Achieving Forward Progress Even Through Global and Educational Pandemic-Related Challenges Research advancement attains new heights as a result of dedicated efforts of outstanding faculty, staff and students W Stay in Touch Lehigh Chemistry alums can be found all across the globe-- using their degrees to address universal issues that impact the world community. Your Lehigh Department of Chemistry would like to stay in touch. We love hearing about where your degree has taken you! Send your stories-- professional or personal--to mwr217@lehigh.edu ON THE COVER: Clockwise from top center: Graduate students (L to R) Fatema Amin and Gisselle Rojas at the Chemistry Club Fall 2021 Coffee; (L to R) Muhammad Imran, Caleb Wehrmann, Dmitri Vezenov, and Xiaoji Xu at Fall 2018-2019 department "Welcome" picnic; Dr. Damien Thévenin advising doctoral student Kelly Burns (PhD '13); Academic Coordinator Kerry Livermore assisting Graduate Student Aarshi Singh with her General Exam preparations; Dr. Xiaoji Xu explaining the intricacies of a spectroscopic process to Graduate Student Le Wang. Department of Chemistry Seeley G. Mudd Building 6 E. Packer Avenue Bethlehem, PA 18015 Phone: (610) 758-3470 Fax: (610) 758-6536 https://chemistry.cas.lehigh.edu Academic Coordinator Kerry Livermore 610-758-3471 kjl212@lehigh.edu In This Issue 2 Chair's Update 3 Thévenin Research Grants 4 PURE Immersive Research 5 Fisher and Glover Grant Awards 6 Faculty Recognition Page 2 · Lehigh University Department Chair Gregory S. Ferguson 610-758-3462 gf03@lehigh.edu Faculty Coordinator (Newsletter Editor) Mary Roberson 610-758-3470 mwr217@lehigh.edu 7 Faculty News 15 In Memorium 18Student News 16 Klier Reflections e’re back on campus and classes are in person! Like the rest of the country, Lehigh has worked to weather the pandemic, raising and lowering restrictions to follow the everc evolving circumstances. After a surge of cases of the “beta variant” at the start of thesemester, the number of infections has fallen to near zero on campus. Nonetheless, cases in the local community remain at a high level, so we’re still wearing masks indoors and almost everyone is vaccinated. It will undoubtedly take years to understand the full impact of this period on teaching and research, but we have new capabilities we didn’t have in 2019. Zoom … Docusign, anyone? New faces in the department abound, with a new General Chemistry Lab Manager (Dan Prendergast), Visiting Assistant Professor (Dr. Hannah Cronk), and a large incoming class of graduate students. This installment of Mudd-In-Your-Eye will introduce you to some of these new members of the Lehigh Chemistry department, and celebrate some of the successes our colleagues have enjoyed. Of particular note, it also contains a tip-of-the-hat to Professor Kamil Klier, whose intellect and friendship helped shape the department and inspire generations of students. This year we also said goodbye to two good friends. Professor Dmitri Vezenov passed away in late October and our former colleague, Professor Jim Sturm (see Mudd-inYour-Eye 50th Edition, Page 17), passed away at the end of November. These two people shared a lot in common —both were accomplished physical chemists, known also for their friendly and supportive dispositions, eagerness to help others, and sense of humor. We are indeed fortunate for them having been part of our Lehigh family, and our wince for their loss is accompanied by smiles for their memory. Gregory S. Ferguson Professor and Chair Department of Chemistry Lehigh University 19Staff and Alumni News
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