Breeding and Genetics from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, where she found her way into computational biology and quantitative genetics. In Fall 2026, she joined the Gage Lab for her Ph.D., co-advised by Dr. Peter Balint-Kurti. Her research focuses on using high-throughput phenotyping and quantitative genetics to understand resistance to southern leaf blight in corn. When she’s not thinking about plants and data, Sofiya loves dancing, singing, and writing; basically anything that gives her a creative outlet!
Bri Edwards
Research Scholar
Bri has been a full-time researcher in the field of plant biology for the past fifteen years, pursuing her passion across disciplines ranging from ecology, evolution, and developmental biology to biotechnology and molecular genetics. In recent years, her work has focused on developing sequencing-based methods in the lab to tackle novel research questions, including measuring rates of translation by the ribosome, detecting low-abundance circular RNA, and detecting transgene insertion sites in an allohexaploid species. Outside of the lab, you can find her scouring thrift racks for vintage clothing & accessories, sewing & designing at home, or doing activities with her partner Eli.
Sarah Siegel
Hourly worker
Sarah, a Park Scholar, is originally from Silver Spring, MD and is double majoring in Agroecology & Sustainable Food Systems and Marine Science. She joined the Gage Lab in Fall 2025 to gain more experience with the intersection of crop genetics and resilience. She hopes to pursue a PhD after graduation focusing on creating more hardy and environmentally friendly food systems, especially in low income countries. Sarah has worked for the Center for Applied Aquatic Ecology Lab at NC State and the Gore Lab at Cornell University. In her free time, Sarah enjoys running, birdwatching, reading, cooking, gardening, and crocheting.
Alexandra Slepova
Hourly worker
Alexandra Slepova is originally from Charlotte, North Carolina, and decided to pursue her major in Horticulture Science with a concentration in Plant Breeding and Biotechnology, as well as a minor in Genetics, here at NC State University. Alexandra had a crop genetics and genomics research experience with Poplar trees, looking at satellite DNA and its evolutionary significance. She joined the Gage Lab in August of 2025 to explore interactions between plants, the environment, and plant-associated microbes. She hopes to pursue her PhD after graduating from NC State. Outside of academia, she likes to play sports, particularly gymnastics.
Emma Payne
Hourly worker
Emma Payne grew up surrounded by mountains, meadows, and mountain lions in Utah Valley which pushed her to pursue a major in Zoology (BS) with minors in Biotechnology and Anthropology here at NC State. Emma found an interest in field work after spending a summer working with the Youngsteadt Urban Ecology lab researching bee network rewiring. She joined the Gage Lab in the Summer of 2026 to gain more field experience. After her recent graduation, she hopes to pursue a PhD focused on plant-pollinator interactions. When not teaching high school color guard and dance, Emma can be caught spending time exploring Raleigh with her dog Eric.