Senior students prepare for seminars

Biochemistry alumnus and winner of the 2011 Ross Seminar Prize, Calvin Streeter, returned as an invited speaker to the Senior Seminar class. He provided tips and suggestions from his perspective on how to approach  the senior seminar and it’s accompanying paper. His ultimate take-home message was: “Have fun and enjoy it.”  Because students are able to choose their own topic and focus on the particulars that interest them, this goal is well within reach.  Good luck to all you graduating seniors - we look forward to reading your reports and listening to your presentations.

Welcome Dr. Kathryn Haas

This semester, the attentions of Professors McMillen and Feighery have been redirected to pressing concerns leaving our department's organic and inorganic chemistry courses without instructors - that is, until Dr. Kathryn Haas came to the rescue.   Haas spent a year as a post-doc studying the toxicological effects of cadmium on glow worms after graduating with a Ph.D. from Duke University in 2010. 

Haas will start a full-time professorship at Saint Mary's College next Fall, but this Spring she is teaching organic chemistry lecture and both the lecture and laboratory of inorganic chemistry here at IU South Bend.  You might find her snowboarding in the snow that cancelled class as she taught this skill for eight years - but she also likes knitting and fun group fitness activities.  Not pictured are her two cats: Peaches and Bad Kitty - I wonder if she has a favorite?   Haas says she loves to teach and we wish her and her students a wonderful Spring semester.

Tutoring for lower-level courses returns

The Academic Center for Excellence is again stocking itself full of outstanding students to tutor students in freshman and sophomore chemistry courses.  The schedule provided may change during the semester, but gives a good idea of the coverage provided.  Please contact the center for more details

New Software for the New Year

We begin the Spring semester with new software for drawing chemical structures.  Several months ago our department purchased ChemSketch from ACD Labs and it is now part of the standard build on student lab computers throughout the campus.   In addition to being able to draw structures, students can generate various types of three-dimensional images of their structures and rotate them with the push of a button.  This should greatly help students appreciate concepts like steric hindrance and symmetry.  The picture shows two different 3D views of a chlorinated and alkylated dibenzofuran.  Also handy is a tool that "optimizes" the geometry of a poorly-drawn structure so that our lack of artistry is not apparent.  Students can find this software under the class-specific folder at the START menu of lab computers.

Publication in Electroanalysis

Several undergraduate students have had the opportunity to research with Analytical Professor Grace Muna over the past two years: graduate Bonnie Jaskowski and current students Adam Kaylor, Roxanne Sirhan, and Craig Kelley.  Bonnie and Adam are pictured presenting some of their work.  

The fruits of their labor have just ripened as their research appears in the current issue of Electroanalysis as Electrocatalyic Oxidation of Estrogenic Phenolic Compounds at a Nickel-MOdified Glassy Carbon Electrode (2011, 23, 2915-2924).  Congratulations to Professor Muna and all of her students!

Doug McMillen becomes Dean McMillen

Professor Doug McMillen has been faithfully serving the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences in administration for many years.  He's been acting associate dean, associate dean, assistant dean, and acting dean for our college. Now, because of McMillen's excellent character, leadership, and experience, he has been asked to serve as acting dean of the College of Health Sciences to fill the vacancy left by the untimely death of Dean Mary Jo Regan-Kubinski.

Wait tables, paint houses, or research this summer?

A summer research position can serve many purposes: (1) many are paid positions; (2) they introduce you to research-based graduate school; (3) they look great on resumes and applications; (4) they let you see what other universities are like if your experience is off the South Bend campus.  

As an example, the University of Texas at Dallas offers two types of undergraduate research programs.  Each is 10 weeks with a stipend of $4,000. Housing costs are covered as well.  Such programs are competitive so you will need at least decent grades and excellent letters of recommendation from your IU South Bend faculty.  The following websites describe the two  programs at Dallas. 

UT-Dallas "SURF"    
UT-Dallas "QP-SURF"
   

If you are interested in a summer research experience, inform a faculty member so that he/she can let you know of opportunities.  A limited number of SMART grants are also available from IU South Bend to support research at this campus - see your favorite research professor for more details.