Winter 2026

Hello again to all our students, alumni, faculty and friends! Welcome to the Winter 2026 newsletter from the East Carolina University Department of Chemistry.

We are coming off a successful fall semester, with a well-attended and thoroughly enjoyable homecoming celebration and poster session.  We got to celebrate a new set of graduates in a joint ceremony with the Department of Biology.  Tireless recruiting efforts brought 50% more new intended BS Chemistry majors to campus, with more to go this Spring.

Chemistry is continuing an expanding seminar series this spring (note that alumnus Pat Cutler’s seminar is pending a new date after being postponed due to the snowy weather at the end of January). We look forward to celebrating our students (best students in a variety of classes, scholarship recipients) in April, followed by Spring Commencement in May.

If you feel moved to help Chemistry support our students, on March 4th Pirate Nation Gives is an opportunity to support our priority or scholarship funds (any gift, of any size, during that day helps us win bragging rights over the other departments…). Thanks in advance! See the news item below for a link to PNG!

Please visit our department’s website regularly to see news and profiles of students, faculty, and alumni (maybe even you…, see link to volunteer here). The bulk of the credit for putting together this newsletter goes to Professors Robert Hughes and Lisa Bennett.  I am in awe of their organization and willingness to go the extra mile.

 - ATM

On December 19, 2025, the Department of Chemistry celebrated its Fall semester chemistry graduates in a joint recognition ceremony with the Department of Biology.  Dr. Anne Spuches served as the Marshall and Dr. Andrew Morehead, Dr. Adam Offenbacher, and Ms. Lisa Bennett spoke in recognition of our chemistry graduates.

Celebrating Our Grads Facebook Post

We’re proud to share that Dr. Joel Glotfelty (BS Chemistry and BS Biochemistry, ’16) has been named one of ECU’s 40 Under Forty honorees for 2026! 

Read More Here!

ECU Chemistry double graduate Megan Koufas Hales ('19, '21) returned to give a seminar describing her exciting career with Jellatech, an RTP-based biotech startup company. 

Megan worked with Professor Toby Allen during her time at ECU and is now developing new ways to produce collagen for a wide variety of biomedical applications.

Read More on Facebook!

We were excited to welcome students from Greenfield High School to the ECU Department of Chemistry on Wednesday, January 14, and share what makes our department—and ECU—such a great place to be!

Read more here!

Support Harriot College and ECU Chemistry during Pirate Nation Gives!

Since 2017, Pirate Nation Gives has raised more than $50 million for East Carolina University initiatives. On March 4, supporters can cap that decade of success by participating in the 10th annual 24-hour fundraising event.

ECU News feature on Pirate Nation Gives 2026

First year and transfer students with GPAs of 3.0 and higher were recognized with a reception at the Main Campus Student Center. Students were invited to nominate faculty members who have been key to their success at ECU. Many ECU chemistry faculty were nominated, including those pictured (Jason Pajski, Subodh Dutta, Robert Hughes, Anne Spuches, Adam Offenbacher, Felicia Jaimes, and Lisa Bennett). Other faculty included David Rudel, Jim Collins, and Rosa Alvarez-Bell.

Congrats to all Excelling students and faculty members!

Professor Andy Sargent has been at ECU since 1994, loves Inorganic Chemistry (and disc golf!), and wants students to fully engage with their pursuit of chemistry knowledge. Read more about one of ECU's most dedicated faculty members at the link below:

Seven Questions with Andy Sargent

Professor Brian Love has been at ECU since 1995, loves teaching Organic Chemistry, and has a passion for the landscaping arts. Read more about Dr. Love's perspective on his outstanding career as a teacher and researcher and his advice for chemistry students at ECU:

Seven Questions with Brian Love

Taylor Harris, Student Services Specialist, discovered the ECU Pirate logo as a youngster. Little did he know that he would one day be a full-fledged Pirate!

Taylor Harris on his path to the ECU Department of Chemistry

Sy Duke, BS Chemistry and Biochemistry double major with a Mathematics minor, found mentorship and inspiration in the department. Sy stays busy conducting research, launching a nonprofit, and building his own Raman spectrophotometer.  Read more on Sy's chemistry journey at the link below:

Sy's Path to Chemistry at ECU

Catch up with Dr. Adam Burch, PhD (BS Biochem & PhD Biomedical Sciences) and learn how his ECU Chemistry experiences led to his current Teaching Professor position at the ECU Brody School of Medicine:

ECU Reflections with Adam Burch

Catch up with Mr. David Halatek (ECU BS (2022)/MS (2023)) and see how his ECU Chemistry adventures as an undergraduate and graduate student led him to doctoral study in medicinal chemistry at Wake Forest University:

ECU Reflections with David Halatek

A Sample of Recent Grants, Publications, and Presentations from the Department of Chemistry: 

Grants: North Carolina Innovation award to Dr. Hughes (read more here) 

Publications: Evelyn Boyd, Clark Andersen, and Joi Walker in Journal of Chemical Education; Robert C. Morrison in J. Chem. Phys.; Bhattacharya, A., Tian, J., Choyke, S., Brown, J., Meng, P., Rhodes, G., Patterson, A., Knappe, D. R. U., Li, H., Higgins, C. P., Carignan, C. in Journal of Environmental Quality.

Presentations: Robert Hughes, invited presentation at PepTalk 2026 (San Diego). Shouquan Huo, invited seminar at University of Nebraska. Joi Walker, invited seminar, PacifiChem (Hawaii). 

Spring Chemistry Seminars (Fridays at 2 PM in Bate Building)

1/16 Professor Alex Tropsha (UNC-Chapel Hill)

2/13: Professor Robert T Williamson (UNC-Wilmington)

2/27: Professor Eva Ge (UNC-Charlotte)

3/27 Professor Lina Quan (UNC-Chapel Hill)

4/10: Professor Bob Morrison (ECU)

4/24: Professor Steven Pascal (Old Dominion University)

TBD: Patrick Cutler (Teledyne Scientific)