Honors at Graduation
Honor Societies
Departmental Awards
Midstates Symposia
Beloit College 9th International Symposium, November 17, 2010
Beloit College 35th Annual Student Symposium, April 14, 2011
The Beloit Biologist, Volume 30, 2011
Our mission
“Our mission is to provide all chemistry and biochemistry students with an understanding of the fundamental concepts and language of chemistry, an understanding of the attitudes, approaches, and limitations of science, and an appreciation of the importance of the acquired knowledge of chemistry when acting responsibly in society. Our mission is also to graduate majors who will eventually become key players (as scientists and/or policy makers) working together in interdisciplinary teams that address important and topical questions and issues in 21st century environmental science, materials science, nanotechnology, biotechnology, and in the health professions. We will achieve our goals through a teaching environment where students learn chemistry by doing what chemists actually do, using sophisticated tools and techniques that practicing chemists use throughout our curriculum.”
Innovative curriculum and pedagogy
Beloit chemistry has been and remains in the forefront of curricular innovation in chemistry (See Daedalus, 128(1), 217-240,1999; Science, 293, 1608-1610, 2001 and 304, 521-522, 2004; Chemical & Engineering News, 80(43), 35-36, 2002). PKAL recognized our topical, modular, active learning, lab-based course as an example of “Programs that Work.” The ChemLinks consortium headquartered at Beloit was one of only five NSF-funded systemic change initiatives, and those innovations continue to be developed here. We have been involved for the past decade in the award winning NSF POGIL (Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning) approach to organic chemistry. Inquiry-based, active, and collaborative pedagogy; lab-intensive and experience-based learning; early introduction of current research in cutting-edge interdisciplinary areas; and relevance to issues of societal importance have characterized these changes here. These innovations, which attempted to model how people actually do science, have been institutionalized and constantly revised at Beloit while others are beginning to adopt and implement them elsewhere. As part of the ChemLinks project, topical modules for General Chemistry relating chemistry to societal issues (e.g. global warming, diet, acid rain, communications technology) were developed at Beloit, and these and others were tested here for national distribution. These materials are currently being updated and modified by Beloit and other faculty for national distribution as stand-alone supplemental problem-solving activities for General Chemistry courses. George Lisensky and our students continue to play a key role nationally in developing and sharing laboratory activities and supporting materials for the rapidly growing fields of nanochemistry and nanotechnology, in conjunction with the NSF-funded Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at UW-Madison. These activities have also led at Beloit to both a new course on Nanochemistry and several FYIs on nanotechnology. The set of laboratory experiments developed at Beloit for nanochemistry is widely acknowledged as the best in the world and is currently used in over 50 countries. George has given workshops on teaching nanotechnology throughout the US and in Denmark, Sweden, Morocco, Tanzania, Israel, and Puerto Rico and directed week-long teaching workshops supported by NSF at Beloit during the summer. “Materials Science and Nanotechnology” has been held four times, and most recently Kevin Braun and George Lisensky taught a “Renewable Energy” week-long workshop. In addition, Professor Lisensky has twice (2002, 2010) won the Phee Boon Kang Prize for Innovation in Teaching with Technology for innovations used in Beloit courses. Professor Rama Viswanathan’s development of curriculum and ultimately a minor in visualization also led to being awarded the Phee Boon Kang Prize for Innovation in Teaching with Technology in 2001 and was further lauded by the American Chemical Society. Laura Parmentier has been involved in classroom testing and evaluation of the Guided Inquiry Organic Chemistry materials produced in conjunction with the NSF-funded POGIL initiative since those materials were in manuscript form in 2001. At most institutions organic chemistry is the course for eliminating students from the sciences in general. At Beloit retention in this course is very high. Laura has recently completed a POGIL facilitator’s training workshop and has been invited to become involved in the project nationally and to begin leading POGIL workshops regionally. Ted Gries taught biochemistry at Beloit this year as a visiting faculty member. After a national search he was selected to fill a tenure track position starting this fall. He is already at work developing plans for a research-based curriculum in biochemistry.
Instrumentation
Our goal was to equip the new Center for the Sciences with new instrumentation rather than bring old instruments with us. We have largely succeeded. Through a five-year grant from the Sherman Fairchild Foundation that has just concluded, we were able to obtain an x-ray powder diffractometer, a Fourier transform infra red spectrophotometer (FTIR) with diamond attenuated total reflectance (ATR) sampling stage to greatly enhance throughput for class use, an atomic force/scanning tunneling microscope, a capillary electrophoresis bioanalytical system, a fluorescence plate/cuvette reader for biochemistry, and a fine performance liquid chromatograph (FPLC) for protein purification. In addition, the grant also brought us an Instrument Specialist for the Science Division, Rongping Deng. Other instrumentation obtained through NSF grants or using College endowed funds includes a multi-element “rapid sequential” atomic absorption (AA) spectrophotometer, two capillary gas chromatographs (GC) and a gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer (GC/MS), an electrochemical analysis system, an ultricentrifuge, a 60 MHz proton and carbon nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer , and equipment for the Computation and Visualization Laboratory. We are working on a proposal to obtain a high-field NMR, which would serve as a collaborative instrument for several 2-year and 4-year colleges in the area. We are now well equipped to make routine use of research-grade instruments whenever they are appropriate, starting with the first course in chemistry.
Enrollment
Total student enrollment in chemistry courses has increased by more than 50% in the past decade. This year’s enrollments continue that trend. The increases, particularly in introductory Chemistry 117 (5 sections per year) and intermediate courses 220 and 230-235, reflect the increasing interest in science among entering students and the increase in programs requiring these courses. Surveys at the start of each semester indicate that the balance in the Chemistry 117 course has shifted from more students using the course to fulfill a distribution requirement at the beginning of this decade to a majority using the course to explore a possible science major or as a supporting course for a science major. This enrollment increase reflects primarily the significant growth in the number of students electing chemistry courses to support their major or pre-professional preparation, secondarily an increased number of Chemistry and Biochemistry majors taking those courses, plus a modest increase in the number of non-science students taking our 100-level courses. We know that chemistry is a vital contributor to the liberal arts and feel strongly that our constantly evolving introductory course is an important option to provide for Beloit students of any major.
