Welcome Our New Chemistry & Biochemistry Majors!

Please help me in welcoming the following students to the chemistry & biochemistry programs this Fall!

Chemistry Majors:
*Kimberly Boonie¹
*Anthony Buccilli
*Chris Chambers
*Allison Cowles¹
*Alex Daughenbaugh¹
*Molly Dunn
*Laura Fox²
*Jonathan Gomola¹
*Nafeesah Johnson³
*Andrew Lightner¹
*Brian Litzinger³
*Terrance Martin
*Lisa McCombie³
*Mattie McKines³
*Jacob Pude
*Stephen Shiring^2,3
*Ashley Snyder¹
*Nadia Szymanski²
*Christopher Taylor²
*Paul Traina³

Biochemistry Majors
*Joseph Beidle
*Deanna Belsky²
*Stephen Christensen²
*Victoria Constant²
*Karyn Egbert²
*Chenoa Gillette
*Jonathan Henninger²
*Samantha Leone
*Elliot Lesser
*Carrie Lingle
*Erron Littlejohn
*Nicole Peart
*Alisa Phillips
*Andrea Strein
*Kevin Taylor
*James Zewe²

(¹chemistry education; ²Honors College; ³pre-medicine)

Welcome & Welcome Back!

It's that time again! Another summer has passed (quickly!) and we find ourselves back together in Weyandt Hall.

To all of our incoming freshmen chemistry and biochemistry students: Welcome to IUP and welcome to the department! We all look forward to working with you during the next four years to prepare you in your chosen fields.

To all of our returning students: Welcome back! We hope you had a safe and productive summer and are looking forward to continuing your academic journey with us.

Check back here frequently for news & announcements.

Department Represented at 234th National ACS Meeting in Boston

The 234th American Chemical Society National Meeting was held in Boston from August 19-23. As usual, IUP's chemistry department had members & alumni present.

Dr. George Long helped organize and preside over the Computers in Chemical Education, Past, Present and Future: Symposium in Honor of Professor Donald Rosenthal. Dr. Long also presented a talk on the work which he did with IUP BS Chem Ed student Ms. Catherine McCue, entitled "Independent Student Use of Internet Resources to Solve Chemistry Problems. In the same symposium, a paper with Dr. Long as co-author was presented by symposium co-organizer Theresa Zielinski of Monmouth University entitled Evolution of Computer Use in Physical Chemistry: An Enriching Odyssey.

Mr. Thomas Baker (BS Chem, '05), who is presently a graduate student at Harvard University presented his work entitled "Using Web 2.0 in a Student-centered Approach to Teach Quantum Mechanics to Graduate Students at the same symposium. Tom also did an oral presentation of his research work at Harvard University entitled "Release of Gold Atoms from Au(111) Upon the Adsorption of Electronegative Atoms: A Density Functional Theory Study in the Colloid and Surface Chemistry Division Section of the ACS meeting.

Ms. Wendy Heiserman (BS Chem, '02), currently a graduate student at the University of Maryland, gave a talk entitled "Communication for the 21st Century: Podcasting in the Chemistry Lab

Dr. Lourdes Herold and her husband Dr. Bob Herold (PPG) also attended the meeting. Both enjoyed many presentations, and Lourdes brought back several photos of the conference and herself with "chem celebrities", including Dr. E. J. Corey (Nobel Laureate and former adviser to Dr. Keith Kyler), Dr. Roald Hoffman (Nobel Laureate), and Dr. Oliver Sacks (author of several books).

Department Welcomes Melanie Lynn

Today, the chemistry department welcomes the arrival of Ms. Melanie Lynn, our new secretary. Melanie earned an Associate in Specialized Business degree with a major in Medical Office Administration in 2002 from Cambria-Rowe Business College in Johnstown. She has previous work experience from Windber Medical Center and Sargent's Medical Transcription Services. At Windber, she was the assistant to the Director of Credentials and she also provided support for their Chief Medical Officer.

Welcome, Melanie!

NSM Faculty Receive $369K Grant

Several faculty in the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, including chemistry faculty Dr. Heba Abourahma and Dr. Charles Lake, have been awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to purchase a Quantum Design Physical Properties Measurement System.

For the complete IUP press release, click here.

Department Faculty Participate in IUP Honors College Summer Program

The Chemistry Department took part in the Honors College Summer program once again by hosting 11 students in "The Real World of Chemistry". Each morning for two weeks, from 9-12, students took part in guided lab experiments and lectures centered around the synthesis, analysis, and detection of aspirin. Labs and discussions included the concepts of organic synthesis, UV-Vis spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy (IR), nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). After lunch, students then go on to take part in Honors College programs.

This years faculty participants were Dr. Wendy Elcesser, Dr. Larry Kupchella, Dr. Nathan McElroy, and Dr. John Woolcock. The program ran daily (M-F) from July 16-27.

Chemistry Prof Investigates Biomass Conversion to Fuel & Plastics

IUP will receive $650,000 in federal funding in order to further study the conversion of biomass to biodegradable plastics and biofuels. A project already started by Dr. Keith Kyler will be funded through this appropriation. Congratulations, Keith.

For IUP press release, click here.

Dr. Keith Kyler Wins University Award

Dr. Keith Kyler was one of four faculty to be presented with IUP's first ever Academic Excellence and Innovation Awards.

Dr. Kyler's proposal, under the Innovative Research category, was entitled IUPAX (Indiana University of Pennsylvania Explosives) as New Safer, High Energy Materials for DOD Ordinance and Missile Formations. The goal of this project is to determine new high-energy materials which offer safer munitions that are resistant to accidental detonations.

Indiana University of Pennsylvania recently established the Academic Excellence and Innovation Award to encourage innovative approaches to research, teaching and other creative activities by IUP faculty. Eighteen IUP faculty members submitted fifteen proposals for consideration for the 2007-2008 academic year. Grant awards of up to $20,000 for one year or divided over a two year period were made on a competitive basis.

The Academic Excellence and Innovation Award Review Committee was comprised of the Provost for Academic Affairs, the Vice Provost for Research and Dean of Graduate Studies, The Assistant Dean for Research, the Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence, and faculty members from each of the colleges selected from a list provided by APSCUF of faculty members with established records of research/scholarship.

Each proposal was reviewed based on the degree of innovation and creativity of the planned project. Three categories of innovation were utilized for proposal review. These categories are Innovative Research, Interdisciplinary Research or Creative Initiatives, and Innovative Interdisciplinary Teaching. Criteria for proposal evaluation include: the strength and quality of the proposal, potential for external funding and sustained support, attainable project milestones and realistic timetable, and appropriateness of the proposed budget to the project’s description and objectives.

The End of an Era

For those of you who have had any connection with the Chemistry Department here in the last 20+ years, you most likely recall getting at least one answer to a pressing question from Ms. Judy (Somonick) Kovell. Unfortunately for us, today that omniscient and caring lady put in her last day as an IUP employee. However, all of us, no matter how sad we are to see her go, are extremely happy for her and her husband Paul as they enjoy retirement together. They plan to remain in Indiana.

A dinner in Judy's honor is being held this evening by the department at the Rustic Lodge.

Congratulations Wendy!

Effective August 2007, Dr. Wendy Elcesser will hold the rank of Associate Professor in the Chemistry Department.

Congratulations on your promotion, Wendy!