Dear colleagues,

Welcome to the start of the new academic year! It’s wonderful to see our students back on campus and to engage with you again in person as we work together to ensure success for all.

There is so much to celebrate. We kick off the new term with great momentum, with the College of Science’s remarkable achievement of receiving 12 awards on University Day. Congratulations to our amazing award winners! I am particularly proud of these awards because they are fundamentally rooted in service – honoring individuals for their outstanding contributions to others through mentoring, teaching, improving the core curriculum and making textbooks more accessible.

This “sweep” of the university’s awards is a demonstration of just how much the College of Science contributes to the university’s overall success. As we know, our work is vital to the health of the entire university. I’ve learned enough over this last year as interim dean to be convinced this is true. We do an incredible job of supporting the success of students across the university and conducting essential, foundational research that leads to the breakthrough solutions our world needs.

Thank you, each one of you, for the remarkable work you do oftentimes behind the scenes to improve equity, access and inclusion in our College, prepare future science leaders, promote success for all students and produce research that is globally impactful. What a privilege it is to serve with you.

We share a lot of other good news in this newsletter, too. Excitingly, in only a few weeks our new dean, Dr. Eleanor Feingold, joins us. I am confident she is the ideal leader to guide us forward. She brings deep experience as a senior administrator at Pittsburgh University, one of the nation’s leading research universities, and an impressive record of scholarship and teaching. Like us, she is passionate about adopting creative approaches to STEM education, improving diversity, equity and inclusion in science, and producing research that improves lives and protects our planet. Please save the date for our Dean’s Welcome Event at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, November. 7. Details to come!

We are also thrilled to welcome other outstanding new leaders to our College. Napatr (Niddy) Lindsley joins as our financial planning manager in August, following Mark Johnson in this position newly created to improve our finance and business operations. In January, we will welcome two new department heads to our team: Dr. Jonathan Kujawa, who will lead the mathematics department, and will be appointed as the Hartmann Faculty Scholar. Dr. Anne Dunn, who will lead the microbiology department, will be appointed as the Gorman Faculty Scholar. Continue reading to discover more about their qualifications and aspirations for their respective roles.

Congratulations also to three faculty members in the Department of Chemistry who have been awarded new endowed positions! May Nyman is the Terrence Bradshaw Chemistry Professor; David Ji is the Bert and Emelyn Christensen Professor; and Chong Fang is the Patricia Valian Reser Endowed Faculty Scholar. 

I will soon step back into my role as associate dean of research and graduate studies, continuing to support the College’s research activities, graduate programs, and faculty and students. Heartfelt thanks to Virginia Weis, University Distinguished Professor, who took time from her productive research lab during the transition year to foster the success of the Research Development Unit and graduate recruitment across the College. 

It has been an immense honor serving as your interim dean, and I am incredibly proud of our accomplishments during this time. With your support, we have collectively achieved important milestones. 

Thank you for giving me this opportunity and for all your contributions. I look forward to our continued work together.

Vrushali Bokil
Interim Dean, College of Science

Research Highlights

In fiscal year 2023, College of Science researchers received $24.2 million in research grants to support groundbreaking science, up 31% from the previous year. Outstanding! Most of that funding came from federal and state agencies in recognition of proposals with broad societal impacts, like increased human health, sustainable energy, climate change mitigation and resilient ecosystems supporting local economies. Read more about some of the big grants your colleagues received in the past year. 

Alysia Vrailas-Mortimer is helping to provide hands-on research opportunities to every student. Mortimer and her colleagues in the Fly-CURE consortium received funding from the NSF Division of Biological Infrastructure to expand Fly-CURE RCN, a research coordination network. Fly-CURE RCN brings together faculty across the U.S. to create course-based undergraduate research experiences. 

Astrophysicists Xavier Siemens and Jeffrey Hazboun, are pushing the frontiers of knowledge through the North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav). In June, NANOGrav announced the groundbreaking discovery that ripples in the fabric of time-space predicted by Albert Einstein more than a century ago are permeating the universe at low frequencies. Detecting a “chorus” of low-frequency gravitational waves is a key to unlocking the mysteries of how structures are formed in the cosmos. This pivotal news was picked up around the world, including by: The New York Times, The Guardian, Al Jazeera, The Indian Express, Washington Post, NPR and AP News, among countless others. Under the direction of Siemens, NANOGrav includes more than 250 students and scientists at approximately 18 universities, promoting collaboration and scientific breakthroughs in the search for gravitational wave signals. Oregon State is the lead institution for the center, which received a $17 million award from the National Science Foundation.

