Welcome to the new ASU Chemistry Graduate Student Council website!  Here you’ll find whatever you need to be a savvy Chemistry graduate student whether you’re looking for the serious (department information and online newsletter) to the fun (calendar of CGSC events and pictures).  Hopefully, the information on the following pages is informative and helpful; if not, may it at least be an entertaining way of procrastinating.  If you’re actually excited by what you see, check out our meetings held every 2nd and 4th Tuesday in the graduate student lounge on the second floor of the H-wing.  If there’s anything you’d like to see on the site or you have any suggestions for what’s already here, drop me a line (MichelleMeighan@gmail.com). 

Graduate Student Coucil Positions:

Jesse Tice
Position: Event Planner
Research Advisor: John Kouvetakis
Research Summary: Developing novel CVD precursors with an emphasis on group IV compounds for use in film growth and semiconductor devices.
Years in the Program: 1
What you do when not in the lab: Spend time with my lovely wife, smoke cigars, play poker with buddies, and Tivo...
Favorite Grad School Memory: My Orientation/Halloween

Melissa McLauchlin
Position: President
Research Advisor: Mark Hayes
Research Summary: We are using fractal, superhydrophobic nanowire surfaces with laser-ablated, hydrophilic pinning sites to improve sensitivity and detection limit of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS).
Years in the Program: Starting my 5th year
What you do when not in the lab: Camping, hiking, watch movies and SCUBA.  Hang out with my best friend, Michelle, and my not as best friend, Zofia.
Favorite Grad School Memory: Skeet skeet. Smoking cigars and drinking port with colleagues at an analytical conference, PittCon.

Kaushik Gurunathan
Position: International Student Liaison
Research Advisor: Dr Marcia Levitus
Research Summary: Developing a single-molecule confocal microscope for various biological analysis
Years in the Program: Second year in progress
What you do when not in the lab: Going to different places.. have been to seven states so far in US wish to make it 50 by the time I graduate.
Favorite Grad School Memory: TA training

Becki Campanaro
Position: Vice-President of Finance, Student Rep on the Graduate Programs Committee and Advisory Committee
Research Advisor: Ron Nieman and Janet Bond-Robinson
Research Summary: My research for Ron is focused on the post-translational modifications of the Survival of Motor Neuron (SMN) protein.
My research for Janet is in the area of Chemical Education.  In an effort to create a smoother transition for students from their undergraduate biochemistry teaching laboratories into independent research experiences such as a workplace environment, I will be implementing and critically evaluating a new set of laboratory experiments for the Elementary Biochemistry Lab (BCH 367) currently offered. 
Years in the Program: Starting my 3rd year Fall 2006. 
What you do when not in the lab: Play softball, coach volleyball, watch TV (favorite shows are Gray’s Anatomy and How I Met Your Mother), and spending time with my husband
Favorite Grad School Memory: Passing my oral exams in November of 2005 and finally being able to see the light at the end of the long grad school tunnel.

Heide McILwraith
Position: Fundraising Chair
Research Advisor: Pierre Herckes
Research Summary: I am researching the effects of solar radiation on organic aerosol molecules.
Years in the Program: Third
What you do when not in the lab: I play Mom to two children, ages 7 and 10 and wife.
Favorite Grad School Memory: Not sure

Tracy Niday
Position: Event Planner
Research Advisor: Julian Chen
Research Summary: My research is centered around the biogenesis and evolution of ribonucleoproteins (RNP’s). RNP’s are enzymes that are made up of an RNA component and its associated proteins.  Most RNP’s can be found in all three domains of life. The RNA componant of RNP’s often shares similar secondary structure, but its sequence,  associated proteins and biogenesis pathways vary greatly omong the three domains. By studying the RNA-protein interactions of RNP’s in a variety of species, it is possible to understand how the RNA and proteins have evolved and also to discover their species specific biogenesis pathway.   Using phage display I am studying the RNA-protein interactions of human RNase P and Telomerase
Years in the Program: 2nd Year
What you do when not in the lab: Shopping, swimming, running, reading, or anything outdoors. 

