2021 Departmental News

Linda Rodriguez received a 2021 Chancellor's Award of Excellence at the Nov. 3 TTU Distinguished Staff Awards Luncheon.

Jeanne Bertonazzi was honored with an in-depth article in the inaugural issue of the new TTU magazine, Evermore, and an invitation to attend the launch party event on Nov. 4.
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One of our own has made it into the TTU presses. Prof. Yehia Mechref was the subject of a recent Texas Tech Today article, as Featured News. Click here to read.

Prof. Dimitri Pappas was selected to be the TTU nominee for the 2022 Minnie Stevens Piper Professorship. Learn More

Lina Delgado was one of the recipients of the Study Abroad Competitive Scholarship for Spring 2022.

Dong Zhang, PhD candidate in the Gamez lab, received a 2021 Graduate Student Research Support Award provided through the Texas Tech University Office of Parent and Family Relations, the Graduate Assembly, and the Graduate School. October 2021.

Xiaodan (Dannie) Ding (Hutchins Group) received the award for best poster presentation at the ACS Midwest Regional Meeting in the Supramolecular and Crystal Engineering section.

Gerri Botte (PI, TTU Chemical Engineering) and Carol Korzeniewski (co-PI) have received seed-funding from the DOE Office of Basic Science for the project "Understanding and Controlling Electrochemical Routes for Upcycling of Polyolefins". + MoreThe award is for two-years ($750,000) beginning 9/1/2021.
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Carol Korzeniewski (PI) and Shelley Minteer (co-PI; U Utah) have received a supplement ($36,066) for their NSF project + More"Collaborative Research: Advancing strategies for in-situ determination and spatial mapping of components within membrane systems for energy conversion" that will further collaborations with the NIST Center for Neutron Research.
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The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry received the Presidential Departmental Excellence in Safety Award, thanks to the combined efforts of successive chairs, safety officers, faculty, staff, and researcher, over the last decade. + MoreThe $25,000 prize will bolster ongoing safety training efforts.

Five faculty from the Department received Mortar Board Apple Polishing Awards, on October 17. The Mortar Board is a national honor society for undergraduate seniors. Each year, student members of the TTU chapter nominate candidates. + MoreThe following professors were so honored: Dominick Casadonte, Kristin Hutchins, Michael Latham, Michael Mayer, Bill Poirier

Congratulations to our very own Jeanne Bertonazzi, who was recently featured on the COVER of the trade magazine, Fusion: Journal of The American Scientific Glassblowers Society.+ MoreThe article of the paper is titled "Construction of an Ultra-high Vacuum Plasma Cleaning Apparatus", which is a project Jeanne worked on for the TTU Center for Pulsed Power and Power Electronics.
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Profs. Anthony Cozzolino, Michael Findlater, Michael Latham, Guigen Li, and Bill Poirier, won $320,000 in TRIP Match funds for their Robert A. Welch Grants.

Linda Rodriguez, who was nominated for a TTU Distinguished Staff Award by our own Daniel Unruh, and was selected to receive a 2021 Chancellor's Award of Excellence.

Prof. Ben Wylie is this year's recipient of the College of Arts and Sciences Excellence in Research Award for the natural sciences. There is only one such award given out each year, and it comes with a cash prize.
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Kevin Finch, PhD candidate in the Gamez lab, received the 2021 Society for Applied Spectroscopy Atomic Section Student Award at the FACSS: SciX 2021 conference where he gave an invited talk. + MoreHe is also featured in an article by Spectroscopy Magazine where they announce the award (https://www.spectroscopyonline.com/view/four-students-to-receive-sas-atomic-section-awards-at-scix-2021). October 2021.

Xiaodan Ding, Navkiran Kaur Juneja, and Qixuan Zheng all received Study Abroad Competitive Scholarships for Spring 2022.

Tan Nguyen, a graduate student in Dr. Kristufek's lab group, won a $250 scholarship for the Covid-19 vaccine incentive program.

