Jacob Lessard grew up in Grants Pass, Oregon and attended Grants Pass High School. He has always had an interest in how life works at the molecular level and appreciates how chemistry allows him to investigate both material and biological sciences.

Growing up in Oregon, OSU stood out to Jacob due to its reputation for science education and the abundant research opportunities available. After taking an integrated lab course taught by Dr. Kyriakos Stylianou (CH 462), Jacob felt inspired to reach out and show interest in this professor’s research, particularly the use of metal organic frameworks as catalysts for the synthesis of organic molecules. Since then, he’s been performing research under Dr. Stylianou in the Materials and Discovery lab, focusing on studying metal organic frameworks as photocatalysts for the synthesis of deuterated drug molecules.

Outside of school, Jacob enjoys watching sports, hiking, camping, cooking, and traveling. His favorite book is Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse, and his favorite food is jambalaya.

After graduation, Jacob plans on attending graduate school and continuing his focus on materials chemistry and catalysis.

We couldn’t be more proud of Jacob, and wish him all the success in his current and future research and education.