Microbiologist Kimberly Halsey and statistician Duo Jiang are part of a team that developed a new way to monitor the dangers associated with algae blooms: “sniffing” the water for gasses associated with toxins. The scientists found that certain combinations of volatile organic compounds released by algae can serve as indicators for microcystin, a toxin produced at varying levels during blooms of cyanobacteria, commonly known as blue-green algae.

An international research group confirmed College of Science predictions about exploding stars located at the center of galaxies. Department of Physics head Davide Lazzati and his collaborators predicted that bursts located inside the accretion disc, a disk of gaseous matter surrounding a black hole, would behave differently because of the higher gas density. Their predictions were confirmed in June.

Research Funding

Biophysicist Weihong Qiu received $314,943 from the National Institutes of Health for his project entitled, “Mechanistic Analysis of Kinesin-14 Motility and Regulation for Bipolar Spindle Assembly.”

Evolutionary biologist Michael Blouin received $371,250 from the National Institutes of Health for his project entitled, “Genetic mechanisms of snail/schistosome compatibility.”

Chemist Dipankar Koley received $542,366 from the National Institutes of Health for his project entitled, “Microenvironmental characterization and manipulation to prevent secondary caries.”

Marine biologist Kirsten Grorud-Colvert received $800,038 from the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors for her project entitled, “A Guide for Achieving Effective Ocean Protection: Tracking MPAs and OECMs for 30×30.” Grorud-Colvert also received $500,000 from the National Philanthropic Trust.

Biochemist Patrick Reardon received $500,408 from the National Science Foundation Research Instrumentation Program for his project entitled, “MRI: Acquisition of Helium Recovery Equipment: An integrated system for helium capture and recovery for the Oregon State University NMR facility.”

Research Proposal Support

You can find funding opportunities on ECOS. To access a suite of tools and resources available to faculty, visit the College of Science Proposal Support webpage.

On June 29, the National Science Foundation broadcast live on Youtube the groundbreaking results of NANOGrav’s ongoing search for low-frequency gravitational waves. Media around the world picked up the story, including story coverage in Yahoo News read by 136.5M viewers, New York Times read by 38.2M, BBC News Online read by 24.2M, Reuters read by 13.1M, NPR read by 10.3M, and countless others. Other highlights include:

The New York Times interviewed Xavier Siemens, exploring his role in the discovery of gravitational waves nearly 15 years after NANOGrav started recording data. Siemens compared the waves to a choir or an orchestra. Each pair of supermassive black holes is generating a different note and NANOGrav receives the sum of all those notes at once. 

The Scientific American Podcast “Science, Quickly” interviewed physicist Jeff Hazboun. He and other NANOGrav scientists discussed the discovery of supersized gravitational waves. To tackle measuring an enormous wavelength, the researchers effectively built a galaxy-sized detector out of dead stars called pulsars. Pulsars spin very fast and create a pulse due to sweeping light. Gravitational waves change the length of time between pulses. 

PBS NewsHour interviewed Hazboun about his role in the discovery of massive gravitational waves. Hazboun used Jell-o to help illustrate the basic principles of gravitational waves and how they cause ripples.

An NPR correspondent also interviewed Hazboun about the NANOGrav discovery. To help make it more digestible, Hazboun explained that pulsars could fit inside downtown Washington, D.C., but they would be spinning as fast as a blender. 

Xavier Siemens joined FOX 12 Oregon over the summer to discuss NANOGrav’s landmark gravitational wave discovery.

The Microbiologist covered Adrian Gombart’s research involving hops. Gombart and his colleagues found that a compound derived from hops reduces the abundance of a gut bacterium associated with metabolic syndrome in mice. Their findings are significant because an estimated 35% of the U.S. adult population suffers from the syndrome, a common and serious condition linked with cognitive dysfunction, dementia, cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. 

The Corvallis Advocate reported on Kimberly Halsey’s findings that lead to a new way to monitor the danger associated with algae blooms–sniffing the water. The researchers found that certain combinations of volatile organic compounds released by algae can serve as an indicator for microcystin, a toxin produced at varying levels during blooms of cyanobacteria, commonly known as blue-green algae. Toxins from cyanobacterial species can be deadly.

National Honors

Oregon State Distinguished Professor Emeritus Douglas Keszler gave the Fred Kavli Innovations in Chemistry Lecture at the American Chemical Society fall meeting. ACS is one of the world’s largest scientific societies and the premier home of chemistry professionals.

