College of Arts & Sciences
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
2007 Self Study
Ramón López de la Vega, Associate Professor
Stanislaw F. Wnuk, Associate Professor and Chair
March 9, 2016
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
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Table of Contents
1.0
Executive Summary
3
2.0
Recommendations of the 2001 Program Review and Reponses
2.1
Recommendations issued by the Provost’s Office
2.2
Recommendations issued by the external reviewer
4
4
6
3.0
Program Description
3.1 Educational Programs
3.1.1 Undergraduate degree programs
3.1.2 Graduate degree programs
3.1.3 Number of majors
3.1.4 Support of core curriculum
3.1.5 Student to faculty ratios
3.2 Research Programs
3.2.1 Biomedical
3.2.2 Environmental
3.2.3 Environmental Health Sciences
3.2.4 Forensic Science
8
8
8
9
9
9
10
10
10
10
11
11
4.0
Major Changes in Program
4.1
Discipline or field
4.2
Student demand
4.3
Occupational demand
4.4
Societal need
11
11
11
12
12
5.0
Strengths that support the achievement of program goals
12
6.0
Weaknesses that impede the achievement of program goals
16
7.0
Opportunities to explore in the achievement of program goals
16
8.0
Threats to overcome in the achievement of program goals
17
9.0
Budget
17
10.0
Major Findings and Recommendations
18
11.0
Student Learning Outcomes
19
Tables and Figures
Table 1 - Goals Outlined in the Strategic Plan (2002-2010) for the
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
Table 2 - Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Publications and Funding
Table 3 - Number of Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty and Students, and FIU
totals
Table 4 - Number of Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty and FTE
Figure 1 – Return on Investment Index for Chemistry and Biochemistry
2
4
5
6
10
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Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
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1.0 Executive Summary
It is an exciting time at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at FIU. The program has achieved and
strives for continued excellence in its research and educational programs. It is one of the most successful departments in the university in terms of research and funding. In the last three years the department has generated over 210 publications in peer reviewed journals and over 600 papers presented in state, local and national
meetings. Grant funding is at an all time high having generated an average of $4 million per year over the last
three years. The return on investment index (the ratio of extramural research support to the institutionally
provided budget for the department) reached 1.0 in 2006 and is currently 1.15; the department now generates
more in external funding than is the cost of running the program. Our educational programs are expanding and
evolving at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. The numbers of undergraduate and graduate student
majors have each more than doubled since 2002. The number of externally funded graduate students has also
more than doubled. In the 2005-2006 academic year the department generated more American Chemical Society (ACS) certified BS majors than any other university in the State of Florida.
The department has identified multidisciplinary research initiatives in the areas of biomedical, environmental,
environmental health and forensic chemistries. The department is strongly committed to filling positions in the
biochemical area because of the fundamental role it plays in training of doctoral students, as well as students in
the emerging College of Medicine. It is our belief that strong programs in biochemistry and molecular biology,
leading to a deeper understanding of their principles, must be a precursor to the development of research based
medical school programs. The department is especially interested in identifying and hiring candidates with expertise in the interdisciplinary areas of protein structure determination and proteomics that complement our existing strengths. Current research strengths in the forensic science track include odor identification, microfluidics, transportation security and explosives detection. To support both our growing forensic science and environmental science tracks the department would like to hire a toxicologist. Expansion into the field of forensic
toxicology strengthens current programs and significantly enhances the potential for National Institutes of Health
(NIH) funding and collaborations with the medical school. This effort will bridge the environmental chemistry,
one of the traditional foci of the Chemistry PhD program, and the human health related fields associated with
environmental pollution.
Several state of the art facilities are now extant which provide much of the instrumentation necessary in the continued development of the department. These facilities specialize in mass spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance, DNA fingerprinting, trace evidence analysis and trace metal analysis. Additionally, several centers
within the university such as the Southeast Environmental Research Center (SERC), the Advanced Research
Cooperation in Environmental Health (ARCH) and the International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI) provide
opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration in research and education and help in attracting quality faculty
into our programs. Additionally these centers have been very active in facilitating funding opportunities for both
our younger and more established faculty members.
There are several factors, which if not addressed adequately, may inhibit or impede the expected progress of
the department in both research and education. These are the lack of adequate staff support, particularly for
the instrumentation facilities; the lack of large, state of the art classrooms necessary to accommodate our ever
expanding lower level enrollment and the lack of laboratory, classroom and general space to accommodate our
growing graduate student population. The department is poised to offer recitation sessions, run by our own
graduate students, in order to improve the manner in which lower level courses are delivered. This project will
require an increase in the number of available classrooms. We encourage the university to accelerate the construction of the CP addition, possibly designing this building to accommodate more classrooms and teaching
laboratories and general space to accommodate the growing graduate populations.
Issues raised in this summary are addressed in the following sections. We believe the department is poised to
become one of the top tier departments in the nation. With the support of the university, it is our belief the department will achieve this goal within the next 10 years.
This document was prepared by Ramón López de la Vega, Associate Professor of Chemistry, and Stanislaw F.
Wnuk, Associate Professor of Chemistry and Department Chair.
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Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
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2.0 Recommendations of the 2001 Program Review and Reponses.
2.1 In this section we list in italics specific priority recommendations made in the 2001 program review. First
are listed and addressed the recommendations issued by the Provost’s Office. Then the recommendations
made by the external reviewer, Professor R. Bruce Dunlap, are listed and addressed.
“Develop a strategic plan that includes an implementation timeframe that addresses the aggressive
research, enrollment and faculty recruitment objectives the department has identified. Special attention must be given to the development of a plan for graduate enrollment growth and doctoral degree production.”
The Department’s Strategic Plan for 2002-2010 set as a goal significant progress toward becoming one
of the top tier chemistry departments in the country. To move toward this goal, the Plan focused on faculty
hires, external funding, the growth of the graduate program, and the needs of the undergraduate program
(see Table 1.).
Faculty Recruitment: A hiring target of one incremental faculty per year was established; it was recommended that four of the eight recommended hires be biochemists, as biomedical research is one of two areas of explicit emphasis of our doctoral program. Since 2002, six incremental tenure-track faculty have been
hired, three of them biochemists (Dr. Watson Lees in 2003, Dr. Xiaotang Wang in 2005, Dr. Jaroslava
Miksovska in 2007). Additionally Dr. Mebel (physical chemist), Dr. Bruce McCord (analytical/forensic) and
Dr. John Berry (marine science) were hired. Currently we are conducting a search for a tenure-track bioorganic chemist. An increase in start-up packages to an average of $300,000 was recommended to attract
competitive applicants. The biochemistry hires since 2002 have received $170,000 (2003, bioorganic),
$300,000 (2005), and $325,000 (2007) in start-up funds. Clearly the university has moved toward being
competitive in this regard. Salaries for incoming faculty members have also increased. The average starting salary (9 months) increased from 54K/faculty to 60K/faculty for faculty starting at the Assistant Professor
level. The economic situation in South Florida is such that at these salaries it is difficult to compete with other regions of the country. The average starting home in South Florida (condominium) is $230,000. For a
single family home the average price is almost $400,000. The salaries for beginning faculty may be
stretched too far to allow them to reside in South Florida comfortably. Although this is a problem the community as whole faces, it should be addressed in the hiring process in order to obtain the best candidates
possible.
Table 1. Goals Outlined in the Strategic Plan (2002-2010) for the
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
Milestone
2001-2
2005-6
2009-10
Number of faculty
Res.-active faculty
Lab space (sq. ft.)
Total funding
Funding/faculty
MS students
PhD students
Total students
TA’s
RA’s
23
18
14,000
$1,900,000
$100,000
20
16
36
24
7
27
22
20,000
$2,760,000
$120,000
20
36
56
32
15
31
26
26,000
$3,780,000
$140,000
20
56
76
40
23
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Research: In recognition that a strong level of external funding is needed to support a graduate research program, specific targets were made, with the 2009-10 target of $3,780,000 roughly double the 2001-2002 level.
That target has already been surpassed in 2005 and reached $4,465,117 in 2007. The number of peer reviewed
publications submitted by faculty has increased from an average of 35/academic year for 2001-2004 to an average of 65/academic year from 2004-2007, an 85% increase. Additionally, the number of papers presented at
meetings has also increased (see Table 2). It was recognized that research-active faculty must have lower
teaching loads if they are to be productive in research, and a target of two courses per year per research active
faculty was established. In 2002, the average load was four courses; by 2007 it has become three courses. To
allow this reduced teaching load without compromising the quality of undergraduate teaching, non-researchactive faculty have assumed heavier teaching loads, and the department has hired an additional instructor (Dr.
Uma Swami), whose job description has no research component.
Table 2. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Publications and Funding
2001-2002
2002-2003
2003-3004
2004-2005
2005-2006
2006-2007
Faculty Members
23
23
25
26
27
29
Publications (peer rev.)
Book Chapters
Presentations
32
NA
111
31
10
150
42
11
211
74
8
217
66
14
196
61
7
188
Average Startup
$180K
no hires
$100K
$300K
$300K
$325K
Funding (total)
Internal.
External
$2,476,800
$231,500
$2,245,300
$2,446,786
$85,587
$2,361,199
$3,152,632
$387,500
$2,923,332
$3,956,430
$125,700
$3,830,730
$4,045,879
$104,100
$3,941,779
$4,465,117
$81,560
$4,383,557
Funded Grad. Students
MS Chem
MS Forensic
Ph.D.
E&G Funded TAs*
C&G Funded RAs
31
13
4
14
23
8
47
15
10
22
34
13
46
16
7
23
32
14
54
19
7
28
39
15
53
14
4
35
38
15
65
11
5
49
45
20
35,061
37,424
38,537
21,808
23,269
24,279
Total Students, FIU
32,686
33,885
33,864
Total FTE Students,
20,016
20,776
21,052
FIU
*Including Presidential Fellowships and Dissertation Fellowships
Graduate Enrollment Growth: To support growth of the program in terms of funding, research and new
hires, the Department established a target increase in the total number of graduate students from 36 in 2001
to 76 in 2009, and an increase in Ph.D. students in particular from 16 in 2001 to 56 in 2009. In 2007, these
numbers are already 90 for total graduate students (including part-time students) and 58 for Ph.D. students.
The Department proposed a steady increase in the fraction of funded students supported by RA’s to approach but not quite reach 50% by 2009. The external program review in 2002 proposed more modest
growth to 30% by 2009. Within the past year (fall 2006-fall 2007), the number of RA’s has been 27-32% of
the total number of funded graduate students; small fluctuations occur when new students are put on RA
and old students graduate. We are seeking to improve this number through continued increases in external
funding.
"Plan multidisciplinary research initiatives in areas such as biomedical, environmental, forensic and
materials/nanoscience research."
