Professional Biography

One has to understand physical phenomena at the molecular level to get the complete picture of how things work. This is what makes teaching and research in chemistry a delightful life-long learning process.

I teach a variety of courses that span several subdisciplines of chemistry that include General Chemistry II (Chem 120), and Organic Chemistry I (Chem 210). In addition, I also teach the Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory (research website) and an upper division Medicinal Organic Chemistry course.

As both a bioorganic and organometallic chemist I have two areas of research interest. One delves into the role of metal ions in promoting the chemical catalysis of a class of RNA enzymes (ribozymes).  The other project investigates organometallic complexes for degrading phosphate neurotoxins.  More information can be found at my research website.

Academic Credentials

Post-doc   California Institute to Technology

Ph.D.         Northwestern University

B.S.           Harvey Mudd College

Prior Sabbatical Appointments

1995: CU Boulder with Professor Thomas Cech

1999: U Oregon with Professor David Tyler

2005: California Institute of Technology with Professor Robert Grubbs