Samantha Thomas earned a MS and Ph.D. in Plant Pathology from The Ohio State University. Her first role out of graduate school was with California Department of Food and Agriculture where she was a staff scientist for 18 months. She’s been with Bayer and its previous companies for more than 15 years. Samantha’s current position is External Engagement Strategy Lead within the Global Quality Function where she is working across seed industry and regulatory partners to develop and use quality tools to address the phytosanitary risk of seed movement. Previously she led teams responsible for field pathology, seed sanitation, and seed health testing within the vegetable division.