Multidisciplinary Research: FIU has an International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI), which grew out
of and is anchored in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry. FIU houses the Southeast Environmental Research Center (SERC), in which several of the Chemistry faculty members have joint appointments
(one is director). Both of these organizations continue to be strengthened within the Department. Additionally, our Department serves as a foundation for the Advanced Research Cooperation in Environmental Health
(ARCH) program between UM and FIU. Furthermore, a joint Ph.D. degree in Biochemistry is being proposed between the Departments of Chemistry & Biochemistry and the Department of Biological Sciences.
This will strengthen the University in its Biochemistry Program which is important with the advent of the
Medical School. It is our hope that in the near future we will develop the materials science emphasis further,
particularly in the area of bio- and forensic materials.
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Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Faculty Members
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Table 3. Number of Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty and Students, and FIU totals*
2001-2002
2002-2003
2003-3004
2004-2005
2005-2006
22
22
24
26
27
2006-2007
29
Undergrad. Majors (Total)
225
269
379
428
461
489
Graduate Majors(Total)
Masters (Chemistry)
Masters (Forensic)
Ph.D.
60
15
21
24
64
17
22
25
78
19
26
33
86
21
24
41
86
17
20
49
89
18
18
53
Total Majors (G and U)
265
333
457
514
547
578
Degrees Awarded
Total Undergraduate
MS (Chem & Forensic)
Ph.D.
35
6
1
25
7
1
45
11
3
31
12
1
44
13
7
33
12
7
33,885
20,776
33,864
21,052
35,061
21,808
37,424
23,269
38,537
24,279
Total Students, FIU
32,686
Total FTE Students, FIU
20,016
*Data from the Institutional Research Office.
"Revise the Department’s tenure and promotion guidelines to match the stated goals for growth in
external funding and refereed journal publications."
Revision of Tenure and Promotion Guidelines: It has been made clear to all recent tenure and promotion candidates that the expectations for funding and publication have increased. As part of the faculty
evaluation process impact factors of the journal and recognition of acquisitions of Federal Grants are taken
into consideration. The Department formalized its official guidelines to match recently revised, more stringent University guidelines. The revised T&P guidelines are now part of the Departmental By-laws.
2.2
The external program review by Dr. R. Bruce Dunlap in 2002 made 20 specific recommendations.
They are given below in italics; the Department’s responses are in normal font.
1. "Increase the number of tenure-track faculty by 8-10 by 2009." We are on track with the six incremental hires made so far and a search for two more that is currently under way in 2008.
2. Continue to remain competitive in salaries for Assistant and Associate Professors. Salaries for
the Chemistry & Biochemistry faculty at FIU have risen in both categories, keeping pace with national
trends. Assistant Professor salaries for recent new hires were $51,000 in 2000, $53,000 in 2003, $60,000 in
2006, and $61,500 in 2007. New Associate Professors were hired at $47,000 in 1997, $57,000 in 2003, and
$70,000 in 2004 and 2005.
3. "Develop a plan to raise the salaries for full professors to a competitive level." This is a university-level issue and has not yet been addressed.
4. "Make strategic plans to develop retention packages." This remains an area to be addressed. We
consider ourselves fortunate that we have been able to retain almost 100% of our faculty. This might be
more difficult to achieve as the prestige of the department grows.
5. "Make plans to offer competitive startup packages." We have done this as explained above; the
average start-up package over the last four hires since 2004 has been $300,000.
6. "Increase the square footage of research space for research-active faculty on the basis of their
funding and productivity to 1000 sq. ft." The Departmental average research space per faculty is currently 800 sq. ft. FIU is currently developing a university-wide policy to redistribute the available research
space on the basis of external grant funding and numbers of Ph.D. students. The new Health and Life Sciences buildings have also addressed space needs. However, in the longer term, the building of new medical
school buildings and an extension to the CP building (which houses Chemistry & Biochemistry), both on the
development plan, will permit the expansion of research space.
7. "Set goals to increase external funding per faculty member to at least $130,000 by 2005-6 and
$170,000 by 2009-10." The level was $109,150 in 2001-2 and already has risen to $156,000 in 2007-8
(averages are over all faculty; current average is $174,000 if the three instructors are omitted).
8. "Increase standards for faculty performance with respect to tenure and promotion procedures."
The tenure and promotion requirements have been raised university wide with regard to funding and publication rate. Additionally, faculties have been encouraged to publish in journals with high impact factors.
Thus our program is on target.
9. "Develop a strategic plan to increase the Return on Investment Index to 1.0 by 2005." This index
is defined as the ratio of extramural research support to the institutionally provided budget for the depart-
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Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
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ment. In 2002 this value was 0.77. By 2007 it has become 1.15, exceeding the 2005 target.
10. "Increase the number of graduate students to at least 56 by 2005 and to 76 by 2009." This goal
has nearly been met in 2007 (75 graduate students).
11. "Increase the percentage of graduate students supported by RA’s to 27% by 2005 and to over
30% by 2009." As discussed above, the percentage has been in the 27-32% range over the year ending in
fall 2007, so the program is on target.
12. "Increase the net annual income of graduate students." In 2005, M.S. students earned $15,000;
currently they earn $15,450. In 2005, Ph.D. students earned $18,000; currently they earn $18,540-$19,207
depending on their date of entry into the program. This is slightly below but close to the amount paid to doctoral students by the University of Miami, $20,000. Graduate student stipend amounts are university, not
department, policy, but the department has encouraged the University to become more competitive.
13. "Develop a departmental plan that includes such items as a semiannual newsletter, a database
of alumni and friends, and endowment funds." The department has established an endowment fund,
the Zaida Morales-Howard Moore fund, for an annual undergraduate scholarship for Chemistry majors. The
department has established an internship for undergraduates with Dow-Corning (one of our alumni is the
CEO), and it is in the process of establishing an internship with Azopharma, a company in Miami.
14. "Develop a comprehensive graduate student recruiting program." The department proposed a plan
to increase the recruiting effort in 2004. We have obtained funding for faculty to make graduate student recruitment trips from the Department, the Dean of Arts & Sciences, and the University Graduate School. The
department has strategically emphasized recruiting in Florida, in Puerto Rico and more generally Latin
America, and in China because faculties have contacts and connections in those places. It is the department’s plan to maintain a relationship with these regions to develop a stream of students from them. Recruitment trips to all three regions have been made in the past several years and are planned for the future.
While these regions have been emphasized, recruitment in other regions has been undertaken as well.
15. "Develop a strategic plan to lower the teaching loads of research-active faculty members to one
course per semester." We are well on the way to achieving this goal; as explained above, the teaching
load has been reduced from two courses per semester in 2001-2 to 1.5 courses per semester in 2007-8.
16. "Develop access to lecture halls of 250 or more seats for general chemistry courses." Large enrollment classes are taught in a room that seats 212 students. Since fall 2007, the use of this room has
been made more efficient, as FIU went from a weekly schedule of two 75-minute classes to three 50-minute
classes. This has effectively increased large lecture hall availability for the high enrollment chemistry classes. In the future, such teaching needs will be addressed with a new teaching building for the College of
Arts & Sciences, which is on the development plan.
17. "Make a strategic plan to increase support staff." Since 2002, we have hired an accountant to support grants management; 50% of her salary is paid from external grant support (ARCH), and 50% is paid by
University E&G monies. The department has also hired a second engineer to maintain and operate instrumentation facilities. A future priority is hiring a Ph.D. scientist for managing our increasingly complex instrumentation facilities and converting the departmental half-line accountant to a full time accountant, primarily for grants management. Additional secretarial help, specifically a secretary for the Chair should be a
priority.
18. "Prepare a strategic plan for 2003 and update it annually." We have been operating on the basis of
the 2002-10 strategic plan, which together with the recommendations of the external reviewer has provided
sufficient direction.
19. "Develop a plan to establish a Departmental Industrial Advisory Board." This remains a future
goal.
20. "Prepare strategic plans to enhance research leading to the formation of multi-department, multi-college centers of excellence in the areas of biomedical research, forensic science, environmental
research, and materials/nanoscience research." FIU has an Advanced Research Cooperation in Environmental Health (ARCH) program, which is anchored in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry. FIU
houses the International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI), which grew out of our department and Southeast Environmental Research Center (SERC), in which several of the Chemistry faculty members have joint
appointments (one is the director of the center). The proposal for a joint Ph.D. program in biochemistry
clearly addresses the recommendation with respect to biomedical research.
3.0 Program Description
3.1 Educational Programs - The Chemistry & Biochemistry Department offers two baccalaureate degrees,
a Bachelor of Science (BS) and a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Chemistry and three graduate degrees, a Master
of Science (MS) in Chemistry, a MS in Forensic Science and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Chemistry in-
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cluding PhD in Chemistry with a Forensic Science track. The undergraduate committee, under the leadership of the undergraduate program director, oversees the undergraduate curricula. This committee ensures
that the program is up to date and that certification by the American Chemical Society (ACS) is maintained.
The graduate committee, under the leadership of the graduate program director, oversees the graduate curricula. The MS degree and Certificate Program in Forensic Science is administered by the Chemistry & Biochemistry Department through the International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI) anchored in the Department. The Department follows the recommendations of the Committee on Professional Training of the
ACS. The Chemistry undergraduate program has been accredited by the ACS for the past 20 years. It is
reviewed yearly. Every five years a more extensive, more thorough review is undertaken. The last fiveyear review was undertaken in the year 2005.
3.1.1 Undergraduate Degree Programs
The Bachelor of Science (BS) degree is intended for students interested in pursing a career in chemistry
or a related discipline. Students graduating with this degree may pursue more advanced degrees in chemistry, or obtain employment in a chemical laboratory in industry, academia or a government setting. Together with a teaching certificate the student will be able to pursue a teaching career at the high school level. The lower division requirement may be completed at FIU or at the community college setting. Students
are expected to take one year of general chemistry, one year of physics, one year of calculus and one year
of organic chemistry at the lower level. In the upper division additional chemistry courses must be taken including inorganic chemistry, calculus-based physical chemistry and biochemistry. Students are required to
take a chemistry 4000 or 5000 level elective and at least one semester of independent research under the
direct supervision of a faculty member. A Chemistry Honors program has been established. Students
must be admitted to the BS in Chemistry program with a lower division GPA of at least 3.5 in science and
math courses, and an overall GPA of at least 3.2. This degree has the additional requirement that the student must complete an Honors research project in collaboration with a faculty advisor. The results of this
project must be written in the form of an Honors Thesis written in ACS style publication format and must be
presented orally to an audience of peers and faculty members from all science department honors programs. Thus far two students have completed the BS Honors program and both of them are pursuing the
PhD degree, one at Penn State; the other one at FIU. In the 2005-2006 academic year the department had
the highest number of ACS Certified BS majors in the State of Florida. (C&EN News, August 20, 2007)
The Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree is designed for students preparing for careers in medicine, pharmacy,
dentistry, environmental studies, veterinary medicine, patent law, forensic science, and secondary science
education. The lower level requirements for the BA degree are similar to those of the BS degree. At the
upper level the student can choose one of four “tracks”, or alternative areas of concentration, depending on
their interests. Students may choose to follow the “Standard BA in Chemistry Concentration” or – in consultation with an advisor – choose a specific area of emphasis: the Biochemistry Concentration, the Environmental Chemistry Concentration, or the Forensic Science Concentration. The student is expected to complement this degree with other appropriate courses chosen in consultation with her/his advisor.
