Message from the GSO

Sayuri Niyangoda, a graduate student in the laboratory of Prof. Michael Johnson, won the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. This competition gives students the opportunity to present their research in a way that engages

Sayuri Wins! people who may not be experts in the field. Sayuri won both the overall and the people’s choice competitions with her speech, entitled “Alzheimer’s Disease through the Eyes of a Fish.” In her talk she articulated her research, which she is carrying out under the guidance of Dr. Romana Jarosova, Assistant Research Professor of Chemistry at KU, and Dr. Johnson. The awards come with a total $650 cash prize. She will represent KU in the regional 3MT competition, to be held in Chicago in March.

1st overall and people’s choice

Welcome Stephanie Chamberlain - Administrative Associate

Stephanie Chamberlain joined the Chemistry Department in February 2022 after 9 years with KU Facilities Services and Campus Operations. She graduated from Avila University with a B.A. in Paralegal studies and implements her knowledge on compliance and regulatory issues. Stephanie has supported a wide variety of campus customers, skilled trade shops, and managed the KU Vehicle Fleet with the State of Kansas. She provides general administrative support to the Chemistry Department and is the Program Administrator for the Chemistry REU Program. Stephanie has found it an incredible joy to work with students and looks forward to many more years to come!

CHEM GSO

The Chemistry Graduate Student Organization (ChemGSO) kicked off 2022 with a new set of officers and a fresh perspective on how to (1) encourage communication within the chemistry department

and (2) promote professional development for all graduate students. In March, the Chemistry Department hosted the graduate research opportunity weekend “GROW” for incoming graduate students. The ChemGSO sponsored snacks for prospective and current graduate students. To encourage student engagement and recognize their creativity, we announced our annual T-shirt design contest at the beginning of April. Rafael Hernandez had the winning design and it is available for $15. Please contact us if you are interested in buying one (https:// chem.ku.edu/chemgso). At the end of April, a baked goods fundraiser was organized which included a variety of baked goods from different cultures.

This event raised $166.33 to support future networking events and was considered a huge success. In

June, the Department welcomed the

Summer 2022 REU students with a picnic. The ChemGSO took a lead role by arranging the food and organizing a volleyball game for the event. Later in July, the ChemGSO decided to expose students to a more international experience and hosted a cricket tournament and picnic, which was widely enjoyed. To end the summer and welcome incoming chemistry graduate students to KU, the ChemGSO worked closely with the department to host a welcome picnic in August. Throughout the summer, the ChemGSO organized a seminar series presented by Nicole Reiz, the Director of Professional Development in the Office of Graduate Studies at KU. This excellent series covered topics ranging from job searching and CV preparation, to career development. To finish the year, the ChemGSO threw a Halloween party and organized a poster session for new chemistry graduate and undergraduate students. If you would like to become more involved with our ChemGSO please contact us at kuchemgso@gmail.com and follow us on Facebook (@KUChemistryGSO) and Instagram (@kuchemgso).