Vision Statement

The "right size" department: The official vision statement of the department is "to inspire and educate students, today and for the future, in the concepts and skills of chemistry and biochemistry; to prepare them to think about, to work with, and to enjoy the concepts of chemistry and biochemistry."  

To accomplish these goals requires faculty, staff, equipment, buildings, and the commitments of everyone involved. If a chemistry department is small, it's hard to afford the equipment, staff, and expertise that it takes to teach a modern, technical subject like chemistry. When departments get large, there is lots of equipment and expertise, but often the commitment to students and the personal attention that education requires is lost.

You will find the CSU, Chico Chemistry Department to be just the "right size". We are big enough to have faculty expertise (and staff support) in all of the major branches of chemistry: organic, inorganic, analytical, physical, and biochemistry. We are well equipped for all of the typical analyses that chemists are called upon to perform. And yet we are small enough to allow for the individual attention and hands-on experiences that are required to learn the concepts and practices of chemistry and biochemistry. Small classes, especially in the upper-division, and individual research projects are the norm for the department. Our faculty are chosen for their expertise and their commitment to students. And our students go on to compete and succeed in the finest graduate programs, professional schools, and the full array of industrial settings.

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News and Announcements

Instructions for adding "Full" CHEM courses for Fall 2008

Please look at the document available here.

New analytical chemist

Dr. Lisa Ott will join the faculty in fall 2008. Dr. Ott received her B.S. in chemistry at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon and her Ph.D. with Dr. Richard Finke at Colorado State University where she worked on transition metal nanoclusters. She is currently a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Thomas Bruno at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder, Colorado. Her research at CSU, Chico will involve the application of advanced distillation curve metrology to understanding the properties of biodiesel and other fuels. Her primary teaching responsibilities will be Quantitative Analysis, Instrumental Analysis, General Chemistry and the Integrated Chemistry Laboratory.

Chico State alumnus receives ACS Organic Division Fellowship

Ben Taft, a 2004 graduate with a B.S. in Chemistry with Honors, is a recipient of an American Chemical Society Organic Division Fellowship for 2007-08. While at Chico State Ben conducted undergraduate research with Dr. David Ball. He is currently a graduate student in the laboratory of Dr. Bruce Lipshutz in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The official ACS announcement and link to his award-winning essay can be found here.

Roche Palo Alto LLC donation supports undergraduate research

For the fourth time since 2000 Roche Palo Alto LLC has presented the department with a gift of $10,000. This donation is intended to recognize and encourage continued excellence in the area of synthetic organic chemistry within the department. The current donation will provide support for research through the Spring semester and stipends for students within our 2008 Chemistry Summer Research Institute.

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