Along with the increase in number of students in chemistry courses and the completion of the Center for the Sciences has come an increase in the number of majors. There are 40% more chemistry and biochemistry majors when comparing 2001-08 with the 2009-2012 post-science center graduating classes. These majors now comprise 5% of the graduating class at Beloit.
Kevin Braun '99
Visiting Assistant Professor
B.S. (chemistry) and B.A. (anthropology) Beloit College
Ph.D. University of Arizona
At Beloit since 2007
http://chemistry.beloit.edu/classes/braun
Rongping Deng
Science Division Instrument and Research Specialist
B.S. Xinjiang University
M.S. Fudan University, University of New Hampshire
Ph.D. University of New Hampshire
At Beloit since 2007
Rongping continues to support a wide range of projects and instrumentation throughout the sciences. Next fall he will again teach an instrumentation course on Scanning Electron Microscopy and Scanning Probe Microscopy to students from a variety of disciplines who are interested in getting hands-on experience with both of these instruments. He is a co-author of a new publication "Thermal activation and reaction of allyl alcohol on Ni(100)", which was published in the recent issue of Surface Science, Volume 605, Issues 13-14, July 2011, pages 1236-1242 .
Ted Gries
Assistant Professor
B.A. Indiana University
Ph.D. University of Wisconsin
At Beloit since 2010
http://chemistry.beloit.edu/classes/gries
The past year has brought about many wonderful changes in my life. After completing my doctorate in biochemistry in July, I joined the faculty of the chemistry department at Beloit as a visiting assistant professor. I was quickly introduced to many enthusiastic students (and co-instructors) as I taught General Chemistry (117) and Biochemistry of Macromolecules (300). With a background in enzyme kinetics, I was particularly excited to introduce the biochemistry students to the study of enzyme mechanism through quantitative kinetic analysis of alkaline phosphatase. For me, the semester climaxed in December, as I accepted a tenure-track appointment at Beloit.
In the spring, I taught General Chemistry (117) and Biochemistry of Metabolism (260). I also attended the 55th Annual Biophysical Society meeting in Baltimore, MD.
During the summer, I’ve been working with Adam Nicholas ’12 on transitioning the DNA and Protein Biochemistry (previously Biochemistry of Macromolecules) course into a workshop format. The goal of this course is to get students learning biochemistry by “doing” biochemistry. I am also setting up my own research lab where I hope to soon be working on gaining a greater understanding of how bacteria respond to changes in the salt concentration of their environment.
George Lisensky
Professor
B.A. Earlham College
Ph.D. California Institute of Technology
At Beloit since 1980
http://chemistry.beloit.edu/classes/lisensky
Last summer George and Tess Jacquez ’11 worked with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Materials Science Research and Engineering Center (MRSEC) on Nanostructured Materials and Interfaces to develop laboratory experiments for teaching. See (http://mrsec.wisc.edu/edetc/nanolabs). Tess succeeded in making a hydrogen fuel cell for less than $1 that can run a clock or calculator. Together they presented a workshop on LEDs at the Biennial Conference on Chemical Education, Denton, TX. George and Kevin Braun organized and taught a week-long summer workshop at Beloit for college chemistry faculty from around the country on Renewable Energy as part of the NSF-funded Center for Workshops in the Chemical Sciences administered by Georgia State University. See (http://chemistry.beloit.edu/classes/cwcs_energy/index.html). This workshop will be offered again in summer 2012.
In the fall of 2010 George taught Solid State Chemistry (250) and General Chemistry (117). He organized the ninth annual International Student Symposium at Beloit. He gave talks on Nanotechnology for the 2YC3 meeting in Portland, OR, at a fireside chat with Phi Kappa Psi in Beloit, for the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network (science museums) annual meeting in San Francisco and at the Materials Research Society meeting in Boston, MA.
This year George was also a public member of the Wisconsin State Legislative Council Committee on Nanotechnology reviewing and proposing potential legislation.
In the spring of 2011 George taught Environmental, Analytical and Geochemistry (Chem 220) and Nanochemistry (Chem 150) and presented a faculty forum on campus. Ari Jacobs '12 did research with George on ZnO nanoparticles and presented his work at the annual Student Research Symposium. Beloit students Beth Capstick,
Alissa Chen, Catherine Cooper,
Ben Dahl, Canberk Dayan,
Ari Jacobs, Tess Jacquez, Chris Juels, Adam Nicholas, Orion Pearce, Jared Robertson, and Jill Wulf helped present science to schools and the general public at the Engineering EXPO at UW-Madison, in April.
George again participated in Masterwork’s Chorus, along with a significant number of chemistry students: Catherine Cooper, McKenzie Falker, Savannah Jo Huston, Tess Jacquez, Richea Smith, Ben Dahl, Ro Morris, Nick O’Block, and Chris Sebas.
In May and June, George celebrated the International Year of Chemistry at the University of Lund, Sweden. He taught a scientific glassblowing course and worked with Ebbe Nordlander ’86 to study the electrochemistry of Fe-Mn binuclear complexes as bioinorganic models. He also gave a talk at the Swedish Chemical Society Inorganic Days.
In July George and family visited the Håkan Carlsson and Christy Whiddon family on Sweden’s west coast and the Rawet family in Stockholm on Sweden's east coast. Both Håkan and Christy taught at Beloit for a semester in 2003. Simon Rawet was a high school exchange student who stayed with George's family in 2009-2010.
Last year was a triumph for the biochemistry program. It is now split into the Biological Chemistry major, the Molecular Biology major, and the Biochemistry major, as Chemistry and Biology vie for these extremely talented and diverse students. But we have now hired Ted Gries in Chemistry and my former student Katie Stettler Johnson '02 in Biology to team with Micho Gravis in Biology to lead our delightful majors. You will see their ability by skimming their experiences, honors and prizes in this 2011 Chemistry Newsletter.
It is remarkable to hear the achievements and plans of our students even when most are still only sophomores in Chem 280 with me. In my nutrition class, we have moved from making posters to editing Wikipedia nutrition-related pages, reaching far beyond the mostly U.S. and Australian audiences of my www.nutritioninvestigator.org site. Thanks to many of you sending me headlines and comments, like from Carmen that OHSU provides vitamin C immediately to patients admitted to the ER with brain issues. And my interests in neurochemistry and consciousness have launched an IDST course in consciousness, "the most profound mystery facing modern biology." Richard Dawkins.
