This collaboration, spearheaded by professors Andrew Wilson and Morgan Balabanoff in the , connects UofL undergraduate and graduate students with Jefferson County Public School high schoolers to create a “near-peer” community designed to spark curiosity in STEM fields.

“Having a college student there at the high school gives them an opportunity to network and discuss what college is like, what is a degree like, and have those soft interactions that make a difference,” Wilson said.Ěý

Heading into its fourth year and continually expanding, the program offers a diverse range of activities designed to expose students to chemistry – whether that’s through laboratory experiments mirroring research at UofL, interactive poster sessions, assistance at science fairs or even a pen pal program.

Cailet Hardtmann-Huckabee, a 10th-grade chemistry teacher at Fairdale High School, agrees that the interactions with college students are eye-opening for the students.

“Allowing students to speak with a variety of people in different stages of progress toward their scientific goals and collegiate journey opens my students’ eyes to the expanse of topics that could be studied and often changes their perception of what it looks like to do science after high school,” she said.

Bridging the science gapĚý

“Nano Day” serves as a cornerstone of the initiative, providing high school students with hands-on experience in nanoparticle synthesis and characterization. This process generates incredibly tiny particles, often by precisely controlling chemical reactions, enabling the harnessing of their unique properties for diverse applications. Hardtmann-Huckabee said the experiment directly follows their unit on separation methods, during which students learn diverse techniques to separate mixtures based on component properties.

“Since we have increased our collaboration to include a wide variety of experiences throughout the school year, we are able to use the experiences to complement the content we already have planned,” Hardtmann-Huckabee said.

This is often students’ first exposure to professional lab equipment beyond that in a high school setting. Cas Koevoets-Beach, a Ph.D. candidate in chemistry, has volunteered for two years. Koevoets-Beach said synthesizing nanoparticles gives students “hands-on experience with new techniques and instrumentation that they might not see in their curriculum.”

“It also forces them to make connections between the foundational concepts they’re learning about in their classes like light-matter interactions and properties of light and how they fit into more sophisticated research,” Koevoets-Beach said.

There’s also value to the UofL students that participate, especially those interested in pursuing academia.

“Most of us are used to talking to undergraduate STEM majors or faculty about chemistry, so it’s been a cool challenge to adapt our explanations of chemical concepts and technical directions for younger scientists to help them develop their understanding,” said Koevoets-Beach. “Watching how the high school teachers and our professors have collaborated has been an invaluable lesson in how to better bridge the gap between high school and college science courses.”

New funding provides expanded opportunities

The recently awarded funding to the UofL initiative for the development and distribution of science education materials focused on nanoparticle synthesis to chemistry students across Kentucky.

This grant will enable the creation of educational and experimental kits, expanding nanotechnology opportunities to schools outside of JCPS and further inspire students to pursue STEM fields. Wilson, Balabanoff and graduate students will be putting the kits together this summer.

“The kits will be accompanied by some instructional materials so that the high school teachers can run the labs in their respective schools, and we’ll also do either a virtual training with the high school teachers, or if they’re nearby, then we’ll do an in-person one with them,” said Balabanoff.

Through continued collaboration and the widespread distribution of these innovative kits, UofL’s chemistry department will continue to spark scientific curiosity all across the Commonwealth.

High school teachers interested in receiving a kit shipped to their school should contactĚýMorgan Balabanoff via email.

The grant will allow Christine Burgan, who’s earning her doctorate in chemistryĚýat , to spend the fall semester conducting her dissertation research at the DoE’s Pacific Northwest National Lab in Washington state. She’s one of just 87 students selected from among the nation’s top schools.Ěý

“This award is such a treasure to me because it offers me the opportunity to fill in some holes in my thesis project,” Burgan said. “[When I was accepted,] I had to read the email three times because I couldn’t believe it.”Ěý

The program, through the DoE’s Office of Science Graduate Student Research (SCGSR) program, connects students with specialized equipment and experts they may not otherwise have access to. The idea is to give students resources that will help them complete their dissertation or thesis research, with an eye on growing the STEM workforce.

Burgan’s research focuses on molecular complexes that excel at capturing dilute carbon dioxide, including direct air capture, which will be an important part of decarbonizing the atmosphere. She said this program and working at the national lab will allow her to further that research by doing high-pressure Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and electrochemistry experiments, which would allow her to confirm some observations and potentially publish in high-impact journals.Ěý

“Hands down my favorite part of the PhD adventure has been seeing my dissertation come together after these 4 years,” said Burgan, whoseĚýadvisors are Robert Buchanan and Craig Grapperhaus, professors in the chemistry department. “I never would’ve thought the start of my fifth year would’ve been at a national lab. I’m very excited to talk to new people about what they do and sharing what I do. Science is best when it’s collaborative.”