The department through IFRI offers a Certificate in Criminalistics Chemistry program to accompany the
Bachelors degree in Chemistry. In this program an internship in a local crime lab is required. The Certificate in Forensic Science may accompany a BS in Chemistry or Biology.
3.1.2 Graduate Degree Programs
The Master of Science (MS) degree in chemistry is intended for students planning a career in chemistry
which is not heavily research oriented. The MS degree requires a BS degree prior to admission into the
program. It also requires a core program of courses in the traditional areas of chemistry accompanied by
two other courses in different areas of specialization. The MS degree requires a Master’s Thesis presenting
original research carried out under the direction of a Graduate Research Advisor. The MS degree in Chemistry has been offered at FIU since 1987.
The Masters of Science (MS) degree in Forensic Science is an interdisciplinary program intended for students pursuing careers in Forensic Science in local, state and national Forensic Science Laboratories. The
degree requires a bachelor’s degree in biology or chemistry or related science. It consists of 32 credits including the completion of a Master’s Thesis or completion of an independent study report option. The MS
degree in Forensic Science was approved by the Board of Regents in 1998. It is designed to address the
need for advanced education in the emerging fields of forensic science.
The Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in chemistry is intended for students interested in pursuing a career in chemical research in a governmental, industrial or academic setting. The PhD degree requires a BS
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Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
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degree prior to admission into the program. It also requires a core program of courses in the traditional areas of chemistry accompanied by three other courses in different areas of specialization. The PhD degree
requires a set of cumulative examinations administered six times a year with announced or unannounced
topics. Additionally it requires an original research proposal suitable for funding by the major funding agencies and an Oral Examination prior to Admission to Candidacy. The PhD degree requires a Doctoral Dissertation presenting original research carried out under the direction of a Graduate Research Advisor. The
PhD degree was first implemented in FIU in 1997.
The Department also established a Forensic Track within the Ph.D. program in Chemistry in 2005. This
has been a natural outgrowth of the Masters in Forensic Science. The FIU forensic science graduate curriculum is consistent with the chemistry and forensic science community philosophy that training of forensic
scientists should emphasize the hard sciences.
3.1.3 Number of Majors
The numbers of majors at both the undergraduate and graduate levels have risen considerably. At the undergraduate level, the number of majors has increased by 117% (489 from 225, see Table 3). At the graduate level the number of majors increased by 48%, mostly at the doctoral level (121%). Additionally, although the number of funded MS students did not vary significantly, the number of funded Ph.D. students increased from 14 to 49, an increase of over 350% (Table 2). Considering the general trends nationally, this
achievement is truly remarkable and speaks very well of FIU, its efforts in student recruitment and the quality of both the undergraduate and graduate programs at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
3.1.4 Support of Core Curriculum
The Department offers the following courses in support of the core curriculum. The following five courses
satisfy the natural sciences curriculum. The CHM courses fulfill the physical science requirements while
CHS 3501 & CHS 3501L satisfy the life science requirements.
CHM 1045/CHM 1045L – General Chemistry I and Laboratory Fundamental principles of general chemistry: states of matter, atomic structure, stoichiometry, chemical bonding, acid-base reactions, and gas laws.
This course is directed towards science, premedical and engineering students who expect to make extensive use of chemistry in their future careers. Premedical students are required to also take this course.
Nine sections of lecture and 75 sections of laboratory are offered per academic year.
CHM 1046/CHM 1046L – General Chemistry II and Laboratory Continuation of General Chemistry I
(CHM 1045). Fundamental principles of chemistry: thermodynamics, solutions, kinetics, equilibrium and
electrochemistry. This course is directed towards science, premedical and engineering students who expect
to make extensive use of chemistry in their future careers. Premedical students are required to also take
this course. Seven sections of lecture and 52 sections of laboratory are offered per academic year.
CHM 1032/CHM 1032L – Chemistry and Society and Laboratory. This is a course for non-science majors which introduces students to basic concepts in chemistry and applies those concepts to contemporary
issues such as air/water pollution, energy and food production, drugs, nutrition, and toxic chemicals. Additionally three sections per year are offered of CHM 1032 and corresponding laboratories online. Seven sections of lecture and 65 sections of laboratory are offered throughout the academic year.
CHM 1033/CHM 1033L – Survey of Chemistry and Laboratory. General and organic chemistry for nonscience majors only. Atoms and molecules, states of matter, equilibrium, kinetics, acids and bases and introduction to organic chemistry. Laboratory must be taken concurrently. Does not fulfill requirements for
chemistry, biology or pre-med majors. This course is taken by majors in nursing. Two sections of lecture
and 18 sections of laboratory are offered per academic year.
CHS 3501/CHS 3501L – Survey of Forensic Science. This has become a very popular course. An enrollment of 200/semester is typical. A survey course introducing the principles and techniques of forensic
science as they pertain to crime scene investigation and crime laboratory analysis. This course satisfies the
life science requirement of the core curriculum. Two sections of lecture and 20 sections of laboratory are
offered per academic year.
In total the department offers 25 sections of lecture and 200 sections of laboratory per academic
year in support of the university core curriculum.
3.1.5 Student to Faculty Ratios.
Ever since the last program review in 2001 the departmental FTE production has increased significantly.
The total FTE production has increased an average of 15% per year over the last 5 years. The student/faculty ratio has also increased from 21.8 in 2001-2002 to 24.8 students/faculty in 2006-2007.
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Table 4. Number of Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty and FTE*
Faculty Members
Undergraduate FTE(Total)
2001-2002
2002-2003
2003-3004
2004-2005
2005-2006
22
22
24
26
27
2006-2007
29
446.5
395.9
536.6
562.7
608
689.9
Masters FTE
21.7
17
25.5
25.3
23.5
26.2
Ph.D. FTE
11.8
11.7
17.9
23.8
23.5
23.2
480
424.6
580
611.8
655
718.3
Student/Faculty ratio
Total FTE
21.8
19.3
24.2
23.8
24.3
24.8
Total Students, FIU
32,686
33,885
33,864
35,061
37,424
38,537
Total FTE Students, FIU
20,016
20,776
21,052
21,808
23,269
24,279
Data from the Institutional Research Office.
3.2 Research Programs – There are varied and diverse research programs being carried out in the chemistry and biochemistry department. In many cases via serendipity or for reasons of opportunity many of
these research programs embraced problems in the environment, biomedicine, environmental science and
forensic science. The department has identified these four areas of specialization to further emphasize in
the further development of the program.
3.2.1 Biomedical – The department recognizes that Biochemistry and Biomedicinal Chemistry has to be a
large part of a growing chemistry department. In recognition of this the department changed its name from
the Department of Chemistry to the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in 2003. Three of the most
recently hired faculty members are biochemists. Additionally, grant funding in the biomedical area has increased tremendously. A recent estimate shows that in the last four years $2.3 million in research funds
were acquired in whole or in part by faculty in the department carrying out research in Biomedical Chemistry. The rapid development of this area in our department over a relatively short span of time has been truly
remarkable. We consider ourselves fortunate to have attracted high quality faculty and students into the biomedical portion of our program. We are currently in the process of initiating a Ph.D. in biochemistry jointly
with the Department of Biological Sciences.
3.2.2 Environmental Chemistry – In the 2001 program review environmental chemistry was already a well
developed area of emphasis. This area of research continues to grow within the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department. In the past few years over $7 million dollars in funding has been attracted in whole or in
part by faculty in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Three of these faculty members are also
members of The Southeast Environmental Research Center (SERC). This Center has been invaluable in
providing the core instrumentation facilities needed by investigators in the area of Environmental Research.
The Center’s director is a member of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
3.2.3 Environmental Health Sciences - Since 2001, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences has sponsored an ARCH (Advanced Research Cooperation in Environmental Health Sciences) Program
in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at FIU. This is in interdisciplinary program which seeks to
establish a core of researchers in the field of environmental health at a minority serving institution by partnering with a research intensive university. FIU’s partner is the University of Miami. This program supports
collaborative research and pilot projects between the two institutions. Since 2001, the ARCH program has
supported a total of thirteen research and pilot projects including eight in the Department of Chemistry and
Biochemistry, four in the Department of Biological Sciences and one in SERC. The program also supports
two core facilities that serve as resources to ARCH investigators: Trace Metal Analysis and Toxic Algae Culture. Since the inception of the program in 2001, over thirty-five peer reviewed papers have been published
and ARCH scientists have used preliminary data gathered from research and pilot projects to acquire an
additional $4M in research funding. Several ARCH programs have been established at minority serving institutions nation-wide; however the ARCH program at FIU is to date, the only ARCH program that has successfully passed competitive renewal. The current funding cycle will extend the program until the fall of
2011. The most important benefit obtained from the ARCH program is that it provides funding for young
faculty members at FIU from Chemistry and Biological Sciences departments to be involved in Environmental Health Related Projects.
3.1.3 Forensic Sciences – The Criminalistics Program in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
has existed since the early 1980’s. It consisted of students carrying out an internship in a local crime laboratory. In 1997 the program expanded with the creation of the International Forensic Research Institute
(IFRI) which is anchored in the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department. Major milestones to date include
establishing nationally recognized degree programs in Forensic Science at the undergraduate and graduate
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levels, establishing nationally recognized research initiatives which generate significant extramural funding
and offering a variety of onsite, offsite and online specialized workshops and services. Funding in this area
has been very high with approximately $2 million dollars in funds acquired in the past few years. Additionally core Forensic Instrumentation facilities have been established in the University, among these are the DNA
fingerprinting facility, the Trace Evidence Analysis Facility (TEAF) and Toxicology laboratory.
4.0 Major Changes in Program
In this section we address the major changes in the program since the last Program Review in 2001.
4.1 – Changes in the Discipline – Education and Training - The Committee on Professional Training from
the American Chemical Society is currently adopting new guidelines in chemical education. According to
their most recent newsletter detailing progress in this endeavor:
“….the curriculum required for a certified degree will consist of foundation course work in analytical, biochemistry, inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry to provide breadth; in-depth course work to provide rigor, specialization, and integration; and laboratory experience, which can include undergraduate
research. Chemistry programs will have increased opportunities for innovation by designing their own
degree tracks or concentrations that meet the foundation, in-depth, and laboratory requirements…”
“…The new guidelines also call for regular department self-evaluation for the purpose of continual improvement...”
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry is poised to respond to these proposed changes in curriculum. Already the BA program and the Graduate programs, with different tracks offered, may be considered
a model for the first recommendations of the committee. In a recent departmental retreat one of the stated
goals was to focus on the development of tracks at the BS level. These tracks should include the already
established forensics track, a track in environmental chemistry and Biochemistry major, particularly in light
of the proposed Ph.D. program in Biochemistry. The department is well on its way to responding to the recommendations of the ACS Committee on Professional Training.