My research continues to provide overwhelming opportunities. My review of vitamin C was published in Health. Preparing for sabbatical in the fall, I have 1) written a chapter for a book being published by Nova, " Fish Oil: Production, Consumption and Health Benefits", 2) begun the first study of the concentration of vitamin C in human eye fluids, getting the vitreous fluid with a cataract surgeon and aqueous fluid with a detached retina surgeon. 3) prepared a proposal to the National Football League with Athletic Trainer Andrew Wier to study the effect of vitamin C on concussion, similar to one submitted to the Dept. of Defense last fall, that still awaits a decision, 4) started a study on the effect of vitamin C supplements on bladder cancer, in collaboration with experts at NIH and the Linus Pauling Institute, and 5) lectured at my zendo on the scientifically-proven benefits of meditation, which I do regularly with Bill Conover. Top that with a second honeymoon last May sailing on the Queen Mary II from New York to England and visiting the sites of King Arthur like Tintagel, and life is truly a miracle.
I hope you are all cherishing every moment. Thanks to Cam Leviere '12 for directing everyone to a great 2 minute video how my classes differ from most he has taken. And thanks to all who email and phone to share your amazing adventures exploring the present moment. The universe is in a single atom, so we are all one! Fondly, Roc
Laura E. Parmentier
Professor and Chair
B.S. Northland College
Ph.D. University of Wisconsin - Madison
At Beloit since 1991
http://chemistry.beloit.edu/classes/parmentier
It has been a great year to be a chemist at Beloit College! The Department is very pleased to welcome Dr. Theodore Gries, our new tenure-track Assistant Professor. Ted has been here this past year as visiting Assistant Professor, teaching Chem 117 as well as the biochemistry courses. We are delighted that he will be joining us permanently. Stop by to say hello and visit the labs on the third floor where Ted has been busy this summer setting up his research suite and converting the Biochemistry of Macromolecules course (300) to a workshop format. There is lots of biochemistry in action!
We are also very happy to have Dr. Uzma Zakai joining us for the year beginning fall 2011. Uzma, who is completing a postdoctoral fellowship with Bob West at the University of Wisconsin, will be teaching courses in organic, bio-inorganic, and medicinal chemistry.
This has been a very enjoyable teaching year for me. With record enrollments of Chem 230 in the fall and two lab sections of Chem 235 in the spring, most of my time is still largely devoted to organic chemistry, courses I love to teach. I also taught our interdisciplinary, laboratory based Women’s Health class this year, together with Professor Suzanne Cox (Psychology). Enrollment demand for the course also continues to climb, so we are looking at ways we can keep the unique interdisciplinary classroom teaching component but also accommodate larger numbers in the laboratory. The opportunity to team-teach this course, and model daily our interdisciplinary approaches to women’s health, is a distinct pleasure.
In my annual attempt to organize my office (possible in July, absolutely impossible the remainder of the year), I located many cards, notes, and photos that I have received from alums over the past year. These, along with your visits, both formal and informal, are such a gift to the department. Thank you for being in touch, and please stop by again soon.
Brock was delighted to have the opportunity to teach Chemistry 245 Molecular Modeling, Visualization, and Computational Chemistry (affectionately known among majors as MoMo) while Rama was on leave last fall. It is the current incarnation of Quantum Chemistry, which he taught for a number of years. As an indication of the progress in the field, the Spartan molecular orbital program now routinely available for students to use in the class is significantly more versatile and powerful than the system he used for molecular orbital calculations in his research on metal cluster compounds in the 1990s. He also enjoyed the opportunity to teach an Advanced Topics course on Environmental Chemistry in the spring, a course we have wanted to offer for some time, as well as supervise the senior seminar for Environmental Studies majors.
Much of Brock’s professional work is still associated with the Science Center, giving numerous tours of the of the building, serving as a resource person for a Project Kaleidoscope Learning Space Collaboratory workshop (where our Science Center was featured), consulting with other schools who are planning similar projects, attending the U.S. Green Building Council’s Greening the Heartland regional meeting, and representing the College to receive the Environmental Excellence Award for the Science Center from the Associated General Contractors of Wisconsin. He was also a participant in two Associated Colleges of the Midwest conferences on “Integrating Sustainability into the Undergraduate Curriculum.” He has been working with the local industries ChemTool and Kerry Ingredients to set up student internships this summer, with the idea of making them also regularly available during the school year, and is again a faculty mentor for the College’s Sustainability Fellows program this summer. Brock started half-time faculty status this past year as a phased approach to his retirement when the College approves a tenure-track replacement position, we hope in the near future.
It was supposed to be a busy "professional development" year for Rama, with fall 2010 being a sabbatical leave of absence to work on various projects in chemistry and computer science. However, because of health issues, many of those projects are still works in progress, to be continued on a leave of absence this upcoming fall. An interesting project where Rama has made substantial progress is in the development of the "Wallputer", a low cost, low power (potentially solar powered) kiosk-style Wi-Fi enabled computer with an integrated display that can be hung on a wall and can also be used in a networked environment in classrooms, for example in village schools in developing countries. Rama recently presented details of software that he developed for the Walllputer as an invited speaker at the RunLive2011 Developer's Conference held in San Jose, California. The software connects the Wallputer to Google Calendar and PicasaWeb, thus making the kiosk a targeted remote display application for data (announcements, schedules, alerts, pictures) stored on the "cloud" and accessible from any location or device with internet connectivity!
Ian Blitz ’08, a graduate student in chemistry at the University of Illinois – Urbana, gave a seminar on his group’s work on “Nanoscale Heat Transport: Implications and Applications” and discussed graduate school with students.
Ann Miller ’95, a Forensic Chemist with U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Chicago, was one of five alumni featured on a campus panel “The Launch Pad: Beyond Study Abroad – Lives and Careers.” Ann spent a semester at the University of Glasgow while at Beloit.
Prof. Jorge Woehl from the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee gave a seminar “Catch, Hold, Release: Controlled Manipulation of Single Molecules in Solution.”
