Mackiewicz Research Lab

Laboratory of Nanostructured Materials at Oregon State University

Teaching Interests

Current Courses at Oregon State University

CH420/520: Transferable Professional & Scientific Skills

This course is your launchpad into the world of scientific professionalism, designed to elevate your learning experience and prepare you for the dynamic challenges ahead. Each weekly module offers hands-on opportunities to build essential, transferable skills that will empower your success in research, industry internships, and academic careers. These are the skills that often go untaught in traditional science curricula—but they’re exactly what companies and research institutions are looking for in STEM graduates. Whether you’re pursuing a B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. in chemistry, you’ll leave this course better equipped to thrive in collaborative research environments, navigate scientific literature with confidence, and contribute meaningfully to advanced coursework and team-based projects. Let’s get you ready to lead, innovate, and make an impact.

CH417 and CH517 Coordination and Chemistry

Launched in Spring 2022, this groundbreaking course—created, designed, and taught by Dr. Marilyn Rampersad Mackiewicz—is the first of its kind in the Chemistry Department. Developed to meet a critical need for both undergraduate and graduate students, this 3-credit course explores the fascinating intersection of classical bioinorganic chemistry, medicinal chemistry, and nanobioinorganic chemistry. 

Students from diverse disciplines—analytical chemistry, bioengineering, biochemistry, and materials science—come together to explore how metals interact with biological systems. Topics include metal binding to proteins, hydrolysis, electron transfer, metal ion transport and storage, imaging and therapeutics in medicinal inorganic chemistry, and cutting-edge nanobioinorganic applications.

Using a hybrid flipped classroom model, the course emphasizes peer-to-peer engagement, critical thinking, and collaborative learning. Students are assessed through midterms and interactive discussions, and they apply their knowledge by developing a 6-page interdisciplinary research proposal in NIH format—an experience that builds grant-writing and problem-solving skills around real-world challenges in health, energy, and the environment.

Beyond technical mastery, students grow as communicators and leaders by co-teaching course topics and working in teams, gaining invaluable experience in pedagogy, teamwork, and scientific communication. This course is more than a class—it’s a launchpad for future innovators in chemistry.

CH232H Honors General Chemistry

Innovation in Remote Learning

During Winter 2021, Honors General Chemistry was reimagined to meet the challenges of remote instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic. With 44 students enrolled, the course adopted a flipped classroom model that emphasized active learning, peer collaboration, and emotional well-being. To support students through an unprecedented time, the learning environment was intentionally designed to be psychologically safe—encouraging open conversations about personal and academic challenges that impacted learning.

Students were provided with custom study guides to ease the transition to online learning and were engaged through structured discussions and breakout room activities. These sessions fostered a sense of community and encouraged students to turn on their cameras, share their ideas and misconceptions, and work together to solve problems with support from a graduate teaching assistant and a learning assistant.

A unique feature of the course was the introduction of a special topic in materials chemistry, paired with a virtual lab on silver nanoparticle synthesis. This lab experience connected students directly to ongoing research at Oregon State University, offering a hands-on glimpse into real-world scientific inquiry. The course successfully balanced academic rigor with empathy, helping students build confidence, resilience, and collaborative skills in a remote learning environment.

CH220 Careers in Chemistry

Building Community and Confidence in Chemistry

CH220 was redesigned to support first-generation and marginalized students in STEM by rethinking course content, structure, and learning outcomes from the ground up. As part of an NSF CAREER educational initiative (Award #2145427, 2022), the course was developed for both virtual (Fall 2020) and in-person (Fall 2021) learning environments, offering a flexible and impactful experience for students at all levels.

Weekly modules focused on essential professional development topics such as mentorship, networking, negotiation, self-advocacy, career pathways in chemistry, and overcoming imposter syndrome. Students engaged with guest speakers and panelists from industry, academia, and startups, gaining real-world insights and building connections across the chemistry community.

A peer mentoring model was central to the course, fostering a strong cohort experience. Peer mentors received training in empathetic, culturally responsive mentoring and shared their own academic journeys to support CH220 students. These mentors also helped create transferable resources—such as videos and infographics—on professional development topics, some of which were OSU-branded and featured stories of diverse chemists from underrepresented backgrounds. These materials were displayed on departmental monitors to promote visibility and representation.

Students contributed advice for future cohorts, building a legacy of support and shared wisdom. Knowledge transfer and co-instruction ensured the course could be sustained and taught by multiple instructors in future years. With a 91% response rate on ESET evaluations, students overwhelmingly reported that the course was beneficial, asking for more time and deeper engagement with the topics.

CH220 successfully connected students to the broader chemistry community and was designed to improve retention and success for students who often face barriers in their first year. It continues to serve as a model for inclusive, student-centered STEM education.

Courses taught at Portland State University

  • University Studies Senior Capstone: Empowering and Advancing Women and Underrepresented Students in STEM
    This capstone focuses on building skills in effective communication, negotiation, leadership, networking, mentoring, and professional development (leading focus groups and interviewing). These are skills traditionally not learned in a classroom and are essential to advancing successful STEM careers. Capstone students will work in teams to design, implement, and evaluate a 1-day workshop to coach and transfer STEM career preparation skills to students in the Apprenticeships in Science and Engineering program” (ASE).
  • NIH BUILD EXITO Enrichment Programming
  • Course Developer CHEM+BIO CURE
  • Portland State Metro STEM Center
    • Connect2Science Workshop: Energy
    • Connect2Science Workshop: Energy and Matter
    • Connect2Science Workshop: Physical Sciences
    • 3-Dimensional learning and practices in the Next Generation Science Standards
    • Practices in culturally relevant pedagogy
    • Prepared demonstrations
    • Demonstration of science and engineering practices
  • General Chemistry Lectures 221 Fall 2009
  • General Chemistry Lectures 223 spring 2010
  • General Chemistry Lectures 221, and 223 summer 2010

Chemistry courses taken at Texas A and M University

  • Bioinorganic Chemistry
  • Organometallic Chemistry
  • Group Theory
  • Kinetics and Mechanisms
  • Physical Methods
  • Structure and Bonding
  • Special Studies in X-ray Crystallography
  • Seminar Preparation
  • Frontiers in Chemical Research
  • Ethics in Research and Scholarship
  • Methods in Teaching Chemistry Laboratory
  • Seminar

Courses taught at Texas A and M University

  • Teaching Assistant: Advanced Inorganic Synthesis Laboratory
  • Teaching Assistant: Organometallic Chemistry Lecture
  • General Chemistry Laboratory