The recommendation for self evaluation is already being carried out. At the undergraduate level a capstone
course has been established where academic learning compacts are being applied. These are discussed in
the next section.
A Chemistry Honors program has been established. In this program the student will earn the BS in Chemistry degree with honors. Additionally four plus one MS programs in Chemistry and in Forensic Science are
also offered. Students graduating from these accelerated programs will have achieved a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry simultaneously with a Masters Degree in the corresponding field. Up to 3 graduate level courses (9 credits) may be used to satisfy both the Bachelor’s degree and the Master’s degree requirements. Students should be made aware of this program possibility in the sophomore year. If they realize the opportunity exists during the junior or senior years, it is too late to benefit from this program.
In order to insure the smooth running of the day-to-day operation of department, particularly in light of the
growth of the undergraduate program, the position of the Associate Chair was established in Spring 2007.
4.2 Student Demand: Several changes in course offerings have been implemented in order to speed up
student graduation rates without sacrificing the quality of the programs. A total of 3 sections of CHM 3120,
Introduction to Analytical Chemistry and 12 sections of the laboratory are offered. Additionally there are
now 3 sections of CHM 4130, Instrumental Analysis and 12 sections of the laboratory. Enrollments in these
courses have doubled in the past few years. A new course has also been developed for those students interested learning Inorganic Chemistry without having to take Physical Chemistry I and II. This course is entitled “Fundamentals of Inorganic Chemistry” (CHM 3610). It includes the basics of inorganic chemistry
without requiring extensive knowledge of quantum mechanics. Course offerings have also increased in
General Chemistry (one additional section per semester) and Organic Chemistry (Additional sections are offered in the Biscayne Bay Campus). These additional sections have been implemented in order to allow
the students the opportunity to complete their degrees in a timely manner. Student demand for these
courses continues to grow and many students are turned away. Larger classrooms are needed to be able
to accommodate these enrollment demands.
The CHM PAL program has also been instituted for undergraduates. In this program advanced students will
help tutor less advanced students in General Chemistry. This is done strictly on a volunteer basis.
4.3 Occupational Demand: There are several areas in chemistry for which there is a great occupational
demand. The department has already responded to these occupational demands by adopting the areas of
emphasis outlined in the previous section.
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4.4 Societal Needs: National demand for minority employees at science and engineering companies is at a
high, but few minorities are pursuing careers in science, according to the American Chemical Society. The
percentage of minorities in scientific fields is significantly lower than their respective demographic representations, according to the ACS. Hispanics, who make up 12.5 percent of the U.S. population, represent 2.6
percent of the chemistry workforce. African Americans, at 12 percent of the population, make up less than 2
percent of the chemical workforce, while Native Americans, who make up 1 percent of U.S. residents, comprise less than 1 percent of those people employed in the field. Additionally, the percentage of women in
science with doctoral degrees employed by Very High and High Research Active Universities is surprisingly
low considering the number of degrees awarded. A 1998 national study by the Higher Education Research
Institute at the University of California-Los Angeles reported that approximately one-third of African American, Hispanic and Native American freshmen planned to pursue science and engineering majors. The rates
of retention, however, were much lower for African American and Hispanic students. While 48 percent of
white students received a bachelor's degree within 5 years, only 34 percent of African Americans and 32
percent of Hispanics graduated in the same amount of time. It is a goal of the Department to improve the
retention of these students. Efforts have lately concentrated in providing tutoring by the graduate students
offerred for free to the undergraduate students. This year (2007) is the second year of the “CHM PAL” program where fellow undergraduates offer group tutoring to lower level students. The next goal is to establish
required recitation sessions, offered by graduate students, to increase person to person contact that is necessary in any successful learning environment.
5.0
Strengths Supporting the Achievement of Program Goals.
The greatest strength of the department lies in the quality of its faculty members and students. The faculty
members in the department show diverse research interests and are very active in pursuing research programs and innovations in education. The students in our department have demonstrated great capacity in
performing research of high quality and innovative thinking. In the pages that follow is listed an assortment
of publications that have recently appeared. Following are successful grant proposals authored by members of the department.
Representative Publications Authored by Faculty Members of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
 T. Trejos, J. R. Almirall, Effect of fractionation on the elemental analysis of glass using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Anal. Chem. 2004, 76, 1236-1242.
 J. M. Perr, K. G. Furton, J. R. Almirall, Solid phase microextraction ion mobility spectrometer interface for
explosive and taggant detection, J. Separat. Sci. 2005, 28, 177-183.
 J. J. Ley, A. Vigdorchik, L. Belayev, W. Zhao, R. Busto, L. Khoutorova, D. A. Becker, M.D. Ginsberg. Stilbazulenyl nitrone, a second-generation azulenyl nitrone antioxidant, confers enduring neuroprotection in experimental focal cerebral ischemia in the rat: neurobehavior, histopathology, and pharmacokinetics. J. Pharmacol. Exp Ther. 2005, 313, 1090-1100
 S. C. Mojumdar, D. A. Becker, G. A. DiLabio, J. J. Ley, L. R. Barclay, K. U. Ingold. Kinetic studies on stilbazulenyl-bis-nitrone (STAZN), a nonphenolic chain-breaking antioxidant in solution, micelles, and lipid membranes. J Org Chem. 2004, 69, 2929-36.
 Z. Chen, Y Cai, H. Solo-Gabriele, G. H. Snyder, J. L. Cisar, Interactions of Arsenic and the Dissolved Substances Derived from Turf Soils. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2006, 40, 4659-4665.
 B. Khan, J. Jambeck, H. M. Solo-Gabriele, T. G. Townsend, Y. Cai, Release of Arsenic to the Environment
from CCA-Treated Wood: Part II – Leaching and Speciation during Disposal. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2006, 40,
988-993.
 W. Zhang, Y. Cai, Purification and characterization of thiols in an As hyperaccumulator under As exposure.
Anal. Chem. 2003. 75, 7030-7035.
 E. Lewandowska, D. C. Chatfield, Regioselectivity of Michael Additions to 3-(Pyridin-3-yl or Pyrimidin-2yl)propenoates and their N-Oxides. Experimental and Theoretical Studies. Eur. J. Org. Chem. 2005, 3297.
 A. M. Curran, S. I. Rabin, P. A. Prada, K. G. Furton, Comparison of the Volatile Organic Compounds Present in Human Odor Using SPME-GC/MS, J. Chem. Ecology, 2005, 31, 1607-1619.
 A. M. Curran, C. F. Ramirez, A. A. Schoon, K. G. Furton, The Frequency of Occurrence and Discriminatory
Power of Compounds Found in Human Scent Across a Population Determined by SPME-GC/MS, J. Chromatogr. B, 2007, 846, 86-97.
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 R. T. Griffith, K. Jayachandran, W. Whitstine, K. G. Furton. Sensors, 2007, 7, 1415-1427.
 I. Zamora, I., P. Gardinali, F. Jochem, Assessing the Effects of Irgarol 1051 on Marine Phytoplankton Populations in Key Largo Harbor, Florida”. Marine Pollution Bull. 2006, 52, 935-941
 S. P. Singh, P. R., Gardinali, "Trace Determination of 1-aminopropanone, a Marker for Waste Water Contamination by Liquid Chromatography and Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Ionization-Mass Spectrometry
(APCI-LC/MS). Water Res. 2006, 40, 588-594.
 N. Maie, C.-Y. Yang, T. Miyoshi, K. Parish, R. Jaffé. Chemical characteristics of dissolved organic matter in
an oligotrophic subtropical wetland/estuarine ecosystem. Limnology & Oceanography, 2005, 50, 23-35.
 N. Maie, K. Parish, A. Watanabe, H. Knicker, R. Benner, T. Abe, K. Kaiser, R. Jaffé. Chemical characteristics
of dissolved organic nitrogen in an oligotrophic subtropical coastal ecosystem. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta.
2006, 70, 4491-4506.
 Y. Xu, B.R.T. Simoneit, R. Jaffé. Occurrence of long-chain mid-chain alkenols, diols, keto-ols and alkanols in
a sediment core from a hypereuthophic, tropical, freshwater lake. Org. Geochem. 2007, 38, 870-883.
 R. J. Alvarado, J. M. Rosenberg, A. Andreu, J. C. Bryan, W.-Z. Chen, T. Ren, K. Kavallieratos "Structural
insights into the coordination and extraction of Pb(II) by disulfonamide ligands derived from ophenylenediamine.Inorg. Chem. 2005, 44, 7951-7959.
 K. Kavallieratos, J. M. Rosenberg, W. Chen, T. Ren, Fluorescent sensing and selective Pb(II) extraction by
a dansylamide ion exchanger. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127, 6514-6515.
 P. Molnár, J. Deli, E. Ősz, G. Tóth, F. Zsila, C. Herrero, J. T. Landrum. Preparation and Spectroscopic
Characterization of 3’-Oxolutein, Lett. Org. Chem. 2006, 3, 723-734.
 E. Chew, J. T. Landrum, Dose Ranging Study of Lutein Supplementation in Persons aged 60 years or older,
Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis Sci. 2006, 47, 5227-33.
 F. Leng, L. Amado, R. McMacken. Coupling DNA Supercoiling to Transcription in Defined Protein Systems.
J. Biol. Chem. 2005, 279, 47564-47571.
 T. Cui, S. Wei, K. Brew, F. Leng. Energetics of Binding the Mammalian High Mobility Group Protein HMGA2
to poly(dA-dT)2 and poly(dA)poly(dT). J. Mol. Biol. 2005, 325, 629-645.
 J. D. Gough, E. J. Barrett, Y. Silva, W. J. Lees. ortho- and meta-Substituted Aromatic Thiols are Efficient
Redox Buffers that Increase the Folding Rate of a Disulfide Containing Protein. J. Biotechnol. 2006, 125, 3947.
 S. C. Bishop, M. Lerch, B. McCord, Detection of nitrated benzodiazepines by indirect laser induced fluorescence detection on a microfluidic device. J. Chromatogr. A 2007, 1154, 481-484.
 O. L. Collin, C. Niegel, K. DeRhodes, B. McCord, G. Jackson, Fast GC of Explosive Compounds using a
Pulsed Discharge Electron Capture Detector. J. Forensic Sciences, 2006, 51, 815–818.
 B. Hartzell, B. McCord, Effect of divalent metal ions on DNA studied by capillary electrophoresis. Electrophoresis, 2005, 26, 1046-1056.
 M. A. Mebel, V.V. Kislov. The C2H3 + O2 Reaction Revisited: Is Multireference Treatment of the Wave Function Really Critical?, J. Phys. Chem. A, 2005, 109, 6993-6997.
