On January 29th, the Chemistry Department hosted our first Facilities Open House, where we showcased nine of our state-of-the-art facilities, including: Mass Spectrometry Mass spectrometry services our research communities by providing mass spectrometry or LCMS analysis for synthetic organic molecules, biomolecules, and natural products. They are available for consultation on mass spectrometry experiment design, method […]

For the Chemistry Department's first IBAC seminar of the spring semester, we were joined by Alum Kirk M. Ririe, who was recently inducted into the Utah Technology Council Hall of Fame, and now serves on the Board of Trustees of the Utah Technology Council. IBAC (Interfacial and Bioanalytical Chemistry) at the University of Utah provides […]

Earlier this January, the Chemistry Department welcomed Sarah Lefave as an Assistant Professor Lecturer. Dr. Lefave joined us after completing her Ph.D. and working as a lab manager here at U Chemistry. We're thrilled to have Sarah continue her career with us as a Professor! After moving to Utah over a decade ago, Sarah completed […]

Catalyst is the annual magazine of the University of Utah Department of Chemistry. This year, it highlights the people and research shaping our community — from stories on faculty achievements and cutting-edge graduate research to undergraduate student spotlights, notable alumni, department awards and honors, and more. As we celebrate the season, the Department of Chemistry […]

Now in his 50th year on the faculty of the Department of Chemistry, Joel Harris will retire from the U on January 1, 2026. Joel arrived at the University of Utah on August 12, 1976, only 4 days after defending his dissertation at Purdue University. He was the first analytical chemist appointed to the faculty […]

Distinguished Alumni 2025: Dr Hyung Kyu Shin By David Pace, College of Science writer At 92, Hyung Kyu Shin still leaves home at 6:45 a.m. and arrives at his University of Nevada, Reno office at 7 a.m. every morning, a routine unchanged for decades. "My wife complains," he says with a smile, acknowledging the unconventional […]

Distinguished Alumni 2025: Dr Sally Hunnicutt By David Pace, College of Science writer The path Sally Hunnicutt MS’86 took to becoming a 2025 Distinguished Alumna of the University of Utah's Department of Chemistry began with a simple childhood pastime. "I used to pretend to be a teacher with a chalkboard," she recalls. That early passion […]

Distinguished Alumni 2025: Dr Mike Hunnicutt By David Pace, College of Science writer For Mike Hunnicutt, professor emeritus at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), creating a memorable footprint in the field of chemistry has involved a multitude of serendipitous encounters with individuals, all of whom had one thing in common: their show of enduring interest in […]

Congratulations to Vahe Bandarian and Karsten Eastman on receiving the Founders of the Year award! Eastman completed his Ph.D. in 2023 in the lab of U Chemistry professor Vahe Bandarian. The pair launched Sethera Theraputics last year to commercialize their discoveries made at the university with funding from the National Institutes of Health. Their efforts […]