Prof. Mary K. Pflum from the Chemistry Department at Wayne State University gave a seminar on “Kinase Cosubstrate Promiscuity: Chemical Approaches to Characterize Protein Phosphorylation.”
Dr. Patricio R. Lozano, a Flavor Chemist in the Analytical Group at the corporate headquarters for Kerry Ingredients & Flavors in Beloit, gave a seminar on “Flavor Chemistry and Analytical Techniques used for Flavor Research.”
Dr. Justin K. Hines, an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, gave a seminar on “Yeast prions: Proteins hijacking the cellular chaperone machinery to become heritable elements.”
Ms. Elizabeth Middleton, a graduate student in the Department of Chemistry at Yale University, gave a seminar on “Insight into the role of a-Synuclein in Parkinson’s Disease using fluorescence methods.”
Dr. Theodore J. Gries, Visiting Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Beloit College, gave a seminar on “Is the white whale's mouth open? A how-to guide for trapping and characterizing transient intermediates of transcription initiation using solutes.”
Dr. Stephanie Urbin, a staff member in the Fabric and Home Care Technology Division, gave a seminar on “Research and Development at Proctor and Gamble” and talked informally with students about career options in industry.
Ms. Laura Alberch, a graduate student at Purdue University, gave a seminar “Stereoselectivity in the Expoxidation of Unsaturated Carbohydrates: Experimental and Computational Studies.”
Dr. Uzma Zakai, a postdoctoral fellow in chemistry at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, gave a seminar on “Understanding Chemistry via Structural Insight.”
| 117 | Chemistry (3 sections) | 76 |
| 127 | Biochemical Issues: Nutrition | 21 |
| 127 | Biochemical Issues: Neurochemistry of Consciousness | 9 |
| 225 | Instrumental: SEM and Scanning Probe Microscopies | 15 |
| 230 | Organic Chemistry I (2 sections) | 51 |
| 245 | Molecular Modeling, Visualization and Computational Chemistry | 13 |
| 250 | Solid State Chemistry | 10 |
| 300 | Biochemistry of Macromolecules | 18 |
| 380 | Chemistry Seminar | 8 |
| 385 | Senior Thesis | 6 |
| 390 | Special Projects | 2 |
| 395 | Teaching Assistant | 4 |
| Total | 233 |
| 117 | Chemistry (2 sections) | 46 | |
| 127 | Biochemical Issues: Nutrition | 14 | |
| 150 | Nanochemistry | 10 | |
| 220 | Environmental, Analytical, & Geochemistry | 32 | |
| 225 | Instrumental Analysis: IR and NMR | 6 | |
| 235 | Organic Chemistry II | 31 | |
| 240 | Thermodynamics and Kinetics | 8 | |
| 260 | Biochemistry of Metabolism | 16 | |
| 280 |
|
22 | |
| 370 |
|
12 | |
| 380 |
|
12 | |
| 385 | Senior Thesis | 6 | |
| 390 | Special Projects | 2 | |
| 395 | Teaching Assistant | 5 | |
| Total | 222 |
| Elizabeth Capstick | 2013 | Applied Chemistry | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| David Cavanagh | 2013 | Biochemistry | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| Catherine Cochran | 2014 | Biochemistry | Minneapolis, Minnesota | |
| Michael Collis | 2013 | Biochemistry | Willowbrook, Illinois | |
| Valerie Dauterman | 2013 | Biochemistry | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| Thomas Davis | 2013 | Chemistry (Minor) | Westminster, Maryland | |
| Adilene Dominguez | 2012 | Biochemistry | Waukegan, Illinois | |
| Jamie Eversage | 2012 | Chemistry (Minor) | Swanville, Maine | |
| Jennifer Gilbertson | 2012 | Applied Chemistry | Manhattan Beach, California | |
| Matthew Hackbart | 2012 | Biochemistry | Woodstock, Illinois | |
| MacKenzie Hilliard | 2012 | Biological Chemistry | Monticello, Wisconsin | |
| Allie Huner | 2012 | Chemistry | Stevens Point, Wisconsin | |
| Savannah Huston | 2012 | Biochemistry | Roscoe, Illinois | |
| Ari Jacobs | 2012 | Chemistry | Mequon, Wisconsin | |
| Elizabeth Jenkins | 2013 | Chemistry | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| Faith Jones | 2012 | Biochemistry | Elburn, Illinois | |
| Grace Kellogg | 2013 | Environmental Chemistry | Falcon Heights, Minnesota | |
| Kelsey Kettlehut | 2013 | Chemistry | Downers Grove, Illinois | |
| Ozgun Kilic | 2013 | Biological Chemistry | Izmir, Turkey | |
| Kayla Kingslein | 2012 | Chemistry | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| Kourtney Kingslein | 2012 | Chemistry | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| Sarrah Knause | 2013 | Biochemistry | Cedar Rapids, Iowa | |
| Leah Kruckman | 2014 | Biochemistry | Libertyville, Illinois | |
| Wiliam Ksander | 2013 | Chemistry | Amherst, New Hampshire | |
| Jaren McCannon | 2012 | Chemistry (Minor) | Ashton, Illinois | |
| Christina Mikulka | 2013 | Chemistry (Minor) | Crystal Lake, Illinois | |
| Colbert Miller | 2013 | Chemistry | Galloway, Ohio | |
| Christopher Nakamoto | 2013 | Chemistry | Naperville, Illinois | |
| Adam Nicholas | 2012 | Biological Chemistry | Mount Prospect, Illinois | |
| Orion Pearce | 2013 | Chemistry | Rockland, Maine | |
| Jourdan Posner | 2012 | Biochemistry | Honolulu, Hawaii | |
| Derek Pugh | 2013 | Chemistry (Minor) | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| Gregory Schalla | 2013 | Biochemistry | West Bend, Wisconsin | |
| Darrell Scott | 2012 | Chemistry | Chicago, Illinois | |
| Li Shen | 2012 | Chemistry | Shanghai, China | |
| Constance Siu | 2013 | Biochemistry | Chicago, Illinois | |
| Sarah Stariah | 2012 | Chemistry | LaSalle, Illinois | |
| Dennis Tum | 2013 | Biochemistry | Rift-Valley, Kenya | |
| Jill Wulf | 2013 | Chemistry | Beloit, Wisconsin | |
| Elizabeth Wynn | 2013 | Applied Chemistry | Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin |
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE HOOD (Recognizing the graduating senior with the highest academic ranking) |
Kiera Hayes |
| SUMMA CUM LAUDE | Catherine Cooper |
| MAGNA CUM LAUDE | Keith Olson |
| CUM LAUDE | Mary Evans |
| DEPARTMENTAL HONORS | Catherine Cooper – Chemistry, Anthropology |
| Phi Beta Kappa | Catherine Cooper ‘11 |
| Mortar Board | Keith Olson ‘11 |
CRC PRESS FIRST YEAR CHEMISTRY ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
recognizes outstanding work by a first-year student and consists of a copy of
the Handbook of Chemistry and Physics.