Catherine Agarwal (Chemistry and General Studies major) has been endorsed by TTU to apply for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship. Even this initial step is highly competitive, so this represents quite an achievement.

Linda Rodriguez was accepted into the 2021-2022 TTU President's Leadership Institute! The PLI is a unique program designed for both faculty and staff, to engage with TTU leadership. Only 20 or so aspiring leaders from across the entire TTU campus are selected each year for this highly competitive program.

Prof. and Assoc. VPR&I Yehia Mechref received approval from the NIH NIGMS to acquire a mass spectrometer by providing a supplement of $116,365.34.
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Prof. and Assoc. VPR&I Yehia Mechref received a renewal on his NIH R01 grant entitled “Sensitive and Quantitative MS-bases Glycomic Mapping Platform,” which will be funded for four additional years at $1,224,670. + MoreThis grant was originally awarded in 2014, and received 1st competing renewal in 2017.It is still the only TTU R01 renewed even once, let alone twice.
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Prof. Poirier and former group member Jonathan Jerke were selected for the TTU Innovation Hub at Research Park's NSF-funded Regional I-Corps Program, designed to develop science and ideas to form high-impact teams and launch successful startups.+ More The new startup, “Quantum Galaxies”, was recently incorporated, and plans to capitalize on Poirier's earlier TTU patent technology.
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Aldo Hernandez, B.Sc. Chemistry TTU class 2021, was selected to receive the 2021 Society for Applied Spectroscopy Undergraduate Award for his research in the Gamez lab. + MoreThe internationally competitive award recognizes “outstanding research in the area of spectroscopy”. He will receive the award at the upcoming SciX 2021 conference in September where he has been invited to present his research.

Mojgan Atashi (a graduate student of Prof. Mechref) received the 2021-2022 James D. and Mary Hazlewood Memorial Graduate Fellowship from the Graduate School.

Navkiran Kaur Juneja, a graduate student in Hutchins group, was awarded a Helen DeVitt Jones Graduate Fellowship.

Congratulations to our departmental poster presentation winners! (Winners receive a $500 scholarship and $200 towards one conference withing the upcoming year. + MoreWinners:
Inorganic: Nanda Katakam (Krempner)
Physical: Reza Amani (Wylie)
Organic: Mazen Elsaid (Ge)
Biochemistry: Henry Garcia (Latham)
Analytical: Mona Goli (Mechref)
Runners Up:
Inorganic: Lina Delgado
Physical: Sophia Sagala (Quitevis)
Organic: Gary George (Hutchins) and Adineh Rezaei (A. Gorden)
Biochemistry: Mahtab Beikzadeh (Latham)
Analytical: Mojgan Atashi (Mechref)

Kevin Finch, PhD candidate in the Gamez lab, received a 2021 American Chemical Society Division of Analytical Chemistry graduate fellowship. The fellowship, sponsored by the Society for Analytical Chemists of Pittsburgh, recognizes "outstanding research ability and accomplishment", and is highly competitive.

Linda Rodriguez was selected for the A&S Staff Spotlight, in July 2021. Read the Arts & Sciences Spotlight

Linda Rodriguez received a Phenomenal Women of Texas Tech Award for 2021, from the TTU Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Linda earned this honor because she was "vital to the success and health of the staff" over this past COVID year, during which she "showed true grit and leadership".

Christianah Adejokun also received a Phenomenal Women of Texas Tech Award for 2021. An undergraduate chem major, Christianah received this honor for her "love for Texas Tech shown through her philanthropic work".

Dr. Bill Poirier received a supplement in the amount of $33,000 to his NSF Award CDS&E: Massively Parallel Quantum Dynamics: Computing many accurate quantum states for real molecular applications. Only a select number of funded proposals were eligible for these supplements.
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Daniel Unruh received the College award of Excellence in Leadership.

Quentin Vaughn received the College award of Excellence in Support.

