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Newsletter of the Westminster College Department of Chemistry, New Wilmington, PA 16172-0001
Greetings from
the Chair
The Department of Chemistry at Westminster
College is healthy and growing! With the addition
of Dr. Brian Kail this fall, the number of full-time
chemistry faculty increased from four to five.
We have dramatically increased accessibility to
modern instrumentation in our department. In the
past five years we have added six new instruments
to our laboratories. Our instrumentation is heavily
used for faculty and student research. Five of
our seniors have presented their senior research
projects at national American Chemical Society
meetings during the last two years. All of our
students have “hands-on” opportunities to use the
department instrumentation throughout their four
years of study here.
The number of our majors and minors has
dramatically increased. Currently we have 22
biochemistry majors, 33 chemistry majors and
12 chemistry minors on-board. For those of you
who remember working in Advanced Lab – can
you imagine 19 students simultaneously working
on their projects? We are definitely experiencing
some growing pains!
Nine months studying chemistry was not long
enough for ten of our rising juniors and seniors.
They chose to spend this past summer “doing”
chemistry! Two students had internships; six
had Research Experience as an Undergraduate
positions – one at University of Arizona, two at
Ohio State, and three at Kent State; one student
spent the summer doing research with Dr.
Peter Smith in his lab here at Westminster; and
one student did her chemical research work in
Thailand.
One of the most delightful things about teaching
at Westminster College is frequent opportunities
to visit with former students. Dr. Sherwood, Dr.
Boylan, Dr. Smith, Dr. Kail and I look forward
to seeing many of you at the Chemistry Alumni
Brunch Homecoming Weekend!
Dr. Martha Joseph
Chair, Westminster College
Department of Chemistry
Alumni Spotlight:
An Entrepreneur Emerges from
Westminster Chemistry Program
When speaking with Westminster chemistry alumnus Dr. Garth Patterson ’96
about his entrepreneurial pursuits, one may not expect to hear about lessons he
learned as an undergraduate. Yet Patterson credits his liberal arts education at
Westminster with preparing him for the many roles he is challenged with at
Griffin Analytical Technologies, LLC, the company he co-founded in November
2001.
Patterson launched Griffin with Dennis Barket, Jr., a classmate he encountered
when earning his Ph.D. in analytical chemistry at Purdue University. While
working on his dissertation to miniaturize ion trap mass spectrometers, Patterson
actually met Barket in a business program. The two wrote a business plan to
commercialize a chemical detection device based on Patterson’s research,
and won three of the four contests they entered. Encouraged by this success,
Patterson and Barket began securing the funding necessary to start Griffin. Just
months away from reaching its five-year milestone, Griffin has attracted over
30 employees and serves the critical markets of homeland security, defense,
environment protection, and research and development.
Now acting as Griffin’s vice president of research and development, Patterson
believes his undergraduate education at Westminster College prepared him to
lead a small business.
“An entrepreneur is challenged with having multiple roles within a company.
One day I may clean the lab in the morning, meet with investors in the afternoon,
and finish an experiment that same evening,” he said. “Westminster’s liberal
arts education gave me an appreciation for the diverse range of skills it takes to
Please see Spotlight, pg. 3
Chem Club Update
(Contributed by Valerie Kokai, Chem Club President)
The Chemistry Club at Westminster College has recently become very
active. We are 30 members predominantly composed of chemistry and
biochemistry majors and minors. We are now Student Affiliates of the
American Chemical Society and we encourage all of our members to join
the ACS.
Last year Chem Club began a luncheon lecture series with professors
from Pittsburgh area universities. The two speakers were Dr. Joe
Grabowski from the University of Pittsburgh and Dr. Mitch Johnson
from Duquesne University. Dr. Catalina Achim from Carnegie Mellon
University and Dr. John F.C. Turner from the University of Tennessee,
Knoxville, have agreed to come speak for this year’s lecture series.
For this year, the Chem Club is pursuing Green Chapter status from the
American Chemical Society, and hopes to establish a chapter of Gamma
Sigma Epsilon, a national chemistry honorary society.
The 2005-2006 Chemistry Club of Westminster College with Bill Carroll,
president of the American Chemical Society.
Recent Instrument
Acquisitions Top $250K
Through a series of recent grants, the chemistry
department has been able to acquire two high
performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) systems
and two gas chromatography-mass spectrometers (GCMS’s). An NSF Course, Curriculum, and Laboratory
Improvement (CCLI) grant provided funds for the
purchase of the two Dionex HPLCs. Dr. Timothy
Sherwood, principal investigator on the NSF grant
says about this project, “Combining contemporary
instrumentation
with
problem-based
learning
experiences nurtures the independent decision-making
role necessary for today’s and tomorrow’s scientists.”
Twin Varian Ion Trap GC-MS’s were purchased
through The Orris C. Hirtzel and Beatrice Dewey
Hirtzel Memorial Foundation grant. GC-MS is a
powerful analysis tool that allows for both quantitative
and structural information and is used in both organic
and analytical labwork and research.
