Please see the new Official EMT Research Lab Website.

Staci L. Simonich, Ph.D. – Principal Investigator

Dr. Staci L. Simonich is a Professor in the Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology and Department of Chemistry.  She currently also serves as the Associate Vice President for Research Operations and Integrity at OSU.  Dr. Simonich obtained her Ph.D. in chemistry from Indiana University in 1995 and worked at Procter & Gamble until 2001.  She is the recipient of numerous awards, including  received the Roy F. Weston Environmental Chemistry Award, the NSF Career Award, OSU’s Impact Award for Scholarship, and OSU’s Excellence in Graduate Mentoring Award.  She has published in multiple journals including in Science, Nature, Environmental Science & Technology, Environmental Health Perspectives, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Jason Schindler, M.A. – Faculty Research Assistant

I am the new Faculty Research Assistant and Lab Manager for the Staci Simonich Lab. I received my HBS in chemistry at OSU and spent many years as an analytical chemist at Sarepta Therapeutics as well as in OSU’s Wood Science and Engineering wood preservative and environmental research lab. I recently completed an MA in Environmental Arts & Humanities at OSU studying the philosophy of science and the environment and a Graduate Teaching Certificate in College and University Teaching. I lived abroad for several years in Japan and also regularly practice Aikido, play a variety of tabletop games, organize community social dance, and enjoy Oregon’s wonderful ecologies.

Justin Rewerts – Ph.D. candidate
I obtained my Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, WA.  Throughout my undergraduate career, I focused primarily on synthetic organic chemistry. This led to his participation in the National Science Foundation funded Research Experience for Undergraduates (NSF-REU) program where I worked on developing a viable synthetic route towards hepatotoxic alkaloids found in poison dart frogs under the direction of Dr. Jeff Aubé at the University in Kansas.  I then shifted focus in my first year at OSU and joined the Simonich lab in the summer of 2015, where I enjoy a shared mentor-ship between both Dr. Staci Simonich and Dr. Jennifer Field.  I am studying the presence of volatile polyfluorinated alkyl substances in consumer products. Outside of the lab, I enjoy dance fitness, cooking, music, traveling, swimming, and learning foreign languages.

Bethany Parker – Ph.D. candidate

Jackson Wiley – Senior

Lauren Lewis – Junior

Emma Weeks – Junior

Ivan A. Titaley, Ph.D. – Postdoctoral Fellow

 My project concerns the analysis of polar and non-polar volatile PFASs in the gas phase at landfill sites.  I graduated with B.A. in chemistry with minor in sustainability and environmental studies from Berea College in Berea, Ky in 2013 after previously finishing high school in Central Java, Indonesia.  I obtained my Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry in 2017 from OSU where I was a member of the Simonich Lab.  My dissertation concerns the prediction and measurement of PAHs and their transformation products in the environment.  Outside the lab I enjoy watching basketball and soccer, listening to classical music, and cooking.