 A. M. Mebel, V.V. Kislov, R.I. Kaiser. Potential energy surface and product branching ratios for the reaction
of dicarbon, C2(X1g+), with methylacetylene, CH3CCH(X1A1): An ab initio/RRKM study. J. Phys. Chem. A,
2006, 110, 2421-2433.
 C.S. Jamieson, M.A. Mebel, R.I. Kaiser. Understanding the kinetics and dynamics of radiation induced reaction pathways in carbon monoxide ice at 10 K. Astrophys. J., Suppl. Series, 2006, 206, 163-184.
 D. K. Kim, K. E. O’Shea, The Reaction of N-Methyl-1, 2, 4-triazoline-3, 5-dione with Tetracyclopropylethylene. Formation of an Unusual Meso-ionic Product and Its Rearrangement to the Diazetidine. J. Am. Chem.
Soc. 2004, 126, 700-701.
 W. Song, A. A De la Cruz, K. Rein, K. E. O’Shea, Ultrasonically Induced Degradation of Microcystin-LR and RR: Identification of Products, Effect of pH, Formation and Destruction of Peroxides. Environ. Sci. Technol.
2006, 40, 3941-3948.
 T. Xu, Y. Cai, K. E. O’Shea, Adsorption and Photocatalyzed Oxidation of Methylated Arsenic Species in TiO2
Suspensions. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2007, 41, 5471-5477.
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 T. An, T.K.S. Kumar, M. Wang, L. Liu, J. O. Lay, R. Liyanage, J. Berry, M. Gantar, V. Marks, R. E. Gawley,
K. S. Rein. Structures of Pahayokolides A and B, Two Cyclic Peptides from a Lyngbya sp. J. Natural Products 2007, 70, 730-735.
 D. Simovic, M. Di, V. Marks, D. Chatfield, K. S. Rein, 1,3-Dipolar Cycloadditions of Trimethylsilyldiazomethane Revisited: Steric Demand of the Dipolarophile and the Influence on Product Distribution. J. Org. Chem.
2007, 72, 650-653.
 J. Yu, Q. Guo, Q. You, L. Zhao, H. Gu, Y. Yang, H.W. Zhang, Z. Tan, X. Wang, "Gambogic acid induced
G2/M phase cell cycle arrest via disturbing CDK7 mediated phosphorylation of CDC2/P34 in human gastric
carcinoma BGC-823 cells," Carcinogenesis 2007, 28, 632-638.
 D. Andrei, S. F. Wnuk, S-Adenosylhomocysteine Analogues with the Carbon-5' and Sulfur Atoms Replaced
by a Vinyl Unit. Org. Lett. 2006 8, 5093-5096.
 M. Rapp, T. A. Haubrich, J. Perrault, Z. B. Mackey, J. H. McKerrow, P. K. Chiang,S. F. Wnuk, "Antitrypanosomal Activity of 6'-Iodohomovinyl Derivatives of Adenosine and Related 6-N-Cyclopropyladenosine Analogues", J. Med. Chem. 2006, 49, 2096-2102.
 Z. Wang, S. F. Wnuk, Application of Vinyl Tris(trimethylsilyl)germanes in Pd-catalyzed Couplings", J. Org.
Chem. 2005, 70, 3281-3284.
Main grants funded to the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department from 2002 to 2007
(2006-2008) J. Almirall “Forensic Significance of Elements Analysis” Department of Justice, $292,149/2 years
(2006-2008) K. G. Furton “Optimization of Sorbent Human Scents” United States Army, $397,771/2 years
(2005-2009) P. R. Gardinali “Contaminant Assessment & Risk Evaluation (CARE) for Everglades National
Park, Biscayne National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve ”. Department of Interior, National Park Service, Biscayne National Park, $2.1M/4 years.
(2001-2004) P. R. Gardinali (co-PI) “Screening Level Risk Assessment to Determine Potential High Priority
Contaminants and Natural Resources at Risk in Biscayne and Everglades National Parks: Critical information
needs for CERP. Department of Interior, National Park Service, $736K/3 years
(2000-2006) and (2006-2012) R. Jaffe (co-PI), “The Florida Coastal Everglades (FCE) Long-term Ecological Research (LTER) Program”, NSF, 1st Award: 4.2 millions/6 years (2000-2006), 2nd Award, 4.9 millions/6 years
(2006-2012)
(2004-2008) K. Kavallieratos (Subproject PI) "Design of novel toxic metals sensors via an ion-exchange extraction strategy" NIGMS/NIH (MBRS-SCORE), $470,965/4 years
(2004-2008) W. Lees, “Improving & Understanding the Folding of Disulfide Containing Proteins” NSF,
$348,699/5 years
(2004-2008) F. Leng, (Subproject PI) "Mechanisms of transcription-coupled DNA supercoiling”, NIGMS/NIH
(MBRS-SCORE), $936,604/4 years
(2004-2007) B. McCord, “Development of Microfluid”, Department of Justice, $488,854/3 years
(2006-2008) B. McCord, “An Investigation of the Effects” Department of Justice, $347,399/2 years
(2004-2007) and (2007-2010) A. Mebel, “Theoretical Studies of Chemical Reactions Related to the Formation of
Polyaromatic” DOE, 1st Award: $298,000/3 years, 2nd Award: $285.030/3 years
(2006-2011) A. Mebel (co-PI). "Dynamics and Kinetics of the Formation and Growth of Unsaturated Hydrocarbons in Titan's atmosphere" NSF/CRC, 2.7 mln/5 years
(2001-2006) and (2006-2011) K. Rein, “Advanced Research in Cooperation in Environmental Health (ARCH
Program) NIEHS 1st Award: $2.9 millions/5 years, 2nd Award: $3.7 millions/5 years
(2004-2009) X. Wang “Structural Basis for the Chloroperoxidase-Catalyzed Enantioselective Transformation
Structural Basis for the Chloroperoxidase" NSF (CAREER Award) $506,270/4 years
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(2006-2008) X. Wang (Subproject PI) "Structural and Functional Characterization of Prion Peptides and Their
Copper Complexes" NIGMS/NIH (MBRS-SCORE), $301.255/2 years
(2004-2008) S. Wnuk (Subproject PI) “Nucleoside-Based Enzyme Inhibitors. Novel Stannyl-, Silyl- and
Germyldesulfonylation Reactions.” NIGMS/NIH (MBRS-SCORE) $540,450/4 years
Major Instrumentation Grants

Acquisition of a 600 MHz NMR Spectrometer, 2004, DOD, $400K, (Wnuk)

Acquisition of a High Resolution ICP-MS, 2005, NSF, $498K (Almirall)

Acquisition of a Differential Scanning Microcalorimeter and a Titration Microcalorimeter”, 2006, DOD,
$175K (Lopez de la Vega)
As can be gleaned from the above, the research areas of the department are diverse. As discussed before, the
number of publications originating from the department has consistently grown. The level of grant funding has
increased to $4 million dollars/year in the last three years. All of these accomplishments are due to the quality
of the faculty and students that the program has been able to attract.
In 1997 the first doctoral students were admitted into the department. When a department initiates a program
such as this one wonders if the quality of the student that is generated will be competitive in the job market. We
are happy to say that several graduates now hold tenure earning faculty positions at the universities throughout
the United States [Ralph Mead - PhD 2003: University of North Carolina, Wilmington. Duk Kyung Kim – PhD
2003: Auburn University, Montgomery. Ballester Maria – 2005: Nova Southeastern University]
Our undergraduate program has always been successful in generating quality graduates and they continue to
do so. Our students are attending and/or graduated with PhD degree from such top programs as Berkeley,
Duke, Penn State, Columbia, Yale, etc. Rubin Gonzalez (BS, 1996) holds now an Assistant Professor position in
the Chemistry Department at Columbia University. Carlos Valdez (BS, 2000) was awarded a National Physical
Science Consortium graduate fellowship in 2001, earned his Ph.D. degree at Berkeley, and currently is a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Professor B. Sharpless, a Nobel Prize winner, at the Scripps Institute.
The instrumentation facilities available to the department have improved significantly since 2002. There now
are four core instrumentation facilities in the university which are closely affiliated to the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department. The nuclear magnetic resonance facility now has two major instruments, a Bruker
AVANCE 400 MHz NMR with a quad probe and a Bruker AVANCE 600 mHz NMR with dedicated and multinuclear probes. The 400 mHz instrument was the only NMR in the department and was the workhorse for the department in the magnetic resonance area since 1998. In 2004, the faculty wrote a proposal to the Department
of Defense for a larger, 600 mHz, NMR Spectrometer. This instrument is used mainly for biological molecules.
Both the mass spectroscopy facility (AMSF) and NMR facilities are now in adjacent, fully renovated rooms in CP
178. The AMSF facility now has HP-4500 Plus: Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), an
HP-6890/HP-5973 GC-MS, and a Finnigan Navigator LC-PDA-MS. The Trace Evidence Analysis Facility now
has Elan DRC+ quadrupole ICP-MS, a Thermo Element 2 magnetic sector high resolution ICP-MS, several automated liquid sample introduction systems, a CETAC 500+ 266 nm laser ablation system and a NewWave Research 213 nm laser ablation system. The facility also contains a Philips XL30 Scanning Electron Microscope
with an EDAX detector, low and high vacuum capabilities and a gold sputtering coating system. The Trace
Metal Facility Core includes a new Clean Laboratory with quality grade suitable for trace metal analysis. This
Laboratory is split into two parts. A clean room (Class 1000) with approximately 200 sq ft will be used for clean
sample preparation. The clean room will be equipped with two clean hoods with HEPA filters, water purification
system, and lab furniture. The rest of the Lab (approximately 200 sq ft) is used for sample analysis. An ICP-MS
and a HPLC coupled to ICP-MS meets the needs for metal speciation. The department also has an undergraduate instrumentation laboratory in CP 344 which includes uv-visible spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy, a fluorimeter and CD spectrometer. Additionally calorimetric instrumentation includes the VP-ITC MicroCalorimeter
from MicroCal, Inc. and a VP –DSC calorimeter both from MircroCal Inc.
6.0
Weaknesses that impede the achievement of program goals:
Among the weaknesses in the makeup of the department which may impede the achievement of program goals
is the lack of technical and non technical staff to support the department, the lack of classroom, research and
general space needed to accommodate the growing graduate and undergraduate student population, and the
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high cost of living and lack of affordable housing in the South Florida area needed to accommodate prospective
graduate students.
The core facilities, particularly the nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectroscopy facilities are staffed by
technicians. A PhD scientist is needed in order to oversee the running of these facilities. Such a position exists
in most departments of our size and this level of advanced instrumentation. This is something that will in time
pay for itself since there should be fewer service calls to repair the instrumentation. Additionally, a PhD level
scientist in charge of these facilities will help in the design of experiments with the particular instrumentation
which is available.