“I thought that if I could show the students exactly what I was trying to describe using 3D models, the students would have a better understanding from the start,” said Danielle Franco, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry. Franco was one of the first instructors to trial the technology with her class in fall 2022.ĚýĚý

The Delphi Center has capabilities to support extended reality (XR), which is the umbrella term for virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR). They currently support VR for interested instructors and hope to evolve into supporting AR and MR, too. With the Delphi Center’s XR headsets, instructors can create immersive environments that enable learners to explore and interact with content in an engaging way, such as virtually manipulating life-size molecules. In a post-session survey, the majority of students said XR helped them learn about chemistry and they felt more engaged in the XR session than they do in chemistry class when they do not use XR.Ěý

XR technology is more than a buzzword. When implemented in sound pedagogical strategies, it is an exceptional tool for instruction used to engage and retain students, as well as assist in meeting learning outcomes. This technology can support learners to develop problem solving and critical thinking skills while facilitating a more engaging and enjoyable learning experience. XR also provides learners the opportunity to prepare for real-world experiences in a safe and controlled environment, allowing them to gain experience and confidence while simultaneously limiting distractions, such as cell phones, during the session.ĚýĚý

Jordan Gabbard and Lucian Rothe, professors of German in the Department of Classical and Modern Languages, used XR technology to create an experiential learning session for their students to interact as if they were walking the streets of a German city. This activity also provided equitable access to all students, removing barriers for students that may not be able to study abroad for financial reasons, family responsibilities or other factors.Ěý

“VR/XR gives us the opportunity to create interactive and fully immersive environments for our students, and to allow our students to experience and be immersed in the sights and sounds of authentic, German-speaking locations,”ĚýGabbard and Rothe said. “These types of activities can’t be fully recreated in the traditional classroom, so access to XR technology really does give us new and unique learning tools to use with our students.”

The German students’ post-session survey results echoed the sentiments shared in Franco’s Chemistry class, agreeing that they felt it was a tool that assisted their learning and that they would like to use the XR equipment again in the future.ĚýĚý

This year, these instructors plan to continue utilizing XR activities in the Teaching Innovation Learning Lab (TILL). The Delphi Center is currently working with additional faculty who are looking to include innovative XR content in their different fields of study and welcome more instructors to use this tool.Ěý

All UofL instructors who are interested in XR technologies, no matter their level of XR experience, are welcome to connect with the Delphi Center in pursuing XR teaching opportunities. The Delphi Center team offers one-on-one assistance with each instructor to provide resources and collaborate on effective XR activities that align with the instructor’s content. The Delphi Center continues to explore more opportunities with instructors such as XR content creation, workshops and possibly a Faculty Learning Community.Ěý

The XR headsets are available for instructors to use in the TILL on the third floor of Ekstrom Library. Learn more about teaching with XR in the TILL and other opportunities within XR through the Delphi Center .ĚýĚý

For more information on XR and how it is impacting the way students learn, look for the summer 2023 issue of UofL Magazine out later this year.Ěý

By Brooke Whitaker, Delphi Center

Andrew Wilson, of the UofL chemistry department, was one of just 41 U.S. researchers selected to receive a 2022 . The award, presented by Oak Ridge Associated Universities, recognizes outstanding full-time assistant professors within two years of tenure track appointment.Ěý

“It’s a really amazing feeling to have your peers recognize the work you’re doing as a way forward in solving these big world problems, specifically in energy science,” Wilson said.

Wilson’s work focuses on better understanding what happens to molecules in energy-related reactions. Specifically, he’s looking at reactions that combine electricity with readily available molecules, such as water and carbon dioxide, to create cleaner more sustainable fuels that could be substituted for petroleum.Ěý

By more quickly and preciselyĚýmeasuring these reactions and how they change molecules, Wilson hopes to engineer them to produce more targeted outputs. In this case, better sources of energy — ones that perform better and pollute less.Ěý

“If we can understand these reactions, we can get more specific outputs — we can produce cleaner, more efficient or safer energy,” Wilson said. “The only way to do that is to design the process and the only way to design the process is to understand.”Ěý

Kevin Gardner, UofL’s executive vice president for research and innovation, said this prestigious Powe Award highlights the importance of Wilson’s research and its potential impact.

“We are very proud of Andrew and the work he’s doing to improve how we power our world,” Gardner said. “His research at UofL isĚýdriving the development of materials and processes for a new energy economy.”

UofL freshman Alyssia Leach, however, didn’t grow up with that mindset.

