ǧÃŬAV

Chemistry students excel in research, competition

August 29, 2024
Alexander Smiarowski, right, and Dr. Isaac Agyekum, associate professor of chemistry, presented their research and received Smiarowski's Undergraduate Student Award from the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) at the ASMS Annual Conference on Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics in June in Anaheim, California.

Article By: Clark Leonard

Students in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry recently scored a variety of impressive accomplishments in research and competition.

Senior Alexander Smiarowski earned the 2024 Undergraduate Student Award from the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) for his work with Dr. Isaac Agyekum, associate professor of chemistry. Smiarowski presented their research, which is a novel, faster and more streamlined analytical method of fatty acid analysis, and received his award at the ASMS Annual Conference on Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics in June in Anaheim, California.

Smiarowski, who is pursuing a degree in chemistry, said he appreciates the way Agyekum gives him input in the research process. The senior plans to attend graduate school and work in the analytical chemistry industry.

"I feel pride in my mentor. I'm being led by somebody who knows what he's doing so well," Smiarowski said. "I feel pride in our school. There are so many things to be thankful for."

Ryan Coyle received the Outstanding Undergraduate Student of the Year Award from the Northeast Georgia Section of the American Chemical Society.

Ryan Coyle, a spring graduate with a degree in chemistry with a biochemistry concentration, received the Outstanding Undergraduate Student of the Year Award from the Northeast Georgia Section of the American Chemical Society (ACS). In April, he accepted the award at the combined ACS/University of Georgia chemistry awards banquet in Athens, Georgia.

Coyle conducted undergraduate research at ǧÃŬAV with Dr. John Leyba, dean of the College of Science & Mathematics, and additional work for two consecutive summers at Emory University. He was also the recipient of ǧÃŬAV's Chemistry Graduate Award for 2024. He is working for the 2024-25 academic year at Emory on ALS and Parkinson's disease research. His career goal after graduate school is to conduct biochemistry or analytical chemistry research.

"All the professors at ǧÃŬAV helped me to prepare for what it would be like outside of college," Coyle said. "They helped guide me as mentors."

ǧÃŬAV chemistry students won the third annual Trivia Night event hosted by Georgia Gwinnett College and Augusta University.

Additionally, ǧÃŬAV's Dahlonega Campus ACS student chapter took first place in the third annual Trivia Night event hosted by Georgia Gwinnett College and Augusta University. They outperformed teams from Georgia, North Carolina and Florida. The group's faculty advisers are Dr. Greta Giles and Dr. Ryan Meier.

Logan Hikes, a senior from Cumming, Georgia, pursuing a degree in chemistry, was proud of the trivia win. He said the ACS group at ǧÃŬAV hopes to reach other students.

"We want to show students there is a community they can have while studying chemistry," Hikes said.

Dr. Royce Dansby-Sparks, associate department head of Chemistry & Biochemistry, said the success of students comes as no surprise.

"The faculty and staff of the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry are fully committed to providing students with developmental experiences in and outside of the classroom. Alexander and Ryan’s successes in research and the awards they have received further validate the high impact that one-on-one mentoring in research can have on student career progression," Dansby-Sparks said. "In addition, our faculty and our professional organization, the American Chemical Society, are committed to helping students develop a sense of community and belonging in careers in the sciences through engaging and educational programs like the student trivia events and laboratory-based research experiences."


Students take part in research experiences

Students take part in research experiences

Students from ǧÃŬAV took part in a wide variety of National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates and similar programs this summer.
Students explore study away programs

Students explore study away programs

Sixteen ǧÃŬAV students participated in two study away programs in the U.S., one in Iowa for agriculture and the other in South Carolina for archaeology.
Professor, students published in international journal

Professor, students published in international journal

Dr. Esther Morgan-Ellis, Abigail Cannon ’24 and Lily Hammond '24 had an article published in 'Choral Journal,' the international journal of the American Choral Directors Association.
Student takes part in Harvard Forest research

Student takes part in Harvard Forest research

Senior Casey Helton took part in the Harvard Forest Summer Research Program in Ecology from May 20-Aug. 2.