A full time accountant is needed to manage expenses in the department. The department generates $4 million/year in external funding. Most departments which generate this level of funding have a full time accountant
on staff to manage the grants. In our department the accountant is paid 50% by the department and 50% by the
ARCH program. As the grant revenues keep increasing, this situation will soon be intolerable.
An additional secretary is needed to support the current clerical staff. Currently the department has one office
manager, a secretary for the graduate program and one additional secretary partially assigned to IFRI. The department needs one additional secretary exclusively assigned to the Chair of the Department.
The incoming graduate students need space in the form of office space and research space. Currently graduate
students have to share desks in the research laboratories. There is no area for graduate student space within
the department. There is no room for the students to have their own meeting or at least share lunch time. Even
the research space is limited.
The cost of living in South Florida is very high. Most importantly there is a lack of affordable housing for graduate students. Current students have to share apartments in order to be able to afford living in South Florida. An
increase in the graduate stipend would help in alleviating this situation. Another possibility is to designate some
of the on campus housing as graduate student housing and make it affordable to the students, possibly as part
of the stipend offered.
There is very little classroom space available to the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department. We are limited as
to the number of sections that can be offered due to the lack of large classrooms. We are limited as to offering
recitation sessions due to the lack of available classroom space.
The economic situation in South Florida is such that it is difficult to attract new faculty hires at the current salaries. The median family home is $230,000. This is for a condominium. The average unattached single family
residence is close to $400,000. At the salaries offered by the University it is difficult to move in and buy a new
comfortable house in the South Florida area. This will hinder the hiring of new faculty, not only in the Chemistry
and Biochemistry Department but University wide.
In order for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry to expand and achieve its goals the issues listed
above should be addressed.
7.0
Opportunities to explore in the achievement of program goals.
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry sees the establishment of a College of Medicine as an opportunity in developing the areas of biomedical aspects of chemistry, the environmental health sciences and forensic science. The hiring of faculty members with joint appointments in chemistry and the College of Medicine
should be considered. In this way a bridge will exist between the two facilities and opportunities for funding
through the NIH roadmap programs (e.g., nanomedicine) will be increased.
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry is continually seeking to improve the manner of delivery of its
undergraduate courses. The department needs to teach the undergraduate lectures in a larger state of the art
lecture hall. The current largest auditorium equipped to teach chemistry is CP 145. This is a shared room
where all of the large lectures are taught, not only by the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department, but by many
departments in the University. This room only accommodates 212 students. Every semester the course has to
turn away large number of students that would like to get into the undergraduate chemistry course but no seats
are available. The department has responded by increasing the sections of General Chemistry CHM1045 which
are offered. Additionally Chemistry and Society CHM 1032, a very popular course with non science majors, is
taught in a theater in the library, a less than ideal situation. A large auditorium with state of the art equipment is
needed in order to accommodate our growing number of students.
16
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Page 17 of 27
There is a need to provide additional contact hours for undergraduate students. One possible model which is
being considered is the use of recitation sessions carried out by the doctoral students in the department. In this
way the undergraduate students do not have to depend on faculty members exclusively but will have a chance
to ask the help of graduate students. Additionally, small group recitation sessions will increase the camaraderie
among the undergraduate students. One reason this has not been implemented is the lack of suitable classroom space needed for such an endeavor. Estimates are that two classrooms would be needed for two hours
every day to be able to accommodate the large number of students which will be required and benefit from taking the course.
We believe that the addition to the CP building should be placed as a higher priority in the University building
plan. Such an addition will alleviate the space concerns of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department and allow us to forge ahead into the future.
The department wishes to pursue the establishment of a “Research Experience for Undergraduates” program at
FIU. This program is sponsored by the National Science Foundation and will introduce undergraduate students
from other institutions to the possibilities available for research at FIU. We believe this will be a very successful
program. It will provide a stipend for the students and housing for the summer. In order to carry this out the
housing during the summer problem must be worked out.
8.0 Threats to overcome in the achievement of program goals.
The most ominous threat in the achievement of program goals is the high cost of living and housing in Southeast Florida. The average cost of a home in Southeast Florida is more than $400,000. Even a small condominium can cost as much as $230,000. Renting an apartment is also very expensive. This will impact graduae
student recruitment, faculty recruitment and retention.
Faculty at the full professor level are greatly underpaid in our department. As the name of FIU and the reputation of the department continues to grow, faculty from the department become more desirable to other universities nationwide. That coupled with the cost of housing and the cost of living in the South Florida area will encourage these very successful faculty to consider leaving the University for other more lucrative positions. We
must work to retain the quality faculty we have. The high cost of living will also affect our ability to attract quality
new faculty members into our department. It is difficult to be able to live comfortably and buy a house in southeast Florida with the current salaries offered to incoming faculty. The high cost of living will also affect our ability
to attract quality graduate students. Rental apartments close to campus are available however the high cost
requires the student to share apartments at 3 or 4 students per apartment. This will make moving to South Florida a less desirable choice for graduate students and faculty alike.
9.0 Budget
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry had a recurring operating budget of roughly $3.27 million per
year in last fiscal year (July 06-June 07). This includes faculty and staff salaries for both the main campus and
the BBC campus. In 2002 the department presented figures (see below) and predicted that the monies generated by external funds would match and subsequently surpass the operating budget in the year 2006. Even
though investment costs will vary considerably depending on the actual number of faculty lines, assistantships
and staff positions made available over the next 10 years, most, if not all of these initial costs could be offset by
increased FTE (and subsequent State FTE funding) and significantly increased extramural funding (and overhead support back to the University). This latter point is the reason that the top Research Universities can afford
to have such large numbers of chemistry faculty (i.e. 40-50). The following graph showing the predicted behavior and confirms that the department with $4.38 million in external grants has been on track with this prediction.
We expect to continue the trend and if the recommendations listed on this document are followed, the return on
investment index will continue to increase into the foreseeable future.
17
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Page 18 of 27
Millions
Investment vs. Returns
$20
$18
$16
$14
Amount
$12
Returns
Investment
$10
$8
$6
$4
$2
$0
02-03
03-04
04-05
05-06
06-07
07-08
08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13
Year
10.0
Major Findings and Recommendations
It is evident that the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry is performing remarkably well. The following
are specific recommendations which the department has delineated in order for the department become one of
the “top tier” departments in the nation.
1. The department recommends that at least ten additional faculty positions be added within the next ten years
to bring the department to a comparable number compared to benchmark universities and also to offset the currently very high FTE/faculty of the department compared to the Chemistry Departments nationwide. At least
half the faculty hires should be biomedical areas of chemistry in order to complement the biochemistry Ph.D.
program currently being initiated. Some of these should bridge the different areas of emphasis; for example, an
environmental toxicologist, and a forensic toxicologist would be strong additions to all four areas of emphasis in
the department. The faculty hires should not only be the Assistant Professor level but also more advanced researchers should be courted in order to expand research and funding more rapidly. This will require greater
amounts in start up funds be provided. However, the younger faculty are needed to offset the inevitable retirement process and avoid lapses in research productivity for the department as a whole.
2. The department recommends that at least 10 additional TA’s be provided within the next three years. This
addition would bring the total number of TA’s in the FIU Chemistry and Biochemistry Department to the average
for all doctoral granting programs in the nation. This will allow for the inclusion of recitation sessions as part of
the beginning undergraduate tuition. In addition, increases in faculty and subsequent funding will provide increases in the number of RA’s and fellowships. This will continue the growth in full time supported graduate students to over 100 which is more in line with a top tier Chemistry and Biochemistry Departments.
3. The department finds it crucial that a mechanism be found to facilitate available housing for graduate students. Currently the cost of housing is amazingly high and students have to share apartments (sometimes 3 or
4 students/apartment) in order to survive. At this stage in the development of the Ph.D. program it is crucial that
we be able to draw from both the resident and nonresident applicant pools. Non resident students would find it
difficult to make ends meet. Additionally, it is in the department’s interest to develop an REU program on campus. One of the obstacles to its development is the unavailability of dormitories for the summer undergraduates
to occupy.
4. The department is attempting to pursue a “Research Experience for Undergraduates” program sponsored by
the National Science Foundation. This program will introduce undergraduate students from other institutions to
experience research at FIU. It will pay for a summer stipend and housing for the students. It is imperative that
dormitories by made available for the students in such a way that the cost of housing for the summer does not
eat up their whole stipend.
5. The department recommends that three additional staff positions be added within the next four years as follows:
18
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Page 19 of 27
[1] One full time accountant position to the department with primary responsibilities to assist in the managing
of C&G funds in the department.
[2] Two additional lines to upgrade the current Engineer positions in FIU’s Advanced Mass Spectrometry
Facility and FIU’s NMR facilities. These managers should be in addition to the engineers currently on staff
and should be PhD scientists capable of operating and maintaining all of the instrumentations in the facilities
at the highest "scientific level."
[3] One additional secretarial position to provide support particularly to the Department Chair is needed.
6. The department proposes that the Chemistry and Physics building (CP) expansion, which is already in the
Master Plan, be given a high priority for future buildings on campus as it will provide a much needed larger
lecture hall for science and other instruction as well as provide for much needed expansion of teaching laboratory facilities. We would propose a building with an expanded lecture hall able to seat 400 students. Such a
building would allow for a 100% increase in FTE for our lower division lecture courses (i.e. CHM 1032, CHM
1045, CHM 1046) by having a suitable larger multimedia lecture hall for science instruction and would also allow many other departments to do the same. This building should also provide much needed additional classroom space to be used for graduate students run recitation sessions and general space for graduate students
to use.
11.0
Student Learning Outcomes.
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry has led the way for the University in establishing Academic
Learning Compacts. Ever since 2001 the department has been administering the Educational Testing Services
Exit Examination. This examination compares our graduates to other graduates nationwide. Only recently have
the rest of the departments followed suit and are now administering the exam.
The ETS examination is administered as part of a “capstone course” which is titled Chemistry Seminar (CHM
4930). As part of this course the student should: (The following objectives are for the BS degree, the other degrees are described in the upcoming pages in the form of their own academic learning compact.)
a) Demonstrate proficiency in the theoretical and practical knowledge of physical, organic, inorganic, analytical, and biochemistry.
b) Satisfy admission requirements to graduate or professional schools.
c) Be accurately advised and be able to assess when they expect to graduate
d) Demonstrate the ability to critically read the chemical literature.
e) Synthesize information from the literature and present it orally, in a seminar, to an audience of peers
and faculty members.
f)
Be able to use the scientific method to solve original chemical and biochemical problems
g) Review appropriate literature. The resulting information would then be written as a research paper
h) Demonstrate the ability to synthesize compounds, collect data using appropriate instrumentation, and
analyze data using appropriate statistical methods.
i)
Demonstrate the ability to prepare a written report on a chemical topic and orally present the pertinent
information in a seminar to their peers and faculty.