University Honors

College of Science faculty, staff and graduate students earned a record-breaking 12 awards at this year’s University Day on September 19. The awards acknowledge the exceptional work accomplished by the College of Science community as we further lead in inclusive scientific research, education and engagement. Way to go, Team Science!

University Day Awardees Nate Kirk, KC Walsh, Bryan Lynn, Liz Gire, Kari van Zee, Paula Christie, Chong Fang, Taylor Krueger, Linda Bruslind, Lori Kayes (with the BCRC) and Jerri Bartholomew

• Senior Instructor Nathan Kirk in the Department of Biology received the OSU Faculty Teaching Excellence Award. An instructor at Oregon State since 2013, Kirk’s scope of biology teaching extends to not only introductory and writing-intensive courses, but also to Ecampus courses and experiential learning classes.
• Kenneth C. Walsh, College of Science Faculty Scholar, earned the OSU Faculty Excellence in Online Teaching Award for his large contributions to Ecampus learning. Walsh spearheaded the development of an online physics course sequence prior to the pandemic.
• Bryan Lynn, a third-year Integrative Biology Ph.D. student, received the Herbert J. Frolander Award for Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistants, for his teaching record and dedication to inclusive teaching practices in the Department of Integrative Biology.
• Professor Elizabeth Gire of the Department of Physics earned the Elizabeth P. Ritchie Distinguished Professor Award. Gire’s research aims to understand how students learn physics content, which has enabled her to implement innovative strategies into her classes ranging from small whiteboard questions to kinesthetic activities.
• Kari van Zee, lead advisor for the Biochemistry and Biophysics Department, earned the Dar Reese Excellence in Advising Award. She has not only achieved profound success as the biochemistry and biophysics (BB) lead advisor, but also as a pre-med advisor and BB undergraduate coordinator.
• Paula Christie, administrative assistant to the head of the chemistry department in the College of Science, received the University Mentoring and Professional Development Award in recognition of her outstanding support and encouragement of OSU employees who participate in professional, educational and personal development opportunities.
• Patricia Valian Reser Faculty Scholar Chong Fang received the Excellence in Postdoctoral Mentoring Award for his dedication to assisting young scientists develop their careers. Fang also won a second award, the D. Curtis Mumford Faculty Service Award. His service to the faculty and to Oregon State involving several departments, disciplines and institutions highlights the core essence of this award.
• Taylor Krueger, a postdoctoral scholar in the Fang Research Group in the chemistry department, received the Excellence in Undergraduate Research Mentoring by a Postdoc Award. Krueger excels as a mentor thanks to his accessibility, dependability, kindness and commitment to creating an inclusive and equitable research environment.
• Linda Bruslind, full-time Senior Instructor II of the Department of Microbiology, received the OSU Faculty Affordability Award. This accolade is given to those who demonstrate commitment to providing affordable course learning materials to students, which Bruslind has done on an impressive scale. To replace costly textbooks needed in microbiology courses, Bruslind authored the book General Microbiology and aided in developing the book Allied Health Microbiology.
• The Baccalaureate Core Reform Committee (BCRC) received the Faculty Senate Student Success and Teamwork Award. An interdisciplinary team of 30 academic and professional faculty members, the BCRC invested countless hours to reform Oregon State’s general education curriculum known as “Bacc Core.” Lori Kayes, associate department head and senior instructor II in the Department of Integrative Biology, served as the co-chair of the committee. Patrick Ball, program coordinator and senior biology instructor II on the OSU-Cascades campus, also served on the committee.
• Jerri Bartholomew, professor of microbiology, is the recipient of the Beaver Champion Award, the Oregon State University President’s award for outstanding effort and achievement of excellence, extra effort beyond that requested, and performance of the highest quality, for her key contributions to PRAx. Bartholomew, an accomplished artist, has been a long time advocate for bridging art and science, and drives the Art-Sci Initiative at OSU.

College Honors

Three faculty members in the Department of Chemistry were awarded endowed positions!

• May Nyman is the Terrence Bradshaw Chemistry Professor
• David Ji is the Bert and Emelyn Christensen Professor
• Chong Fang is the Patricia Valian Reser Endowed Faculty Scholar. 

Chemistry Ph.D. student Abdikani Omar Farah earned the 2023-24 Larry W. Martin & Joyce B. O’Neill Endowed Fellowship. Before moving to the U.S. at 16, Farah spent his childhood in East Africa, experiencing firsthand what it meant to lack access to medicine. This scarcity was a common problem in the villages he lived in, and seeing his community in need became the driving force behind his pursuit of a career in chemistry. “It’s not just working hard, but also knowing the reason that you’re working hard,” he said. “It doesn’t matter how well you paint if you’re painting the wrong wall.”