Xiaodan (Dannie) Ding (Hutchins group) won an award for best poster presentation at the Virtual Midwest Organic Solid State Chemistry Symposium on June 18, 2021.

Prof. Li received his seventh renewal of Welch Grant Award entitled "Multi-Layer 3D Chirality and its Asymmetric Catalytic Assembly." The total grant amount is $240,000. The award starts June 01, 2021, through May 31, 2024. + MoreThe Welch Foundation has continuously funded Prof. Li since 1997.  Learn More

Dr. Gamez received an NSF grant award entitled "Glow Discharge Optical Emission Coded Aperture Spectral Imaging Elemental Mapping (GOCAEM) for Ultrahigh Throughput 3D Surface Analysis of Nanoscale Materials."+ More The total grant amount is $411,000. The award period of performance is June 01, 2021, through May 31, 2024.
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Prof. Hans Lischka received an NSF grant award entitled “Collaborative Research: Aggregation Mechanisms in Carbon Nanomaterials Based on Pi-conjugated Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons.”+ More The total grant amount is $249,999. The award period of performance is September 01, 2021, through August 31, 2024.
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Prof. Gellene received the Diamond Award, presented by the Teaching Academy and Teaching, Learning, and Professional Development Center, to honor innovative teaching and for providing a transformational learning experience for students during a pandemic.+ More The Diamond Award, meant to honor those who "excelled under pressure", was extremely competitive, with over 50 applications received.
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Prof. Poirier received the Diamond Award, presented by the Teaching Academy and Teaching, Learning, and Professional Development Center, to honor innovative teaching and for providing a transformational learning experience for students during a pandemic.+ More The Diamond Award, meant to honor those who "excelled under pressure", was extremely competitive, with over 50 applications received.
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Dr. Gamez received the 2021 Susan Talkmitt STEM Motivator Award from the Texas Tech University Center for the Integration of STEM Education and Research (CISER). April 2021.
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Dr. Kristin Hutchins received a grant from The Welch Foundation entitled "Mechanochemistry as a green synthetic and crystallization tool for drug development." The total grant amount is $240,000. The award starts June 01, 2021, through May 31, 2024.
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Dr. Gamez was selected to receive the 2021 Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award from the TTU Center for Transformative Undergraduate Experiences (TrUE). April 2021.
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Quentin Vaugh was announced as a recipient of the Unsung Hero award as a part of the 2021 Raiders Who Rock.
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Kevin Finch, PhD candidate in the Gamez lab, was selected as a recipient of the 2021 Society for Applied Spectroscopy Atomic Section Student Award. He will receive the award at the upcoming SciX 2021 conference in September where he will give an invited talk.+ More The international award recognizes excellence in the area of Atomic Spectroscopy of SAS student members. April 2021.

Aldo Hernandez, undergraduate student in the Gamez lab, was selected as a recipient of the 2021 Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher Award from the TTU Center for Transformative Undergraduate Experiences (TrUE). April 2021.

Qixuan Zheng and Navkiran Kaur Juneja, graduate students of Prof. Hutchins, were both awarded Study Abroad Competitive Scholarships.

Hongjia Qian, a graduate student in the Shi group, has been awarded a Preston and Ima Smith Graduate Fellowship. The award is $2000 for the academic year 2021-2022.

For the 2021 Undergraduate Research Conference, there were 17 undergraduate students, who have conducted research in the department, submit posters. Eleven of these students were recognized as being Outstanding Presenters by reviewers. Three students also received individual awards for their presentations.+ More Aldo Hernandez (Dr. Gamez) received 1st place in Technology Impact for his recorded presentation, Lindsay Bishop (Prof. Casadonte) received 3rd place in Technology Impact for her recorded presentation, and Angela Lee (Dr. Cozzolino) received 4th place in Technology Impact for her recorded presentation. Congratulations to all of the undergraduate students that participated in the conference this year!