Thanks to the dean’s equipment funds, the department
was able to recently replace its infrared spectrometer
with the Nicolet 6700 FTIR Spectrometer with ATR. In
addition, the department received a College Equipment
Grant through the Spectroscopy Society of Pittsburgh
for the purchase of a recirculating water bath and
two temperature-controlled cuvette blocks to enable
temperature-controlled spectroscopy.
Graduated before 2003?
Wonder what “your” chemistry professors are up to now?
New Wilmington is home to three retired chemistry professors:
Ken Long, Dick Hendry, and Dewey DeWitt. Collectively, they
taught Westminster College chemistry students for 116 years. All
three speak frequently and fondly of their former students.
Kenneth M. Long (1962-2002) Professor of Chemistry Emeritus
longkm@westminster.edu
In August 2003 Nancy and I moved to Arvada, Colo., a
Denver suburb. We volunteered to care for our then nearly-two
granddaughter, Ellie, while our daughter went to grad school and
worked full-time. We learned to really enjoy living in Colorado;
the winters are more pleasant with lots of sunshine and frequent
warm days. There were some unexpected events in Colorado also.
I got a new left knee in 2004 and five bypasses in March of 2005.
We came back to New Wilmington last fall. It’s nice to be near
Westminster again. Chatting with old friends, going to Faculty
Forum and chem seminars, and picking up the New York Times at
the bookstore take me to campus pretty often. Concerts by music
students and faculty are enjoyable too. See you at Homecoming?
Richard A. Hendry (1959-1998) Professor of Chemistry Emeritus
hendryra@westminster.edu
I have now been retired for about 8 years and have enjoyed
retirement. There are many things to do which I never had time to
do when I was teaching and raising my children. I enjoy searching
the Internet and getting and sending e-mails. I enjoyed hearing
from some of you when you were in graduate school and it was
always a joy to know when you finished your advanced work and
were employed. Some of you may have gone in to other areas than
chemistry, but I am sure that you have done well there. My wife and
I are active in our church and are enjoying our five grandchildren
(two in Philly and three in New Castle).
H. Dewey DeWitt (1956-1993) Professor of Chemistry Emeritus
DewittHD@westminster.edu
I retired in 1993 after 37 years at Westminster. I helped a little in
the labs for a couple of years and in 1995 became the archivist for
the college; I have reorganized that activity and enjoyed learning
more about the college. Since I more or less set my own hours, I
have traveled some in both the U.S. and foreign countries, several
times to Europe, also to China, Australia, and Hawaii. I was
playing tennis up until last year when the macular degeneration
became bad enough to put an end to that. I live in the Presbyterian
retirement home in New Wilmington, Shenango on the Green,
and stay busy there in addition to the Archives. Best wishes to all
1956-93 grads (and others as well, of course).
Student Spotlight:
Student Does Research
in Thailand
Through the National Science Foundation Research Experience
for Undergraduates (NSF-REU) program, Valerie Kokai ’07 spent
this past summer “working in an intense synthetic chemistry
research environment while experiencing Thai culture” in
Bangkok, Thailand.
Val spent 10 weeks at Chulalongkorn University. Under
the direction of Ajarn Tirayut Vilaivan, Val investigated the
“Synthesis of Novel 5- and 6-Substituted Quinazoline Antimalarial
Compounds.”
Val’s adviser there is a pre-eminent scientist in Thailand; he
was the Awardee of the Most Cited Research Award in Physical
Sciences, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University in 2005.
The lifestyle in Thailand was unique for Val. “The students
in our program were invited to stay at the research institute of
Princess Chulabhorn which was an honor. I had an hour and a
half commute into central Bangkok using buses and the subway.
My lab group, which consisted of 15 Thai members, taught me
about their language and culture. It was transforming working
with Ajarn Tirayut Vilaivan while overcoming the challenges of
being an American in a Thai lab. This experience was invaluable
to me as I became a more skilled chemist and more enlightened
individual.”
In addition to time working in the lab, Val had the opportunity to
travel around Thailand. Notable journeys included riding elephants
in Chiang-Mai and scuba diving in Koh Chang.
Val is the daugher of John and Linda Kokai of Wexford. She
plans to attend dental school next fall.
Faculty and Student Publications and
Presentations for Academic Year 2005-06
Boylan, Helen M.; Mitchell, Deborah C. Detective Fiction and Forensics in
Collaboration. Academic Exchange Quarterly. Winter 2005, 100-105.
Boylan, Helen M.; Rule, Gordon S. The carboxy terminus plays a key role in the
structure and function of human glutathione transferase A1-1. Abstracts of Papers,
230th ACS National Meeting, Washington, DC, United States, Aug. 28-Sept. 1, 2005.
Bruck, Aaron; Sherwood, Timothy A. Constructivist Approaches to the Chemistry
Laboratory. Abstracts of Papers, 230th ACS National Meeting, Washington, DC,
United States, Aug. 28-Sept. 1, 2005.