Ryan Munger ‘14
AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
sponsored by the Division of Polymer Chemistry recognizes outstanding work in
the introductory organic chemistry course.
Christopher Goyne ‘13
AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY AWARD
sponsored
by the Division of Analytical Chemistry, recognizes a student who displays
an aptitude for analytical chemistry.
Orion Pearce ‘13
AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT IN INORGANIC
CHEMISTRY
sponsored by the Division of Inorganic Chemistry, recognizes undergraduate
achievement in inorganic chemistry.
Ari Jacobs ‘12
WILLIAM J. TRAUTMAN AWARD IN PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY
recognizes chemistry majors for outstanding performance in physical chemistry.
Professor Trautman taught chemistry at Beloit College from 1921 to 1947.
Allie Hunter ‘12
EDWARD C. FULLER AWARD in CHEMICAL EDUCATION
was established by the majors of the Class of 1982 in honor of Professor Fuller
and is given to a junior or senior who has done outstanding work as a teaching
assistant.
Catherine Cooper ‘11
JOHN H. NAIR AWARD
honors an alumnus (Class of 1915) and
provides membership in an appropriate professional society.
Catherine Cooper ’11, Kiera Hayes ’11, Tess Jacquez ‘11
JAMES E. LOCKWOOD PRIZE (Anthropology Department) awarded to an outstanding student in anthropology.
Catherine Cooper ‘11
ANN M. VERVILLE SCHOLAR’S AWARD (Biology Department)
presented to an upper class biology major chosen by the biology department faculty as the outstanding student of the year.
Kiera Hayes ‘11
WALTER S. HAVEN PRIZE IN BIOLOGY awarded to students who have completed outstanding research projects.
Matthew Hackbart ’12, Keith Olson ’11, John Rindfleisch ‘11
FERWERDA MERIT SCHOLARSHIPS are awarded to science majors who have established a record of academic excellence in their chosen field. The James R. Ferwerda Endowed Science Scholarship Fund was established in 1978 by Dr. James Ferwerda, a member of the class of 1953 and a Beloit College trustee, and his wife, Connie.
Valerie Dauterman ’13, Matthew Hackbart ’12, Allie Hunter ’12, William Ksander ’13, Orion Pearce ’13, Gregory Schalla ‘13
FLORENCE YATES SCOBIE AWARD given to a senior class member of Theta Pi Gamma who has demonstrated scholarship and active participation in both the campus community and the sorority.
Tess Jacquez ‘11
WISCONSIN CHAPTER OF PHI BETA PHI AWARD to recognize the woman member of the junior class who holds the highest academic ranking.
Allie Hunter ‘12
2010-2011 Athletic Honors
Blanket Awards, the highest honor for a Beloit College student-athlete and signifying the “Best of the Best.”
Tess Jacquez ‘11
Joe Kobylka Award, given to a male and female student-athlete who have best exemplified the qualities of sportsmanship and team spirit throughout their careers
Tess Jacquez ‘11
Ed DeGeorge Service and Scholar-Athlete Award, given to a male and female student-athlete, recognizing outstanding academic and athletic performance along with a commitment to service
Kiera Hayes ‘11
All-Midwest Conference North Division Softball First Team
Sarah Stariha (for the second consecutive year)
Academic All-Midwest Conference First Teams
Mary Evans ’11 - Basketball
Jenny Gilbertson ’12 – Outdoor Track
Matt Hackbart ’12 - Basketball
Kiera Hayes ’11 – Soccer, Indoor and Outdoor Track
Tess Jacquez ’11 – Volleyball, Softball
Chris Juels ’11 – Football
Kelsey Morse ’11 – Soccer
Keith Olson ’11 – Swimming
Greg Schalla ’13 – Cross Country
Diana Sopkowicz ’11 - Basketball
Sarah Stariha ’12 – Basketball, Softball
Michael Underwood ’11 – Football
Julia Win ’11 – Tennis
Elizabeth Wynn ’13 – Indoor and Outdoor Track
2010 Midstates Science and Math Consortium Undergraduate Research Symposium in the Biological Sciences
November 5-7, 2010, University of Chicago
Aye Mon Win ’11 – “Thioredoxin glutathione reductase (TGR): a novel drug target in combating schistosomiasis infection”
Beloit College International Symposium
November 17, 2010
Jennifer Gilbertson ’12 – “The Reemergence of Nontraditional Medicine on the Island of Martinique” – based on research project done on a semester abroad at the Université des Antilles et de la Guyane in Martinique, Spring 2010.
Kiera Hayes ’11 – “Healthcare in Nzinga, South Africa: Ancestors, Prayers, and ARVs” – based on a project done during a semester abroad in South Africa, Spring 2010.
American Chemical Society National Meeting
Anaheim, CA - March 2011
Kiera N. Hayes ’11, Ashley M. Vaughan, Stefan H. I. Kappe – “Malaria proteins localize to the parasite plasma membrane” presented in the Undergraduate Poster Session – based on work done at the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, Summer 2010.
Sarah Stariha ’12, Suhas Niyogi, Keith Honaker-Schroeder, J. David Carter, Jennifer Mawdsley – “Hydrophillic surface treatments for graphite-fluoropolymer composite coatings on metallic bipolar plates” presented in a joint PMSE/Polymer poster session and at the Sci-Mix general session – based on work done at Argonne National Laboratory, Summer 2010.