Two College of Science students presented their research at the fall American Chemical Society meeting in California to thousands of attendees. Anshika Nagar, graduate student in chemistry, and Citali Nieves Lira, research assistant, presented their work. Both are in the Mackiewicz group on campus. Congratulations!

Welcome to Team Science

Eleanor Feingold, a statistical geneticist and associate dean with nearly 20 years of leadership experience at the University of Pittsburgh, is the new College of Science dean. She will start Oct. 31. Feingold has worked at the University of Pittsburgh since 1997. She has served at the university’s School of Public Health as associate dean for education, vice dean, chair of the Department of Human Genetics, and most recently associate dean for data analytics and special projects. Welcome, Eleanor! 

Professor Jonathan Kujawa at the University of Oklahoma (OU) steps into the role of Department Head of Mathematics following a competitive national search, effective January 1, 2024. Kujawa brings expertise in departmental leadership as associate chair of the Department of Mathematics at OU, as well as extensive research experience and undergraduate, graduate student and postdoctoral mentorship. Kujawa is also the newly appointed Hartmann Faculty Scholar. 

Professor Anne Dunn at the University of Oklahoma joins the College as Department Head of Microbiology, effective January 1, 2024. Dunn brings expertise in departmental leadership from the Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology at OU, as well as extensive research experience and undergraduate and graduate student mentorship. Dunn will join the College of Science as the newly appointed Gorman Faculty Scholar.

The College welcomes Napatr (Niddy) Lindsley as its new financial planning manager on a half-time basis, changing to full-time on January 1, 2024. Lindsley has over a decade of experience at Oregon State, working in programming, data analytics and project management, as well as student and administrative services.

Making a difference

Over the 2022-2023 fiscal year, the College of Science actively engaged with our community through outreach initiatives aimed to increase access to science education and research, nurture community connections, and expand the range of services we provide. Read “Building bridges: College of Science outreach creates pathways to science literacy and inclusion” for an overview last year’s outreach highlights, including Discovery Days, Juntos Family Day, the Pernot Microbiology Camp and the Math For All satellite conference. The College’s new strategic plan, Extending the Reach and Impact of Science, includes as Goal 4: “Achieve critical and visible impact locally, nationally and globally.” In the coming year, the College will discuss further ways to implement this goal.

Upcoming Events

Yunker Lecture
October 9, 4 p.m. light refreshments begin
5 p.m. annual lecture begins in the MU Horizon Room

The physics department welcomes Gaudenz Danuser, a world-renowned data scientist and cell biologist, who address the mysteries of cellular shape-shifting in a lecture about mechanisms of cancer cell adaptation. Chair of the Lyda Hill Department of Bioinformatics at UT Southwestern, Danuser will explore how cells change their shapes to adapt to different functional tasks in his talk, Cell Shapes Keep Cells in Shape. His recent work begins to indicate that cell shape is not at the end, but at the outset or in the middle of the regulatory chain. What does this mean for the diagnosis and stratification of disease?  

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SACNAS National Diversity in Stem Conference
October 26-28 in Portland

Oregon State University is the presenting partner for the 2023 National Diversity in Stem Conference! SACNAS is an inclusive organization dedicated to fostering the success of Chicano/Hispanics & Native Americans, from college students to professionals, in attaining advanced degrees, careers and positions of leadership within STEM. Read more and register for SACNAS.

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Discovery Days
October 31-November 1
LaSells Stewart Center

Discovery Days is an outreach program involving many of the Science Departments at OSU as well as departments from Agriculture and Engineering. This two-day event, held in both the fall and spring terms, features displays and hands-on activities from different departments that are suitable for all ages.

Dean’s Welcome
November 7, 4 p.m.

You’re invited – Please join your colleagues in welcoming Dean Eleanor Feingold to the the College of Science over light appetizers and beverages! Location TBD.

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Recent Events

University Day 
September 19

University Day included a keynote address from Marcia McNutt, a geophysicist and 22nd president of the National Academy of Sciences, awards and fun prizes for participants.  

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Fall Welcome Social
September 26

Faculty, staff and students gathered to celebrate the start of a new academic year. 

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Convocation 
September 26

Convocation, which translates to “come together,” celebrated new Oregon State University students.