Kail, Brian W.; Perez, Lisa M.; Zaric, Sne-ana D.; Millar, Andrew; Young, Charles
G.; Hall, Michael B.; Basu, Partha. Mechanistic investigation of the oxygen atom
transfer reactivity of dioxo-molybdenum(VI) complexes. Chem. Eur. J. (2006), in
press
Kail, Brian W.; Basu, Partha. Solvent effects in the geometric reorganization of an
oxo-molybdenum(v) system. Dalton Trans. (2006), (11), 1419-1423.
Kail, Brian W.; Perez, Lisa M.; Zaric, Sne-ana D.; Millar, Andrew; Young, Charles
G.; Hall, Michael B.; Basu, Partha. Mechanistic investigation of the oxygen atom
transfer reactivity of dioxo-molybdenum(VI) complexes. Abstracts of Papers, 230th
ACS National Meeting, Washington, DC, United States, Aug. 28-Sept. 1, 2005.
Spotlight, cont’d from page 1
build a successful organization.  Still today, I focus fairly
equal portions of my day on chemistry research, business
development, sales, intellectual property development,
engineering, proposal writing, custodial services, etc.”
When asked to share advice with students and alumni he
said, “Take risks at a young age, as you will face the best
risk-reward profile.”
Patterson received
his B.S. in chemistry
Distinguished
from
Westminster
Alumni Lecture
College in 1996 and
his Ph.D. in analytical
Dr. Garth Peterson (’96)
chemistry
from
Purdue University
Liberal Arts Fostering
in 2001. Patterson is
the Entrepreneurial Spirit
also a graduate of the
Applied Management
Friday October 20,
Principles Program at
4:30 p.m.
Purdue.
152 Hoyt Science Center
Martinchek, Justin; Boylan, Helen M. GC-MS and GC-MS/MS for the analysis
of endogenous and exogenous hormones. Abstracts of Papers, 230th ACS National
Meeting, Washington, DC, United States, Aug. 28-Sept. 1, 2005.
Smith, Peter M. Palladium-catalyzed synthesis of tripodal arylamines in
tetraalkylphosphonium ionic liquids. Abstracts of Papers, 231st ACS National
Meeting, Atlanta, GA, March 26, 2006.
White, Alexander G.; Sherwood, Timothy A. Determination of the Origin of
Chicken Egg White Riboflavin-binding Protein by High Performance Liquid
Chromatography. 32nd Annual Pittsburgh Section Undergraduate Research Conference
of the American Chemical Society, Pittsburgh, PA, April 22, 2006.
Chemistry Homecoming
Brunch & Reunion
Chemistry Department
Hoyt Science Center, 3rd Floor
11:30 - 1:30 (Following Homecoming Parade)
RSVP not necessary
Department of
Chemistry
Martha R. Joseph, Chair
Physical Chemistry
Timothy A. Sherwood
Biochemistry
Helen M. Boylan
Newsletter Editor
Analytical Chemistry
Peter M. Smith
Inorganic Chemistry
Brian W. Kail
Bio-organic Chemistry
Department of Chemistry
Westminster College
New Wilmington, PA
16172-0001
(724) 946-7294 (phone)
(724) 946-7158 (fax)
www.westminster.edu
chemistry@westminster.edu
Faculty Spotlight:
Chemistry Professor Named
McCandless Scholar
Dr. Peter Smith will serve as Westminster’s McCandless Scholar for the
2006-07 academic year. The McCandless award is given in honor of Professor
J. Bardarah McCandless (professor of religion, 1961-1994) and used to
encourage scholarly activity at Westminster. Dr. Smith is an assistant professor
in the chemistry department and specializes in inorganic chemistry.
As the McCandless Scholar, Dr. Smith is researching new compounds for Smith
potential use in light-emitting devices. In technical terms, he is synthesizing and
characterizing new complexes of
lanthanide ions containing tripodal
arylamine and arylaminophenol
ligands and investigating their
luminescent properties.
Dr. Smith came to Westminster in
2002 from the University of Georgia
CRC First Year Chemistry Award Michelle Johnston ’09
where he served as a Franklin
Freeman Award
Jennifer Steele ’08
Teaching Fellow. He received
Ken Long Book Award
Aaron Bruck ’06
his Ph.D. from the University of
SACP Award
Alexander White ’06
Tennessee in 2000. Dr. Smith has
Analytical Chemistry Award
Andrew Starosta ’07
recently done summer research
POBS Award
Valerie Kokai ’07
stints at the University of Tennessee
DeWitt Scholarship
Michael Gorka ’08
and Queen’s University in Belfast,
Skurcenski Scholarship
Callie Croushore ’08
Northern Ireland.
Dunlap Scholarship
Amy Wirtz ’07
Chemistry Awards and
Scholarships for Academic
Year 2005-06
Department of Chemistry
New Wilmington, PA 16172-0001
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