Elise Wall ’11, Kristene Henne, Carol Giometti – “2D electrophoresis of Anaeromyxobacter dehalogenans grown with lepidocrocite, nitrite or nitrate” presented in the Undergraduate Poster Session – based on work done at Argonne National Laboratory, Summer 2010.
Beloit College 35th Annual Student Symposium
April 14, 2011
Catherine Cooper ’11 – “Diagnostic Facets of Archaeological Window Glass: Thickness and Corrosion Chemistry” – based on work done at Beloit with Bill Green (Museums) and Kevin Braun (Chemistry).
Jennifer Gilberston ’12 – “Phytochelatin Synthase in Schmidtea mediterranea: The Search for a Schistosomiasis Drug – based on work done at Rush University, Summer 2010.
Kiera Hayes ’11 – Malaria Proteins Localize to the Parasite Plasma Membrane – based on work done at he Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, Summer 2010.
Healthcare in Nzinga, South Africa: Ancestors, Prayers, and ARVs – based on work done on a semester program in South Africa, Spring 2010.
Ari Jacobs ’12 – Invisible Sunscreen: Chemists Do It With Protection – based on work done at Beloit with George Lisensky.
Kelsey Morse ’11 – “Synthetic Antiferromagnetic Nanoparticles for Biosensing” – based on work done at Stanford University, Summer 2010.
Sarah Stariha ’12 – “Hydrophillic Surface Treatments for Graphite-Fluoropolymer Composite Coatings on Metallic Bipolar Plates” – based on work done at Argonne National Laboratory, Summer 2010.
The Beloit Biologist, Volume 30, 2011
Kiera N. Hayes, Ashley M. Vaughan, and Stefan H. I. Kappe – Malaria Plasmodium Yeolii Proteins Localize to the Parasite Plasma Membrane – based on work done at the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute
John P. D. Rindfleisch – Spatial Point Analysis: Correlations Between Geometric and Topological Data from Biological Samples
Aye Mon Win, Latasha Day, Hisin-Hung Huang, and David Williams – Characterization of Thioredoxin Glutathione Reductase (TGR), an Antioxidant Enzyme in Schistosoma Spp. Parasites – based on work done at the Rush University Medical Center
Stephanie Kang – FRMD7 is Not Homologous to Genes that Induce Glutamate Excitotoxicity
Michael Collis ’13 is doing research this summer in Chicago through the Beloit College Biomedical Scholars Program.
Valerie Dauterman ’13 will be doing research on campus with Katie Johnson in Biology this summer, as well as working several other jobs in Beloit.
Adilene Dominguez ’12 spent the fall semester at the University of Otago in New Zealand.
Jamie Eversage ’12 studied in New Zealand last fall.
Jenny Gilbertson '12 is doing research this summer at the Center for Nanotechnology at the University of Washington.
Christopher Goyne ’13 is working this summer at NOX Technologies, a biotech company.
Mackenzie Hilliard ’12 has a summer internship in the analytical laboratory at Kerry Ingredients in Beloit.
Allie Hunter '12 attended the Experimental Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Conference at the Asilomar Conference Grounds in California on April 10-15, 2011 in connection with her NSF REU program from the prior summer at the University of Southern Illinois – Carbondale. This summer she is doing computational chemistry research in the REU program at the University of Kansas.
Ari Jacobs '12 is doing materials chemistry research this summer in the REU program at the University of Oregon.
Grace Kellogg ’13 is returning to campus for a second summer as a Sustainability Fellow, continuing her work on energy analysis for Physical Plant. She will be in Norway for the fall semester on the “Mountains to Fjords” geology and environmental program.
Sarrah Knause ’13 is shadowing physicians and volunteering at the Iowa City Free Clinic this summer.
Michael Kreiser ’13 is doing research this summer in Chicago through Beloit College’s Biomedical Research Scholars Program.
Will Ksander ’13 is doing organic synthetic research on compounds of medicinal interest this summer with Prof. Robert Boeckman’s group at the University of Rochester.
Christina Mikulka ’13 is studying viral DNA packaging in the Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program at the University of Iowa this summer.
Chris Nakamoto ’13 will spend next fall at Oak Ridge National Laboratory on their Science Semester research program.
Adam Nicholas ’12 is working on campus with Ted Gries this summer to help set up Ted’s research and new labs for the biochemistry classes.
Keith Olson ‘11 attended the American Physiological Society’s Experimental Biology meeting in Washington, DC in April to receive the first-place prize in the 2011 Phantastic Physiology Voyage Video Contest for “Eye Girl,” a video demonstrating the form and function behind pupil dilation, which he had produced with Rhiannon Dixon’11 and Krista Lowe’11 for Katie Johnson’s Human Anatomy and Physiology course.
Jourdan Posner ’12 is a project assistant on campus for BioQUEST this summer.
Derek Pugh ’13 is spending the summer as a McNair Scholar working with the African American Infant Mortality Group in Beloit to determine the social determinants of health. Next fall he will be studying abroad in Copenhagen.
Sarah Stariha '12 is spending her second summer at Argonne National Laboratory working on hydrogen fuel cell projects.
Betsy Wynn ’13 is working this summer on regulatory affairs projects, and Jillian Wulf ’13 is working in the lab at the Corporate Technology Center of ChemTool Incorporated, one of the largest manufacturers and custom formulators of lubricants and specialty products in the world, which has recently relocated to Rockton, Illinois.
Catherine Cooper – Providence, Rhode Island
Chemistry and Anthropology Majors
Catherine came to Beloit College to study Archaeology, but after taking Chemistry 117 her Freshman year, was caught and held in the Chemistry Department. Over the course of four years, she worked to combine Archaeology and Chemistry. She completed two internships, one at Arizona State University with Beloit alumna Dr. Kelly Knudson ‘97, and the other at Brown University. The Brown University internship focused on examining historical window glass artifacts using archaeological and chemical techniques and became the basis for senior theses in each major. These experiences introduced her to the field of Archaeometry, which she will pursue in graduate school at University British Columbia in the fall.
