IMPACT

The College of Science gathered on Feb. 29 to recognize and celebrate our high achieving faculty and staff at the 2024 Combined Awards Ceremony.

The following faculty and staff received awards in the categories of Inclusive Excellence, Administration, Service and Performance.

Congratulations to all the awardees!

Scientists led by an Oregon State University chemistry researcher are closing in on a new tool for tackling the global problem of weedkiller-tainted groundwater.

Kyriakos Stylianou of the OSU College of Science led an international team that identified a material known as a metal-organic framework, or MOF, that showed an ability to completely remove, and also break down, the oft-used herbicide glyphosate.

Carley Beeman’s resume is impressive. Studying Honors chemistry with a focus on advanced biochemistry and a minor in biology, she has been a consistent figure on the Oregon State University Honor Roll. In January, she was announced the chemistry undergraduate of the quarter.

A chemical element so visually striking it was named for a goddess shows a “Goldilocks” level of reactivity – neither too much nor too little – that makes it a strong candidate as a carbon scrubbing tool.

One project keeps chemist Wei Kong awake at night, and it started as an idea nearly two decades ago. Now, after being awarded nearly $2 million for four years by the National Institutes of Health, the goal is to create a groundbreaking new tool with the potential to revolutionize drug development and enhance our understanding of disease mechanisms.

The College of Science community recently gathered to celebrate this year’s Alumni Award recipients. These alumni distinguished themselves through their groundbreaking research, strong leadership and efforts to enhance equity, access and inclusion.

Oregon State University researchers have been awarded $2 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to develop improved ways of preventing stored potatoes from sprouting, particularly in the organic sector.

Rather than being swayed by conventional markers of success such as titles and salaries, Parisa Khosropour (B.S., ‘89) advocates for the relentless pursuit of personal excellence. Khosropour is the recipient of the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award for her professional accomplishments and mentorship that has brought honor, distinction and visibility to the College of Science.

Shaping challenges into opportunities is what chemistry Ph.D. student Abdikani Omar Farah has done nearly all of his life. After growing up in East Africa and experiencing firsthand what it meant to lack access to medicine, Farah now wants to use his career to fill this drug scarcity and give back to his communities.

Researchers in the College of Science have demonstrated the potential of an inexpensive nanomaterial to scrub carbon dioxide from industrial emissions. The findings, published in Cell Reports Physical Science, are important because improved carbon capture methods are key to addressing climate change, said Oregon State's Kyriakos Stylianou, who led the study.

Being a Beaver has stretched Ebunoluwa Morakinyo to develop her passions inside and outside of the lab. A senior honors biochemistry and molecular biology student at Oregon State, her time on campus has included celebrating her culture while looking forward to a career dedicated to helping others.

Graduating high school at 16 is no easy feat. For Jessica Etter, it also meant the additional challenge of starting college at 17. Etter started her journey as an Oregon State University chemistry student with the goal of becoming a forensic scientist, however, she has since found a passion for research and will be starting a Ph.D. at Oregon State this fall.

Oregon State University Professor May Nyman received the prestigious F. Albert Cotton Award in Synthetic Inorganic Chemistry from the American Chemical Society.

Actinide chemistry is defined by its cutting-edge research, which graduate student Jenna Bustos has a passion for pursuing. From becoming a member of the Nyman Research Group at Oregon State to interning at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Bustos is well-versed in the field and eager to see what it brings next for her.

Scientists led by an Oregon State College of Science researcher have developed a new electrolyte that raises the efficiency of the zinc metal anode in zinc batteries to nearly 100%, a breakthrough on the way to an alternative to lithium-ion batteries for large-scale energy storage.

The Oregon State University top 10 stories of 2023 included two science stories! Xiulei “David” Ji’s development of a new electrolyte that enables high efficiency of a safe, sustainable zinc battery was number 9!

Researchers in the Department of Chemistry have developed a dual-purpose catalyst that purifies herbicide-tainted water while also producing hydrogen.

The College of Science gathered on Feb. 22 to recognize and celebrate our high achieving faculty and staff at the 2023 Combined Awards Ceremony. The evening celebrated the very best in the College, from teaching, advising and research to inclusive excellence, administration and service. During the research awards portion of the evening, the College saluted innovative discoveries made by faculty and staff who are breaking the boundaries of their respective fields.

The College of Science gathered on Feb. 22 to recognize and celebrate our high achieving faculty and staff at the 2023 Combined Awards Ceremony. The evening celebrated the very best in the College, from teaching, advising and research to inclusive excellence, administration and service.

The following faculty and staff received awards in the categories of Inclusive Excellence, Administration, Service and Performance.

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded $3 million to an Oregon State University College of Science researcher to lead the development of a new, high-energy-density battery that does not rely on rare elements.

College of Science faculty, staff and graduate students received awards for innovative teaching, diversity advocacy, mentorship and more at University Day, Oregon State University’s prestigious annual awards.

For many OSU materials scientists, fighting climate change means finding cleaner energy sources, developing sustainable alternatives to wasteful industry processes, and drawing on unconventional means to reduce the pollution already in the environment.

Seed funding from the College of Science Research and Innovation Seed (SciRIS) program continues to bolster ambitious and expansive research projects across biomedical science, fluid dynamics, quantum mechanics and more.