Department of Chemistry
"We have newly renovated research and teaching labs, high-quality instrumentation and facilities, and the lifestyle associated with living in the Northern Rocky Mountain region is something that has to be experienced to fully appreciate."
- Students will find that the Chemistry department has a nationally competitive and productive research program.There are also four spin-off high-tech companies currently in various stages of commercialization, headed by various members of our department. When those companies mature, they will have an important impact on the state's economy.
- The mission of the Department of Chemistry is to create new knowledge about the molecular sciences and to convey these discoveries, as well as the discoveries of other molecular scientists throughout history, to the scientific community, students, and the public.
- Our department has a unique strength that sets us apart from most other programs:access to great faculty! Without exception, each member of our faculty cares about student success, and each professor will spend the necessary mentoring time during the student’s growth.
Graduate Student Sarah Cullison
Sarah Cullison
Hometown: Silver Spring, Maryland
Research Mentor: Michael DeGrandpre
Topic of Research: Development and Implementation of an Autonomous Instrument to Measure pCO2
Dr. DeGrandpre nominated Sarah, who just finished a 2 year fellowship with Montana EPSCoR and is starting a year-long fellowship with the NASA-Montana Space Grant Consortium.She is studying autonomous instruments to measure CO2 in aqueous environments.While current data shows that CO2 emissions and concentration levels are increasing, this information does not tell us a great deal about the carbon cycle as a whole. Information on the global sinks, sources, and fluxes of CO2 are needed to determine the impacts of increased CO2 levels. The development of an autonomous instrument to measure CO2 will facilitate the collection of data from a wide range of aquatic sites worldwide.
Graduate Student Mark Hughes
Mark Hughes
Hometown: Belfast, Northern Ireland
Research Mentor: Dr. Edward Rosenberg
Topic of Research: Silica Polyamine Composites for the Removal and Recovery of Heavy Metals from Aqueous Solutions
Mark was nominated by Dr. Rosenberg because of his outstanding research accomplishments and his ability to articulate scientific information. He has an excellent command of his research topic and most of his work has come from his own original ideas. Mark also has an interesting background. He comes from Belfast, Northern Ireland and has B.S. and M. S. degrees in Engineering. He made the transition from engineer to chemist effortlessly and this requires a lot of innate talent for science. His personality is also exceptional. He is determined, yet easy going. Serious but with a great sense of humor and humanity. Overall an outstanding individual.
Undergraduate Student Joseph Harworth
Joseph Harworth
Research Mentor: Dr. Mark Cracolice / Dr. Klara Briknarova
Topic of Research: Peer-led Team Learning (PLTL)/ Elucidation of three dimensional structures of proteins using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy.
Joseph has worked with Dr. Cracolice as a workshop leader, using PLTL, for four semesters now. He was nominated because of his exemplary work as a PLTL leader. He is also planning to begin research with Dr. Briknarova in the Spring semester. Joseph is a member of the Davidson Honors College, and will be using his research with Dr. Briknarova towards his senior honors thesis.
Undergraduate Student Rachel Foster
Rachel Foster
Hometown: Absarokee, MT
Research Mentor: Dr. Mark Cracolice
Topic of Research: Peer-Led Team Learning, Biological Chemistry
Rachel was nominated by a student in her Chemistry 161 workshop to profiled on this website. Rachel is working as a first time workshop leader for Peer-led Team Learning (PLTL) this semester for Chemistry 161 under Dr. Cracolice. She also spends time as a volunteer at the Missoula Planned Parenthood and is planning to train to be involved in their peer education and outreach program.