Benjamin Dahl – Lambertville, New Jersey
Environmental Chemistry Major and Political Science Minor
Stemming from an interest in renewable energy technology, Ben joined the chemistry department as a sophomore and has never looked back. He has completed three internships in the nation’s capital at various consulting firms/think tanks that work within the renewable energy sector. On campus, he is a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon where he held the position of kitchen manager. After graduation he plans to work for a year or two and then apply to graduate school, hoping to research new materials for energy conversion/storage.
Mary Evans – Beloit Wisconsin
Biochemistry Major
Mary entered Beloit College as a WiscAMP scholar and worked alongside Professor Kathleen Mandel in the spring of 2008 researching the double helical structures of DNA. She spent the summer of 2008 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee researching gene regulation in the tobacco hornworm as a Ronald McNair scholar. In the summer of 2009, Mary participated in the Summer Medical and Dental Education Program (SMDEP) at the University of Louisville, School of Medicine. The academic enrichment program allowed her to experience intensive medical school preparation through clinical exposure in hospitals as well as participating in career development seminars. During her four years at Beloit, Mary was a varsity basketball athlete and volunteered for the Girls and Women in Science (GWIS) conference. She was also an intern at the Beloit Area Community Health Center and plans to continue volunteering there after college. This summer, Mary will be applying to medical schools and hopes to enroll in the fall of 2012.
Kiera Hayes – Seattle, Washington
Biochemistry and Anthropology Majors
Kiera took two years to decide what she wanted to major in, and after several switches decided on Anthropology and Biochemistry. She interned at Seattle Biomedical Research Institute during the summer of 2009 and 2010 and helped search for new malaria vaccine targets. This internship-turned-job helped her decide that she loved scientific research, but preferred medicine. She also studied abroad in Durban, South Africa where she studied the health care system in a rural area, looking at the interactions between Traditional and Western health paradigms. As a result of these experiences, she is planning to take a few years off of school to travel, work, and decide what she wants to do with medicine and anthropology before she applies to graduate school in Anthropology, Global Health, Public Health, and/or Medicine. Due to some funding issues at her prior job in Seattle, she is no longer employed and is currently looking for jobs. In the meantime, she hopes to continue playing soccer, cultivate some artistic interests that lay dormant during the college years, and read through her increasingly long book list of scientific and classical literature.
Tess Jacquez – Pescadero, California
Chemistry Major
Tess has been involved in a many research opportunities while at Beloit College. She entered as a WiscAMP scholar, worked with Dr. Kevin Braun on producing a computer program that would apply mathematical transforms to increase signal-to-noise ratio of capillary electrophoresis data, participated in the REU at Syracuse University where she worked under Dr. John Chisholm in his organic synthesis lab on natural product synthesis, and most recently spent the summer working for the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center at University of Wisconsin Madison under Dr. George Lisensky. She is attending a year-long master's industrial internship program at the University of Oregon where she will be focusing on semiconductors and photovoltaics. This is a stepping stone to working on solar cells in an industrial setting. Outside of chemistry Tess was a dual sport varsity athlete at Beloit College playing volleyball and softball. She also was a member of Theta Pi Gamma, chemistry club, BSAAC, and French club over her four years at Beloit.
Christopher Juels – Atalissa, Iowa
Applied Chemistry Major
Chris has been able to spend four years as an applied chemistry student, a member of the TKE fraternity, as well as being a four year letter winner on the varsity football team. In the summers of 2009 and 2010, Chris participated in biochemical research in the University of Iowa's cardiovascular research program where he worked as a student lab assistant studying the effects of CaMKII inhibition on cardiomyocytes. Chris will be entering medical school at Des Moines University in the fall of 2011, where he will be starting his first year in their podiatric medicine and surgery program.
Stephanie Kang – East Setauket, MY
Biochemistry Major and Studio Art Minor
Roald (Ro) Morris – San Jose, California
Applied Chemistry Major
Arriving at Beloit with nothing in mind other than the mumbled "biochemistry" used to stymie inquisitive relations, Ro came to be split between two options after his first semester: continue from his intro chem class or continue from his intro psych? After tucking away equal credits to both by the time sophomore year came to a close, Ro bit the bullet and chose chem. One semester of Solid State chemistry later, he knew he had made the right decision. As he finishes this year, he has taken every class provided by the chem department, aside from the two biochem courses, and is excited to continue on at graduate school after a year off.
Kelsey Morse – Carlinville, Illinois
Chemistry Major
Kelsey started her Beloit journey unsure of her path, but after taking organic chemistry for fun her first semester, she realized that chemistry was where she belonged. During her time at Beloit Kelsey served as an AP Chemistry tutor, an organic chemistry TA, and did an internship with the National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network at Stanford University. Her research focused on synthetic antiferromagnetic nanoparticles for use in biosensing. When not in the classroom, Kelsey participated as an active member of Kappa Delta sorority, played soccer, and participated in Chemistry Club. Kelsey is hoping to pursue a career as a technical salesperson, and is currently looking for a position as a laboratory technician.
Nicholas O’Block – Highland Park, Illinois
Biochemistry Major
Keith Olson – Elmhurst, Illinois
Applied Chemistry Major
John (JP) Rindfleisch – Clinton, Wisconsin
Biochemistry Major
Diana Sopkowicz – West Bend, Wisconsin
Biochemistry and Health and Society Major
In addition to her double major, Diana was a varsity basketball athlete. During her freshman and sophomore years, she attended the conference tournament with her teammates. In the summer of 2009 she went to Nicaragua through International Service Learning where she was immersed in a new culture and gained hands-on experience in medicine by working with a native doctor at free-clinics. In 2010, she was granted a Beloit College Biomedical Research Scholarship and she spent the summer working at Rush University Medical Center with Dr. Edward Barker studying the immune response to HIV-1. Additionally, she has been a representative on the Beloit College Student Athlete Advisory Committee and volunteered with the Girls and Women in Science Conference and Beloit Regional Hospice. Diana is looking forward to attending nursing school in Boston this coming year.
