The lecturer joined the Chemistry Department in 2001 and helped found Penn State's Forensic Science Program in 2004. They teach a variety of chemistry courses and labs, including developing innovative courses that integrate chemistry and literature. They have advised over 1,000 students and mentored research students who have won major awards. Their research focuses on chemical education and chromatography, and they have implemented successful outreach programs that integrate science and education.

1. I joined the Chemistry Department in 2001 at the rank of Lecturer to direct the undergraduate
analytical and physical chemistry programs. My initial teaching assignment included both lecture
and lab in CHEM 423W and 425W, and the CHEM 457 labs. Beginning in 2004, I worked
closely with Bob Shaler to help found Penn State’s Forensic Science Program and for this reason
I held a 50% Chemistry and 50% Forensic Science appointment during the period 2006-2013. In
2008 I was promoted to the rank of Senior Lecturer. In July 2013 my appointment was revised
back to 100% Chemistry. My current responsibilities in Chemistry entail teaching CHEM 110,
CHEM/ENGL 233, and the combined lecture/lab courses CHEM 227, CHEM 423W, and CHEM
425W.
Summary of Activities:
The analytical program has undergone significant changes since my arrival in 2001. The
laboratory facilities were remodeled in 2005 and we have acquired over $1M worth of new
research-grade instrumentation. (When I arrived instrumental equipment totaled $100,000).
Students now receive extensive hands-on experience with research-grade instrumentation and are
actively engaged in building and/or modifying chemical instrumentation. Both research and
educational outreach activities within the program have added an important service-learning
component to the curriculum and led directly to the development of the Forensic Science Program
at Penn State.
Since 2001, I have taught a total of 16 different courses; nine of which I created or co-created
(CHEM 227, 233, PSU 016 forensics freshman seminar, FRNSC 427W, 475, 485, 532, 801,
831). In the two courses (423W and 425W) in existence when I arrived, I have increased the
original six-week-long lab component to a full fifteen week schedule. Although I take ownership
over all of the above courses, I am most proud of CHEM/ENGL 233. CHEM/ENGL 233 is a
pedagogically innovative course co-developed by me and my friend and colleague Mark
Morrisson (currently Chair, English Department). Both of us are present in the classroom
throughout the semester, providing joint presentations and leading discussions. It is the only
course in the university for which students may earn either GH or GN credit (but not both). The
course teaches both basic concepts of chemistry and their cultural elaboration in literature across
the modern period. It seeks to provide students with a nuanced understanding of how literature
and science inform each other and negotiate cultural, religious, and political tensions. I believe
the course to be a unique offering within Penn State and among other similar institutions. I have
served as an academic adviser in chemistry since 2001 and was the sole academic adviser for the
forensic chemistry option from 2006-2012. In total, I have advised approximately 1000 students.
My research activities focus on chemical education and the synthesis and characterization of
novel stationary phases for high-pressure liquid chromatography. I have mentored 23
undergraduate and 11 graduate (MS) students in research. All are now gainfully employed or
have gone onto pursue graduate (Ph.D) studies in chemistry at other academic institutions.
Students in my research group have won all of the major graduate/undergraduate awards in
forensic science at the national (American Academy of Forensic Sciences) and regional (Mid-
Atlantic and Northeastern chapters of AAFS) levels, within the Environmental Division of the

2. American Chemical Society, and within Penn State (the graduate and undergraduate exhibitions
and various university institutes). I have published five papers and one book chapter since 2010.
I have been active in various types of service to the local community and the profession. All
members of my research group must perform “community service”: We host science activities
in local elementary and middle school classrooms and high school students and teachers
participating in the SEECoS and MRSEC RET programs, provide technical expertise to local
and state-wide law enforcement and related governmental agencies, and each summer we
provide a CSI camp for kids at the Hartman Center in Milroy, PA. In 2003 (and again
in 2004), I developed a CSI summer camp for the ECoS Action Potential Science Experience
(now Science U). The innovative curriculum and instructional design of the CSI camp, along
with Potions (developed by my colleague Jackie Bortiatynski), invigorated and transformed
the summer science camp experience into the successful outreach program that exists today.
Prior to 2003, in-total approximately 25-50 students participated in the ECoS summer science
program. In 2003, both CSI and Potions educated and entertained over 160 students each
– both camps introduced a new paradigm in delivering science educational outreach which
resulted in sky- rocketing enrollments. In 2004, I invited Bob Shaler to visit his alma mater
and be a guest participant in the CSI camp. After a meeting to discuss the creation of a
Forensic Science Program with then president Graham Spanier, Bob and I were appointed to
the Forensic Science Strategic Planning Committee which was charged with the responsibility
of creating the Forensic Science Program. I was a core contributor to the founding and
development of the Forensic Science Program (undergraduate and graduate). Most recently,
I led the team of chemistry faculty that organized and hosted the 2012 Biennial Conference
on Chemical Education, the premiere conference for chemical educators throughout the
world, with approximately 1500 attendees and a budget near $750,000.
In 2003, I developed the Small Mobile Instruments for Laboratory Enhancement (SMILE)
program to improve student outcomes in the analytical chemistry curriculum. In 2009, I
expanded the scope of the program to reach a more national audience. Today, the program,
in various formats, is used by a dozen other educational programs from middle school
through undergraduate chemistry programs. SMILE represents a complete synergistic union
of my teaching, research, and outreach efforts. All of my publications are based on the
implementation of SMILE into the curriculum here at Penn State. In my opinion, the SMILE
program is the single most important contribution I have made in my career. The program is
discussed in the Appendix.