Horn Distinguished Professor David Nes retired on March 31st, 2021. + More He has contributed immensely to the success of the department and the University. He has also hugely contributed to his Scientific field and is greatly valued and appreciated by his peers.
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Mr. Juan Dominguez, a graduate student in the Morales group, has been recently awarded a NSF-Graduate Research Fellowship; + More this fellowship is for 3 years and will start on June 1, 2021. Juan is one of the 4 awardees of this fellowship in TTU for this academic year.
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Aneelman Brar and Arpita Singh, graduate students of Dr. Findlater, were both awarded Study Abroad Scholarships by the Graduate School.
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Prof. Casadonte received the national Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR)-Goldwater Scholars Faculty Mentor Award.+ MoreIn commemoration of this award, Texas Tech University will receive a check for $5,000 to be used to support Prof. Casadonte's undergraduate research program, and specifically for activities undertaken between July 1, 2021, and June 30, 2022.
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Prof. Poirier received the 2021 President's Excellence in Teaching Award.
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Dr. Ge was named a 2021 Outstanding Researcher by the Office of Research and Innovation at Texas Tech University.
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Dr. Hutchins was selected as the Eta Omicron Nu (Honors College student organization at Texas Tech University) faculty appreciation winner for February 2021.
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Prof. Pappas was selected as an award recipient for the 2021 Professing Excellence Award.
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Dr. Manna was selected as an award recipient for the 2021 Professing Excellence Award.

Linda Rodriguez was nominated as a 2021 Raider Who Rocks. Linda was nominated by Dr. A. Gorden for the Unsung Hero Award.
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Graduate student Mallika Kumar (Weber group) received a Helen DeVitt Jones Graduate Fellowship for three years. Recently she had been the recipient of a Graduate Student Research Support Award.
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Graduate student Sekhon Jagdeep Kaur (Quitevis group) was awarded a Helen DeVitt Jones Graduate Fellowship.
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Graduate student Navkiran Kaur Juneja (Hutchins group) won first place for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the TTU Graduate Student Research Virtual Poster Competition.
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Graduate student Kevin Finch, PhD (Gamez group) received a Graduate Student Research Support Award. This funding is provided through the Texas Tech University Office of Parent and Family Relations, the Graduate Assembly, and the Graduate School. February 2021.
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Prof. Pappas received the Chancellor's Council Distinguished Teaching Award.
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Prof. Kristin Hutchins has received the NSF-CAREER award entitled "CAREER: Solid-state molecular motion, reversible covalent-bond formation, and self-assembly for controlling thermal expansion behavior." The total grant amount is $651,350. The award starts April 01, 2021 through March 31, 2026.
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Prof. Gamez received the 2020 Young Plasma Scientist Award, sponsored by Thermo Fisher Scientific, at the Winter Conference on Plasma Spectrochemistry held in Tucson, January 2020.+ More The award "recognizes achievements in conceptualization and development of novel instrumentation as well as the elucidation of fundamental events or processes involved in plasma spectrochemistry" and also "authorship of significant research papers or books that have had an influential role in new advancements as well as outstanding applications that open new fields of use for plasma spectrochemistry".
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Prof. Latham will be the recipient of the 2021 A&S Excellence in Research Award for the natural and physical sciences.
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Maureen Oliva, MS graduate in the Gamez lab, received the Outstanding Masters Student in Forensic Science Award from the Institute of Forensic Science at the TTU Dept. of Environmental Toxicology. August 2020.
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Kevin Finch, PhD candidate in the Gamez lab, received the 2021 Edward Steers Bursary Award from the Association of British Spectroscopists.+ MoreThe international award, established to recognize the contributions of eminent atomic spectroscopist Prof. Edward B.M. Steers, assists a promising early scientist (non-tenured academic post or in industry, within 7 years of award of PhD excluding career breaks) engaged in or utilizing analytical spectroscopic techniques to attend a recognized scientific meeting or visit a place of learning. January 2021.
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