Growing up surrounded by educators, she eagerly looked forward to going to school and learning, knowing its ability to open doors in her future. She also saw, earlier than most, a way she could impact others’ lives if they had that same passion. She taught her sister during the summers when they were both young kids, but it didn’t stop there.

In high school, Leach created an organization at duPont Manual High School that provided teen entrepreneurs a place to connect and share their individual obstacles and successes.

At that time, she learned about and became involved with GripTape, a nonprofit organization that gives youth between the ages of 15-19 the opportunity to apply for financial help to support learning endeavors they wish to pursue, driven by their interests and passions. GripTape grants students up to $500 to learn something new, for example building computers, saving animals or learning new trade skills.

“GripTape has impacted more than 600 students across the country by providing them with funding to change their futures,” Leach said. “Personally, I want to connect with each of these students and share their stories, learn from them and encourage the next person.

Now a member of its Youth Leadership Board, she spoke with the organization’s founder Mark Murphy and rolled out its new podcast, GripTaped, which showcases new challengers and goes in-depth about what they chose and what they’re learning.Ěý

“I think that my love for school is rare, but an important part of my current successes,” Leach said. “I was always the kid who loved going back to school and was known as the teacher’s pet, but it never bothered me because I always reaped the benefits.”

Leach, who is in the process of finishing her first semester of college, already has her future laid out. Currently double majoring in marketing and chemistry, she wants to open her own laboratory where women can create their own makeup, skincare, or hair care products to be distributed in stores.

Leach is working to partner GripTape with the UofL’s College of Business to reactivate the entrepreneurship club and explore funding startups born from the club.

“GripTape’s message motivates me every day to go beyond the work in the classroom and see what else the world has to offer,” she said.Ěý

Leach’s leadership role with GripTape has earned her a keynote speaking opportunity at the in San Antonio, Texas, Oct. 25-28, 2020. Her topic will be, “Leading with Learners: Elevating Student Voice in łÉČËÖ±˛Ą Transformation.”Ěý

“To get these guys to come to Louisville and to a program run by students is a remarkable accomplishment,” said Richard Baldwin, chemistry professor in the College of Arts and Sciences and longtime faculty liaison to the student association. “When you look at the list of living Nobel winners, a good number of them have been here.”

Students start the previous year, sending a letter to the scientist they’ve chosen. Once there’s acceptance, then the students book the speaker’s air and hotel reservations, schedule the talks and other campus activities, arrange for transportation and evening meals with department faculty and students, and order the Derby tickets if the speaker’s schedule permits. For this effort, the CGSA raises money by selling safety goggles to freshmen lab students, and Clariant Inc., a Switzerland-based chemical company with operations in Louisville, matches the funds raised to co-sponsor the talks.

Heeger, who shared the 2000 Nobel in chemistry for the discovery and development of conductive polymers, is a University of California-Santa Barbara professor of physics and materials. He will discuss “Creativity, Discovery and Risk: Nobel Prizes Past and Future” at 12:30 p.m. May 10 in Gheens Science Hall and Rauch Planetarium. Heeger’s more scientifically-oriented lecture, “Electronic Structure of Semiconducting Polymer Field Effect Transistors,” will begin at 1:30 p.m. May 9, also in the planetarium.

“We try to make it unique and different for them – something memorable,” said Kelsey Sparks, a Florence chemistry graduate student who is the association’s co-president. The speakers often return home with a Kentucky Colonel certificate, Louisville Slugger bat and other souvenirs from the Bluegrass State.

Last year Sparks drove speaker Graham Cooks, a Purdue University chemist, to some engagements, gave him a campus tour and introduced one of his lectures – the only part she considered “a little frightening.” However, despite their scientific stature, the visitors tend to be quite approachable and interested in discussing the students’ work and aspirations. “They’ve achieved a lot in their life but they talk about normal things,” Sparks said.

The program has evolved over the years since the first lecture in 1978, and the move to the Derby season occurred in the mid-1990s, Baldwin said. Ideally, the speakers are people who are still scientifically active; the group makes an effort to choose from a “good broad spectrum,” according to Sparks, mixing in some pure chemists, some biomedical chemists and some with more of an engineering emphasis.

This year’s schedule for Heeger will include some downtime during race weekend with gatherings at Baldwin’s house and another professor’s home. That setup allows for more conversation with UofL faculty and students and affords the visitors a more personalized experience than they might otherwise have on their traditional lecture circuit. That is part of why Sparks and her fellow officers are looking forward to their Derby experience together with Heeger and his wife.“It’s cool to be able to say you hung out with a Nobel Prize winner,” Sparks said.