The Department of Chemistry at the University of Utah established the Distinguished Chemistry Alumni Awards in 2011 to recognize and honor our most prominent and successful alumni. We celebrated three of our outstanding alumni on September 29, 2025 in the Department of Chemistry. The awardees held seminars and visited faculty and students in the department. Later in the evening during the awards dinner, they received well-deserved awards for their accomplishments and involvement with the department, faculty, and students.
Hyung Kyu Shin is Professor Emeritus in the Chemistry Department at the University of Nevada, Reno. His research interests include the theory of molecular collisions, including the dynamics of gas-surface reactions, collision-induced intramolecular energy flow and bond dissociation in large molecules, and vibrational relaxation of matrix-isolated guest molecules.
He received his Bachelor of Science degree in 1959 and his Ph.D. in 1961 from the University of Utah (working with J. Calvin Giddings). He held postdoctoral appointments at the National Bureau of Standards and Cornell University before joining the faculty at the University of Nevada, Reno in 1965.
During his time at UNR, Dr. Shin served twice as Chair of the Chemistry Department. He was recognized as the university's first Outstanding Researcher of the Year in 1975 and was named University Foundation Professor in 1984, and the Alan Bible Award for Excellence in Teaching, the first in 1986 and then again in 2000. In 2003, he received the University’s highest honor, the University Distinguished Faculty Award, which honors the broad and lasting achievements of a single faculty member. Dr. Shin has published over 210 paper in chemistry and physics journals. Even after his formal retirement in 2000, he continues doing theoretical research, publishing his most recent work in December of last year.
Sally Hunnicutt is Professor of Chemistry Emerita at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), who also served as the Associate Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs in Sciences and Mathematics within the College of Humanities and Sciences. She retired from VCU in 2024 after 27 years of service. Dr. Hunnicutt earned her B.A. in Chemistry and Science Education from Duke University in 1983, her M.S. degree in Chemistry from the University of Utah in 1986 (with Charles Wight), and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Cincinnati in 1990. Dr. Hunnicutt’s research focused on chemical education, particularly the creation, implementation, and impact of guided inquiry learning in various classroom settings. A significant part of her work involved POGIL (Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning), and she was instrumental in the POGIL-PCL (Physical Chemistry Laboratory) project, developing new experiments collaboratively with faculty nationwide. Throughout her career at VCU, Dr. Hunnicutt was recognized for her dedication to teaching excellence, receiving the VCU College of Humanities and Sciences Teaching Award in 2012 and the VCU University Distinguished Teaching Award in 2015. She also served as Associate Chair in the Department of Chemistry. Her commitment extended to faculty development and curriculum design, leaving a lasting impact on the university. Dr. Hunnicutt also played a vital role in the conception and development of VCU's new STEM Building, which includes the Sally Hunnicutt Science Hub, named in her honor.
Michael Hunnicutt is presently Professor Emeritus at Virginia Commonwealth University. He holds a B.S. (1980) and Ph.D. (1984) in Chemistry from Duke University, where he worked with Charlie Lochmüller, following which he was Postdoctoral Fellow and Faculty Intern at the University of Utah with Joel Harris. Dr. Hunnicutt began career in industry at Proctor and Gamble in Cincinnati in 1986, where he rose through the ranks to become Section Head of Health Care Research Analytical. In 1996, he moved into the pharmaceutical field at Wyeth in Richmond, VA, where he eventually became Assistant Vice President for Global Quality Analytical Development. When Pfizer acquired Wyeth in 2009, he became Assistant Vice President for Analytical Sciences, Scientific and Laboratory Services.
Dr. Hunnicutt left industry in 2011, joining the chemistry faculty of Virginia Commonwealth University, where he taught Instrumental and Quantitative Analysis Laboratories, and served as Undergraduate Research Advisor. He directed the research of numerous Independent Study students and supervised over 100 Instrumental Analysis Research Projects by students in his capstone lab course. Dr. Hunnicutt retired from teaching in 2022; he has continued contributing to higher education, through his service to Duke University, as a member of their Global Alumni Board of Directors. Michael and his wife, Sally, have two sons, Patrick and Nathan, and they enjoy hiking, climbing, mountain biking, and running.
Read the full articles about Dr. Hyung Kyu Shin, Dr. Sally Hunnicutt , and Dr. Michael Hunnicutt.
10/2/2025
