I am absolutely thrilled to be the Dean of the College of Natural and Applied Sciences. CNAS is truly poised to do great things – especially in research. We have outstanding faculty and educating our students is our number one priority. Education in the natural and applied sciences does require research and internships – hands-on learning outside of the typical lecture hall or smaller classroom. This also applies to our strong teacher education programs within the college. Teaching and research are integrally linked in many ways: faculty workloads, student success, modeling life-long learning, and providing a public service in the publication of research results. CNAS supports public service activities by encouraging the faculty, staff, and students to contribute their expertise in order to advance science, environmental, and education issues.

I looked into the history of the college and learned that the university was first formed with thirteen academic departments in 1945. In 1968 the university separated into four divisions, one of them being the Division of Science and Technology. The divisions were renamed schools in 1972 and then colleges in 1985. The college name changed again with reorganizations in 1994.

I am a professor of chemistry and have been at Missouri State University since 1986. I arrived in Springfield from my home state of Iowa and in particular the University of Iowa. I love teaching, especially organic chemistry courses or general chemistry courses for nonmajors. My research interests are in lipid peroxidation products and spectroscopic analysis of organic molecules.

I look forward to working with the students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends of CNAS! Please watch for news and new developments in CNAS on this website!