Michael Underwood – Jacksonville, Illinois
Chemistry Major
Elise Wall – Altadena, California
Biological Chemistry Major and Physics Minor
Hailing from near Los Angeles, Elise was often asked "Why on earth did you come somewhere so cold?!" After 4 years, she knows the answer has everything to do with what Beloit offers a person who refuses to narrow her interests. Beloit offered Elise the chance to serve as the president of Ceramics Club and to be active in Tae Kwon Do through Martial Arts Club. Her junior spring semester was spent abroad in England, where she studied artisan glassblowing and illustration. After a short stint in the Biology Department, Elise quickly realized that the classes she was most excited about fit very well into the newly established Biological Chemistry major; she became the first to graduate with that major. Elise completed two research internships: one at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, CA and another at Argonne National Laboratory, IL. The latter gave substance to her thesis, delving into the mechanism of microbial heavy metal bioremediation. This research was presented at the 2011 American Chemical Society meeting during her final semester. Elise has yet to narrow her interests and will be spending as long as it takes figuring out a career that allows her to keep them varied. At the moment she is hoping to move to France and enter the biotech industry there.
Aye Mon (Julia) Win – South Elgin, Illinois
Integrative and Medical Biology Major and Chemistry Minor
Julia came to Beloit with dreams of becoming a doctor. While at Beloit, she was also able to study abroad in the Galapagos Islands and play varsity tennis. She worked as a Lab and Safety Assistant all four years and was an intro chem TA. She has spent her summers at an electrophysiology internship shadowing pacemaker implants and learning cardiology and electrophysiology, at Rush University conducting research on Schistosomiasis under the Schweppe Scholarship for Undergraduate Biomedical Research, as a sustainability intern for sBench Co. researching environmentally-friendly lab practices for the company Twitter page, and at an anticoagulation clinic internship at the Royal Free Hospital in London collecting clinic data. Upon graduating, Julia intends to get more job experience before deciding whether medical school is the route for her.
Past issues of Beloit College Magazine can be accessed on-line at https://www.beloit.edu/belmag/.
Tom Tisue ’61 taught chemistry full time this past year at Muskegon Community College in Michigan.
Eric Gordon ’67 reports that following 30 years in drug discovery research, he is engaged as a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley (Skyline Ventures, Palo Alto, CA). He is involved in two exciting chemistry-based startup companies: Concert, which uses the deuterium isotope effect to modify the pharmacokinetics of drugs ; and Tetraphase, which uses tetracycline chemistry of Andy Myers (Harvard) to create novel antibiotics. Several of these have now advanced into testing in humans.
Bruce Handler ’70, Chicago, Illinois, is semi-retired from 30 years as an electrophysiologist and cardiologist, having worked in LaCrosse and Urbana, Illinois. He still teaches at the medical school downstate as an assistant professor of medicine. He formed a company (http://www.mhconsultantsinc.com) that trains law enforcement and corrections personnel in crisis intervention with persons with mental illness, disability and substance abuse. They have trained over 1,300 Chicago police and Cook County correctional officers and presented their program at several regional, national and international conferences.
John Houk ’72 is still in full time practice in Honolulu, where his latest project to improve the lot of the primary care physician is a pilot of 25 doctors who are transforming their practices into Patient Centered Medical Homes.
Peter Ory ‘77 has been in Seattle for over 20 years now, mostly practicing radiology in the community but also with a clinical faculty appointment at the University of Washington.
Jill Covert ’90 is a post doctoral fellow in the Vision Sciences Research Laboratory of the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California – Davis, where she is working on using nanotechnology in tissue growth.
Ranil Abeysinghe ’94 is a Director and Global Regulatory Leader for CNS and Pain with Johnson and Johnson Pharmaceutical in New Jersey.
Weni Feng ’95 has moved from the University of Washington to Upland Medical University in Syracuse, NY where she is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
Sarah Katz ’07 graduated from UW-Madison in September, 2010 with a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering, moved to Albany, NY, and started work as a research engineer/physicist at GE's Global Research Lab in Niskayuna, NY.
Annie Wentz ’07 has been working as a lab tech in cardiology in the Medical School at Washington University in St. Louis, where she will be starting graduate school in their Masters of Public Health program in the fall.
Warren "Winni" Kretzschmar '08 has completed a two-year intramural research trainee program at the National Human Genome Research Institute of the NIH in Bethesda, MD, and started a one-year master program in applied statistics at Oxford, UK in October 2010.
Ellie Hirte ’09 has a position as an organic chemist in the extractions lab for the State of Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality in Portland, testing the effluent from wastewater treatment plants throughout Oregon for pharmaceuticals, steroids, dioxins, and other trace organic pollutants.
Paul Mueller ’09 has passed his comprehensive exam and is now a Ph.D. candidate in Chemistry at the University of Iowa.
Shanna Dell '10 was a student intern Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities (SENCER) project for the summer following graduation and then joined Covance Clinical Research in Madison, Wisconsin. She will start in the BS Nursing program at Johns Hopkins University next fall.
Dana Dieringer ’10 will be starting medical school in the fall at the University of Wisconsin – Madison in their Wisconsin Academy of Rural Medicine program.
Geehtika Fernando ’10 is spending the summer in Ethiopia, where she will work with the TSEHAI-HIV AIDS Initiative, combining her biochemistry lab skills in their diagnostic lab with her passion for public health. In the fall, she will start graduate at the Harvard University School of Public Health
Clare Loxterkamp ’10 will return to Rennes, France (where she spent a semester while at Beloit) teaching English for the coming year.
Jessie Panks ’10 has been accepted by the Georgetown University School of Medicine and will start there next fall.
Katie Schurr ’10, who completed an Honors Term on campus last fall, has been accepted into the Doctor of Osteopathy program at Ohio University and will start there in the fall.
Our alumni email network has been tremendously helpful to our present students for finding mentors, summer research positions, and post-graduate opportunities. The Beloit College Alumni office now maintains an email directory that can be accessed at https://www.beloit.edu/alumni/. Please send email addresses and changes to alumni@beloit.edu.
Chemistry faculty
braunk@beloit.edu
griest@beloit.edu
lisensky@beloit.edu
ordman@beloit.edu
parmentr@beloit.edu
spencer@beloit.edu
ramav@beloit.edu
Department Web page
http://chemistry.beloit.edu/classes
(Previous issues of the Annual Newsletter dating back to 1993 are available on-line via the home page!)
ALUMNI, PLEASE KEEP IN TOUCH!! Please send your news and notes to any of the Chemistry faculty.