Previous graduate student members of the Simonich Lab

• Amber Kramer, Ph.D. – originally from Indiana, now a Postdoctoral Researcher in Dr. Yifang Zhu’s lab at University of California-Los Angeles
• Lisandra Santiago-Delgado Trine, M.S. – originally from Puerto Rico, now a Research Scientist at EPA Western Ecology Division Laboratory
• Ivan A. Titaley, Ph.D. – originally from Indonesia, now a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Simonich Lab
• Anna Chlebowski, Ph.D. – originally from Washington, now a Postdoctoral Fellow at College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific-Northwest
• Jill Schrlau, M.S., EIT – originally from Pennsylvania, now an Environmental Engineer at Jacobs Engineering
• Leah Chibwe, Ph.D. – originally from Zambia, now a Postdoctoral Researcher in Dr. Chelsea Rochman’s lab at University of Toronto
• Oleksi Motorykin, Ph.D. – originally from Ukraine, now a Senior Chemist at Steep Hill
• Scott Lafontaine, M.S. – originally from New Jersey, now a Postdoctoral Researcher in Dr. Hildegarde Heymann’s lab at University of California-Davis
• Melissa McIntosh, M.S. – originally from Washington
• Christopher Walsh, Ph.D. – originally from Oregon, now an Assistant Professor at Eastern Oregon University
• Michael Savin, M.S. – now a High School Teacher in Hillsboro School District
• Narumol Jariyasopit, Ph.D. – originally from Thailand, now a Research Scientist at Mahidol University
• Carlos Manzano, Ph.D. – originally from Ecuador, now a Postdoctoral Researcher at the University of Chile
• Leah Gonzales, M.S. – now a Contract Technician
• Yan Hu, M.S. – now a Senior Research Analyst at ITW
• Basant Giri, M.S. – now a Scientist and Director of International Relations at the Kathmandu Institute of Applied Sciences
• Kerri Stanley, Ph.D. – now a Consultant
• Arkadiusz Piekarz, M.S. – now Head of Sustainability at IHS Markit
• Susie Genualdi, Ph.D. – now a Chemist at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
• Toby Primbs, Ph.D. – now a Scientist at the Oregon Department of Agriculture
• Xia Zeng, Ph.D. – now a Research Associate at Cornell University
• Yunzhu Wang, M.S. – now an R&D Researcher at Pace International
• Robert Killin, M.S. – now a Professor at Arizona Western College
• Sascha Usenko, Ph.D. – now a Professor at Baylor University
• Luke Ackerman, Ph.D. – now a Research Chemist at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Previous undergraduate student members of the Simonich Lab

• Amy Kutnerian – Department of Chemistry
• Yunyun Yan – visiting student from Peking University
• Jing Liu – visiting student from Peking University
• Elizabeth Thorley – Department of Chemical, Biological, and Environmental Engineering
• Taylor Norman – Undergraduate student
• Dan Wang – visiting student from Peking University
• Shelby Paulson – Department of Chemistry
• Kevin Kovalchik – Department of Chemistry, received his Ph.D. from the University of British Columbia
• Brittany Breshears – Department of Chemistry
• Julie Denham – Department of Chemistry, now a Research Scientist at Treehouse Hemp
• Jessica Murray – Department of Chemistry
• Rachel Huber – Department of Chemistry, now a Scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory
• Dan Koch – Department of Biochemistry
• Rebecca McElroy – Department of Chemistry
• Lisa Deskin – Department of Bioresources
• Eli Moore – Department of Chemistry, now a Professor at Rowan University
• Brooke Hoisington – Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology
• Susie Genualdi – Department of Chemistry, now a Chemist at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Previous postdoc and visiting scientist members of the Simonich Lab

• Dr. Carol Higginbotham – visiting Professor from Central Oregon Community College
• Dr. Judith A. Perlinger – visiting Professor from Michigan Technological University
• Dr. Wenting Song – visiting Professor from Henan Polytechnic University
• Dr. Courtny Roper – originally from Pennsylvania, now an Assistant Professor at University of Mississippi
• Dr. Xia Zhonghuan – visiting Professor from Nanjing Normal University
• Dr. Mary Leonard
• Dr. Cleo Davie-Martin – originally from New Zealand, now a Laboratory Manager in Dr. Riikka Rinnan’s lab at University of Copenhagen
• Dr. Guangshui Na – visiting Professor from National Marine Environmental Monitoring Center
• Dr. Wentao Wang – visiting Ph.D. student from Peking University, now a Senior Scientist with the Chinese Government
• Dr. She-Jun Chen – visiting Professor from the Guangzhuo Institute of Geochemistry, now a Professor at South China Normal University
• Dr. Steven Sylvester – visiting Professor from Washington State University-Vancouver
• Dr. Keon Sang Ryoo – visiting Professor from Andong University
• Dr. Yuling Jia – originally from China, now a Manager Assistant at the Sichuan Environment & Engineering Appraisal Center
• Dr. Kimberly Hageman – originally from the US, now an Associate Professor at Utah State University
• Dr. Cindy Hauser – originally from the US, now a Professor at Davidson College