Item (a) will be evaluated using the ETS exam administered during the capstone course. (b) was evaluated by
keeping track via an exit survey of our student graduates and determining their success entering graduate and
professional schools. (c) was evaluated by using our own graduation and time to graduate records in the department. The rest of the items were evaluated by using a rubric (shown at the end of this document) to evaluate the students’ performance in seminar and written report describing the contents of the seminar.
Whether the student and faculty met the intended outcome or objective is evaluated and new guidelines are developed in order to address the issue. For example, since not enough students were
graduating on time, new sections of courses were instituted and new guidelines in student advisement
are currently being designed. If the students did not perform well in the exit exam, then course content is being examined by each of the corresponding subdisciplines.
19
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Page 20 of 27
Florida International University
Academic Learning Compact
Name of the undergraduate degree program
Chemistry B.A.
Mission Statement
The B.A. in chemistry prepares students for careers in medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, environmental studies, veterinary medicine, patent law, forensic science, and in secondary school teaching.
Student Learning Outcomes
FIU Chemistry graduates should be able to do the following:
Content/Discipline Knowledge
1.Demonstrate proficiency in the theoretical and practical knowledge of physical, organic, inorganic, analytical, and
biochemistry.
2. Demonstrate the ability to critically read the chemical literature.
3. Demonstrate the ability to grasp and outline the pertinent information needed to sumarize a chemistry topic.
4. Synthesize information from the literature and present it orally, in a seminar, to an audience of peers and faculty
members.
Critical Thinking
1. Apply the scientific method to solve original chemical problems.
2. Demonstrate the ability to review appropriate literature.
3. Demonstrate the ability to synthesize compounds, collect data using appropriate instrumentation, and analyze data
using appropriate statistical methods.
Oral and Written Communication
1. Students will demonstrate the ability to prepare a written report on a chemical topic and orally present the pertinent
information in a seminar to their peers and faculty.
20
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Page 21 of 27
Florida International University
Academic Learning Compact
Name of the undergraduate degree program
Chemistry B.S.
Mission Statement
The B.S. in chemistry prepares students for graduate study or a professional career as a chemist in industry, in government service, or in secondary school teaching.
Student Learning Outcomes
FIU Chemistry graduates should be able to do the following:
Content/Discipline Knowledge
1.Demonstrate proficiency in the theoretical and practical knowledge of physical, organic, inorganic, analytical, and
biochemistry.
2. Demonstrate the ability to critically read the chemical literature.
3. Demonstrate the ability to grasp and outline the pertinent information needed to sumarize a chemistry topic.
4. Synthesize information from the literature and present it orally, in a seminar, to an audience of peers and faculty
members.
Critical Thinking
1. Apply the scientific method to solve original chemical problems.
2. Demonstrate the ability to review appropriate literature.
3. Demonstrate the ability to synthesize compounds, collect data using appropriate instrumentation, and analyze data
using appropriate statistical methods.
Oral and Written Communication
1. Bachelor of Science students will write a report that is based on original research and will be judged by a faculty
panel as suitable in style and content for publication in an appropriate ACS journal.
2. Demonstrate the ability to prepare a seminar on a chemical topic and formally present the pertinent information in
Senior Seminar (CHM 4930).
21
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry
PROGRAM NAME & CIP CODE: Chemistry 400501
Expanded Statement of Institutional Purpose
Intended Outcome/objective
Mission Statement:
The mission of the Department of
Chemistry at Florida International University is to provide the best education
possible for our students, contribute to
tomorrow's knowledge through vigorous
and productive research in fundamental
and applied aspects of chemistry and to
be of service to our discipline, university, community, state and beyond.
Page 22 of 27
Chair: Stanislaw Wnuk
Year: 2006-07
LEVEL: BA
Outcome Assessment Results
Use of Results
Demonstrate proficiency in
the theoretical and practical
knowledge of physical, organic, inorganic, analytical, and
biochemistry.
Assessment Criteria, Standards &
Procedures
Students enrolled in senior seminar CHM-4930 as well as other
students in their senior year are
required to take the Educational
Testing Service Field Exam in
Chemistry. At least 50% of students will be expected to score in
the 50th percentile.
36% of students taking the
ETS Chemistry test scored
at or above the 50th percentile. The mean scores
were:
Physical 46th percentile
Organic 85th percentile
Inorganic 50th percentile
Analytical 55th percentile
Total 55th percentile
The standard was not met.
Student performance was
satisfactory and indicates improvement in most individual
subject areas. Faculty will
monitor the situation to see if
this represents a short term
fluctuation in performance.
Qualification of graduates will
be sufficient to satisfy admission requirements to graduate
or professional schools.
40% of those graduates that apply
to graduate or professional
schools will be accepted for admission.
Based on the exit survey
and personal communications 50% of students who
applied to graduate or
professional schools were
accepted for admission.
The standard was met. The
results were reviewed by the
faculty. Efforts to successfully
place students into graduate
and professional schools will
continue.
The standard was not met. The
undergraduate advisor is establishing guidelines to better
guide students through the
graduation process.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Procedure: Graduating seniors will
be surveyed in the Spring of their
senior year to determine if they
applied to professional school and
whether they were accepted.
Students will be accurately
advised and be able to assess when they expect to
graduate
75% of those applying for graduation will graduate.
Demonstrate the ability to
critically read the chemical
literature.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric in
Senior Seminar (CHM 4930) to
assess student ability to read,
grasp, and synthesize information
from the chemical literature.
59% (17 of 29) students
who applied for graduation
for 1/2007 and 5/2007 had
graduated by the end of
the summer.
100% of students scored in
the top two sections of the
"Literature Review" portion
of the rubric (4 - 73%; 3 27%)
Synthesize information from
the literature and present it
orally, in a seminar, to an
audience of peers and faculty
members.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric in
Senior Seminar (CHM 4930) to
assess student ability to read,
grasp, and synthesize information
from the chemical literature.
93% of students scored 25
or above (out of 30) on the
rubric for the oral portion of
seminar, with a mean
score of 27.2/30.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Graduates will be able to use
the scientific method to solve
original chemical and biochemical problems
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the critical thinking skills
used in the presentation portion of
the Senior Seminar (CHM 4930).
60% of the student research papers were judged
suitable in style and
presentation to those found
in a comparable ACS
journal.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained, with more emphasis on improving student writing
to meet ACS standards..
50% of the research papers will be
judged as comparable in style with
an appropriate ACS journal.
Review appropriate literature.
The resulting information
would then be written as
research paper
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the critical thinking skills
used in the presentation portion of
the Senior Seminar (CHM 4930).
80% of the students scored
in the top two sections for
the "Literature" portion of
their research paper (4 53%; 3 - 27%)
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Demonstrate the ability to
synthesize compounds, collect data using appropriate
instrumentation, and analyze
data using appropriate statistical methods.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the critical thinking skills
used in the presentation portion of
the Senior Seminar (CHM 4930).
93% of students scored in
the top two sections of the
critical thinking portion of
the rubric for senior seminar.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Students will demonstrate the
ability to prepare a written
report on a chemical topic and
orally present the pertinent
information in a seminar to
their peers and faculty.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the oral and written
communications skills used in the
presentation portion of the Senior
Seminar (CHM 4930).
100% of students scored in
the top two sections of the
"Presentation" portion of
the rubric (4 - 53%; 347%)
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
22
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry
PROGRAM NAME & CIP CODE: Chemistry 400501
Expanded Statement of Institutional Purpose
Intended Outcome/objective
Mission Statement:
Graduates of our program will
demonstrate proficiency in the
theoretical and practical
knowledge of physical, organic,
inorganic, analytical, and biochemistry.
The mission of the Department of
Chemistry at Florida International University is to provide the best education
possible for our students, contribute to
tomorrow's knowledge through vigorous
and productive research in fundamental
and applied aspects of chemistry and to
be of service to our discipline, university, community, state and beyond.
Qualification of graduates will be
sufficient to satisfy admission
requirements to graduate and
professional schools.
Page 23 of 27
Chair: Stanislaw Wnuk
Assessment Criteria, Standards &
Procedures
Students enrolled in senior seminar CHM-4930 as well as other
students in their senior year are
required to take the Educational
Testing Service Field Exam in
Chemistry. At least 50% of students will be expected to score in
the 50th percentile.
Outcome Assessment
Results
36% of students taking
the ETS Chemistry test
scored at or above the
50th percentile. The
mean scores were:
Physical 46th percentile
Organic 85th percentile
Inorganic 50th percentile
Analytical 55th percentile
Total 55th percentile
Use of Results
70% of those graduates that apply
to graduate or professional schools
will be accepted for admission.
Based on the exit survey
and personal communications 80% of students
who applied to graduate
or professional schools
were accepted for admission.
The standard was met. The
results were reviewed by the
faculty. Efforts to successfully
place students into graduate
and professional schools will
continue.
75% (12 of 16) students
who applied for graduation for 1/2007 and
5/2007 had graduated
by the end of the summer.
100% of students scored
in the top two sections of
the "Literature Review"
portion of the rubric (4 71%; 3 - 29%)
100% of students scored
in the top two sections of
the "Content" portion of
the rubric (4 - 57%; 3 43%)
The standard was met. The
undergraduate advisor is establishing guidelines to better
guide students through the
graduation process.
100% of students scored
25 or above (out of 30)
on the rubric for the oral
portion of seminar, with
a mean score of
27.6/30.
86% of the student
research papers were
judged suitable in style
and presentation to
those found in a comparable ACS journal.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
100% of the students
scored in the top two
sections for the "Literature" portion of their
research paper (4 86%; 3 - 14%)
100% of students scored
in the top two sections of
the critical thinking
portion of the rubric for
senior seminar.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Procedure: Graduating seniors will
be surveyed in the Spring of their
senior year to determine if they
applied to graduate school and
whether they were accepted.
Students will be accurately
advised and be able to assess
when they expect to graduate
Demonstrate the ability to critically read the chemical literature.
Demonstrate the ability to grasp
and outline the pertinent information needed to summarize a
chemistry topic.
Synthesize information from the
literature and present it orally, in
a seminar, to an audience of
peers and faculty members.
Year: 2006-07
LEVEL: BS
75% of those applying for graduation will graduate.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric in
Senior Seminar (CHM 4930) to
assess student ability to read
Faculty will use a scoring rubric in
Senior Seminar (CHM 4930) to
assess student ability to read
Faculty will use a scoring rubric in
Senior Seminar (CHM 4930) to
assess student ability to read
The standard was not met.
Student performance was
satisfactory and indicates improvement in most individual
subject areas. Faculty will
monitor the situation to see if
this represents a short term
fluctuation in performance.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Graduates will be able to use
the scientific method to solve
original chemical problems
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the critical thinking skills
used in the presentation portion of
the Senior Seminar (CHM 4930).
60% of the original papers will be
judged as suitable in style and
content for publication in an appropriate ACS journal.
Review appropriate literature,
collect data, and analyze results.
The resulting information would
then be written in a manner
suitable for publication
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the critical thinking skills
used in the presentation portion of
the Senior Seminar (CHM 4930).