Michelle Meighan
Position: Editor
Research Advisor: Karl Booksh
Research Summary: Environmental monitoring of hot springs and hydrothermal vents using Raman Spectroscopy
Years in the Program: Beginning 2nd year
What you do when not in the lab: Sushi nights with the girls, watching sports, especially Steeler football, and indulging in girly movies like Miss Congeniality
Favorite Grad School Memory: Travelling:  Rocky Point with friends, Quebec City with lab mates, and San Diego with “the big parakeet”

Qiang Fu
Position: Photographer
Research Advisor: Stuart Lindsay
Research Summary: Molecular electronic
Years in the Program: 2nd year
What you do when not in the lab: Sleep, computer games
Favorite Grad School Memory: still waiting for..

Michael Davis-Allen
Position: Vice-President
Research Advisor: Devens Gust
Research Summary: Examining the effects of ionic liquids on the photophysics of energy and charge transfer complexes.
Years in the Program: Beginning of 3rd year.
What you do when not in the lab: Read, curse at failed experiments, workout, and bike everywhere.
Favorite Grad School Memory: AMF bowling at the beginning of my first year here, or rather the lack thereof a memory.

Sara Bowen
Position: Secretary, Student Rep on the Seminar Committee
Research Advisor: Wilson Francisco
Research Summary: I’m studying quercetin 2,3-dioxygenase from the soil bacteria B. subtilis, an enzyme which can open a carbon ring by inserting molecular oxygen  into the break.  The focus of my research involves understanding which metal center (if not both) acts as the active site and identifying the metal at this active site
Years in the Program: I’ve been here two years.
What you do when not in the lab: I’m allowed to leave the lab?  I guess when I’m not here I’m reading or running, and I really love dinner.
Favorite Grad School Memory: My sweet turtle costume for last year’s Halloween party makes me smile.  I also almost maimed Mike Hambourger while dispensing nitrogen a couple weeks ago. 

Yang Wu
Position: Photographer
Research Advisor: Dr. U. Haussermann
Research Summary: Thermoelectric materials
Years in the Program: 1

Meg Mitropanopoulos
Position: International Student Liaison
Research Advisor: Ron Nieman/Karl Booksh
Research Summary: My research focuses on the characterization of the Survival of Motor Neuron protein, which is alternatively spliced to a semi-functional form in the genetic disorder Spinal Muscular Atrophy.  I also collaborate with the Booksh group on determining plasma concentrations of disease-marker proteins in vitro and in vivo using Surface Plasmon Resonance.
Years in the Program: 2 (+  1 year research while I was completing my M.S. in computational biosciences)
What you do when not in the lab: I volunteer in activity programs for children with special needs such as Special Olympics and the Down-Syndrome network.  I also greatly enjoy traveling in the U.S. and abroad.  Most of all I like to spend time with friends, family, and my two cats!
Favorite Grad School Memory: Too many to list!!

Jennifer Watkins
Position: Recruitment Chair
Research Advisor: John Chaput
Research Summary: Synthetic Antibody Development:  The goal of the research is to constrain individual peptide aptamers to a specific target using a flexible linker on a solid surface.  This will eventually be a realistic approach to personalized medicine and less distantly an inexpensive way to make depletion columns and target cells.
Years in the Program: 1
What you do when not in the lab: I go indoor rock climbing, running, shopping, wait....

 is my boss reading this?  “out of lab?  What is that?  I’m always thinking about work, reading papers, doing benchwork, troubleshooting.... That’s what I meant.

Oh, and drinking...
Favorite Grad School Memory: So many!  I think most involve drinking though.... it’s difficult to remember.  Tracy’s birthday last fall was extremely crazy though.  ‘Nuff said.