Demonstrate the ability to synthesize compounds, collect data
using appropriate instrumentation, and analyze data using
appropriate statistical methods.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the critical thinking skills
used in the presentation portion of
the Senior Seminar (CHM 4930).
Bachelor of Science students
will write a report that is based
on original research and will be
judged by a faculty panel as
suitable in style and content for
publication in an appropriate
ACS journal.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the oral and written communications skills used in the
presentation portion of the Senior
Seminar (CHM 4930).
100% of students scored
in the top two sections of
the "Presentation" portion of the rubric (4 71%; 3- 29%)
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Faculty will use a scoring rubric to
evaluate the oral and written communications skills used in the
presentation portion of the Senior
Seminar (CHM 4930).
100% of students scored
in the top two sections of
the "Presentation" portion of the rubric (4 71%; 3 - 29%)
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Demonstrate the ability to prepare a seminar on a chemical
topic and formally present the
pertinent information in Senior
Seminar (CHM 4930).
Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry
Chair: Stanislaw Wnuk
PROGRAM NAME & CIP CODE: Chemistry 400501
23
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
The standard was met. The
process used was reviewed
and found appropriate. The
criteria and standard will be
maintained.
Year: 2006-07
LEVEL: MS
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Expanded Statement of Institutional
Intended Outcome/objective
Purpose
The mission of the Department of
Graduates of our program
Chemistry at Florida International
will have knowledge of
University is to provide the best
chemistry, which is suffieducation possible for our stucient to enable them addents, contribute to tomorrow's
mission to Ph.D. programs.
knowledge through vigorous and
productive research in fundamental and applied aspects of chemistry and to be of service to our
Graduates seeking emdiscipline, university, community,
ployment in field will be
state and beyond.
competitive in the job market.
Assessment Criteria, Standards & Procedures
80% of those graduates that apply to
graduate or professional schools will be
accepted for admission.
Page 24 of 27
Outcome Assessment
Results
100% of graduates
applying to graduate or professional
school were accepted for admission.
75% of graduates seeking employment
will be employed.
80% of graduates
seeking employment were employed.
Graduates of the program
will be satisfied with their
educational experience.
It is expected that 80% of respondents
will express satisfaction with the educational preparation.
80% of graduates
indicated satisfaction with their educational preparation.
Graduates will be able to
critically read the chemical
literature, grasp and outline
the pertinent information,
and be able to present it
orally to an audience of
peers and faculty members.
80% percent of the students will be expected to score 3 or 4 using the seminar
scoring rubric.
100% of students
scored in the top
two categories (3
or 4) in the literature section of the
seminar scoring
rubric.
Graduate will be able to use
the scientific method to solve
original chemical problems,
review appropriate literature,
collect data, analyze results
and prepare written reports.
Students will develop a research problem, analyze results, and write a thesis.
The contents of the thesis should represent original research, which is appropriate for publication in the chemical literature. The faculty mentor and the other
members of the student's graduate
committee will evaluate the content. The
student must present these results in the
form of an oral examination and receive
a unanimous passing vote by their committee.
100% of students
who submitted and
defended their
thesis did so successfully.
24
Use of Results
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry
Page 25 of 27
Chair: Stanislaw Wnuk
PROGRAM NAME & CIP CODE: Chemistry 400501
Expanded Statement of Institutional
Purpose
The mission of the Department
of Chemistry at Florida International University is to provide
the best education possible for
our students, contribute to tomorrow's knowledge through
vigorous and productive research in fundamental and applied aspects of chemistry and
to be of service to our discipline,
university, community, state and
beyond.
Intended Outcome/objective
Year: 2006-07
LEVEL: Ph.D.
Assessment Criteria, Standards & Procedures
Eighty percent (80%) of graduates will
be employed in field.
Outcome Assessment
Results
100% of graduates
were employed in the
field of chemistry.
Graduates will express satisfaction with educational
preparation offered by the
department
Graduates will be surveyed by a suitable questionnaire regarding the preparation provided by FIU. It is expected
that 80% of respondents will express
satisfaction with the educational preparation.
80% of graduates
indicated satisfaction
with their educational
preparation.
Graduates will be able to
critically read the chemical
literature, grasp and outline
the pertinent information, and
be able to present it orally to
an audience of peers and
faculty members.
All students will review a scientific topic
and present a seminar to peers and
professors. Evaluation of the quality of
preparation, presentation and scientific
quality will be evaluated by a faculty
panel. Eighty percent of the students
will be expected to receive a score of 3
or 4 on the literature section of the
seminar rubric.
Students will demonstrate successful
mastery of chemistry, particularly in
their area of specialization determined
by receiving a full passing score on at
least 40% of the cumulative exams
taken in their first two years of study.
100% of students
scored in the top two
categories (3 or 4) in
the literature portion of
the seminar rubric.
Students will develop a research problem, analyze results, and write a dissertation. The contents of the dissertation should represent original research,
which is appropriate for publication in
the chemical literature. The faculty
mentor and the other members of the
student's graduate committee will evaluate the content. The student must
present these results in the form of an
oral examination and receive a unanimous passing vote by their committee.
100% of the students
successfully prepared
a written thesis and
successfully presented
the results in an oral
presentation, as indicated by the voting for
their doctoral committees.
Graduates of our program
will have knowledge of chemistry, which is sufficient to
enable them to successfully
obtain employment.
Students will demonstrate
mastery of chemistry, particularly in their area of specialization.
Graduates will be able to use
the scientific method to solve
original chemical problems,
review appropriate literature,
collect data, and analyze
results. The resulting information would then be written
in a manner suitable for publication
25
100% of the students
achieved a pass rate
of 40% or higher on
the cumulative exams.
Use of Results
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found
to be appropriate.
The criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found
to be appropriate.
The criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found
to be appropriate.
The criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found
to be appropriate.
The criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found
to be appropriate.
The criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Page 26 of 27
Department: Chemistry & Biochemistry
PROGRAM NAME & CIP CODE: Forensic Science 430106
Expanded Statement of Institutional Purpose
The mission of the Forensic
Science Masters Program at
Florida International University
is to provide the best education
possible for our students, contribute to tomorrow's
knowledge through vigorous
and productive research in
fundamental and applied aspects of forensic science and
to be of service to our discipline, university, community,
state and beyond.
Intended Outcome/objective
Graduates of our program will
have knowledge of forensic
science, which is sufficient to
enable them to successfully
obtain employment in practicing forensic science laboratories and admission to Ph.D.
programs.
Chair: Stanislaw Wnuk
Assessment Criteria, Standards & Procedures
80% of graduates who apply for
graduate or professional schools will
be accepted.
80% of graduates seeking employment will be employed.
Year: 2006-07
LEVEL MS
Outcome Assessment Results
Based on surveys of
students and our experience with admission to
the FIU PhD programs, ~
80% of the MSFS students applying for further
graduate studies were
accepted for admission.
Use of Results
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
Based on student surveys, better than 80% of
our graduates secure
employment within 6
months of graduation with
the MSFS degree.
Graduates of the program
will express satisfaction with
their educational preparation
in the Forensic Science
program.
Graduates will be surveyed by a
suitable questionnaire regarding the
preparation provided by FIU. It is
expected that 80% of respondents
will express satisfaction with the
educational preparation.
80% of the students surveyed have expressed
satisfaction with their
preparation.
Graduates will be able to critically read the chemical literature, grasp and outline the
pertinent information, and be
able to present it orally to an
audience of peers and faculty
members.
All students will review a scientific
topic and present a seminar to peers
and professors. Evaluation of the
quality of preparation, presentation
and scientific quality will be evaluated by a faculty panel (see form utilized). Eighty percent of the students
will be expected to receive a score
"4" or "5" on a 5 point scale.
80 % of students received a rating of 4 or 5
in the section "overall
evaluation" of the seminar.
Graduates will be able to use
the scientific method to solve
original forensic science problems, review appropriate literature, collect data, and analyze
results. The resulting information would then be written in
a manner suitable for publication
Students will develop a research
problem, analyze results, and write a
thesis. The contents of the thesis
should represent original research,
which is appropriate for publication
in the forensic science literature. The
faculty mentor and the other members of the student's graduate committee will evaluate the content. The
student must present these results in
the form of an oral examination and
receive a unanimous passing vote
by their committee.
100% percent of students
passed the defense exam
of their thesis.
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The program will maintain
the national accreditation of
the American Academy of
Forensic Sciences (AAFS)
The on site visit of the committees
delegated by AAFS will evaluate the
quality of the teaching and research
in forensic area.
The AAFS requires yearly
reports from the graduate
program director indicating the program details
relating to meeting the
AAFS standards for accreditation. The MSFS
has met the standards of
the AAFS and maintained
accreditation status.
The standards of
accreditation were
met and the AAFS
has awarded accreditation for the
year.
26
The standard was
met. The process
was reviewed by
faculty and found to
be appropriate. The
criteria and the
standard will be
maintained.
The standard was
just met. The issue
has been reviewed
by departmental
faculty and greater
emphasis is being
placed on preparing
students for seminar.
Program Review Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Page 27 of 27
Chemistry and Biochemistry Department Seminar Rubric
4
3
2
1
Demonstrates Understanding of Topic
The student is able to respond
to questions and shows ability
to generalize the principles to
other problems
Student responds well to questions but is not really able to
generalize the principles to other
problems
Student is hesitant and
not able to answer many
of the questions.
Student is not able to
answer questions
Delivery of Research
Topic
Seminar presentation is interesting, challenging, and understandable to the audience
Seminar presentation is interesting and understandable to the
audience yet lacks depth
Seminar presentation is
not understandable to the
audience yet is polished
The seminar is poorly
presented
Content
An abundance of material is
presented that supports the
thesis. The topic is current in
chemistry.
The amount of material presented is limited but supports the
thesis. The topic is current in
chemistry.
The presentation lacks
material or the thesis is
not well defined. The
topic is not current.
Facts are presented with
poor connection and no
well defined thesis
Literature Review
Literature review will be from
appropriate scientific journals
and will cover the topic in depth
Appropriate scientific journals
but a shallow survey of the literature
Scientific journals but very
few articles
An internet search of
magazines – not scientific journals
Demonstrates sound
chemical background
The student shows good understanding of the chemical
principles set by previous
course work
The student shows fair understanding of the chemical principles set by previous course
work
The student appears to
have forgotten much of
the previous coursework
The student shows a lack
of understanding of basic
chemical principles
Presentation
Presentation method is appropriate to the subject. Graphics
used are appropriate and not
superfluous
The presentation is well done
but contains graphics that don’t
seem to fit
The presentation is well
planned but poorly presented
The presentation is poorly planned and not well
presented
Speaking skills
The presentation is well articulated, at appropriate volume,
and uses good grammar
Well articulated with good
grammar but does not
project voice adequately
Poor grammar and articulation
Sources
Citation style is appropriate
Citation style is not appropriate
Sources are not cited
Total Score
27
Points