About Me
As an Ohio native, I found my way to the South leaving me accentless but a lover of sweet tea. I spent my teenage years in Florida where the humidity is overbearing and the rain operates around a predictable schedule. After college, I made my way to Mississippi where I have been ever since.
It is quite lovely here.
I like teaching
I have been teaching large sections of Chemistry I and II and a variety of other classes since 2014. I have taught, on average, 370 students per semester (cumulative total of 6285 students) not including summer terms.
Courses Taught:
- CH-1213 – Chemistry I
- CH-1223 – Chemistry II
- CH-1141 – Prof. Chem: Paths
- CH-2141 – Prof. Chem: Tools
- CH-3141 – Prof. Chem: Literature
- CH-4711 – Senior Seminar
- CH-8990 – Prof. Chem: Current Problems (computational chemistry support)
Teaching Evaluation Summary
Below are the averages, by category, of 13 semesters (Fall 2014 – Fall 2020) of student evaluations in Chemistry I and II.
Legend for Plot
- Global = Global Index
- Expectations = Instructor created high expectations for the class
- Effectiveness = Instructor conveyed the course content in an effective manner
- Interesting = Instructor made class interesting
- Enthusiasm = Instructor was enthusiastic about the course
- Accessibility = Instructor was accessible outside of class time to respond to my questions or concerns
- Learning = I learned a great deal in this class
- Presentation = Presentation of course content helped me learn in this class
- Exam Fairness = Tests were fair
- Exam Reflection = Tests reflected material presented in lecture and/or assigned reading
- Grading Time = Tests and/or assignments were graded within a reasonable period of time
- Recommended = I would recommend this instructor to other students

Figure 1: Study session in the library before the exam (S’2017).

Figure 2: Getting hyped right before passing out the final exam (S’2017).

Figure 3: A student shows off his new haircut (S’2020).
![The 'Chemistry II' is OVER party (S'2020) [Photo Credit: mdawg9 - Twitch Moderator and PI of the mdawg9 Theory of Relativity].](celebration-party-chem2-sp2020.jpg)
Figure 4: The ‘Chemistry II’ is OVER party (S’2020) [Photo Credit: mdawg9 - Twitch Moderator and PI of the mdawg9 Theory of Relativity].
I have learned a lot from my students.
I like research
I was introduced to the world of computational chemistry as a sophomore undergraduate student in 2006 when I applied for a summer research job to help pay the bills. Prof. Robert A Vergenz was my mentor and he guided me into my first project, mapping out a reaction mechanism for a simple amino acid condensation reaction. In graduate school, Prof. Gregory S. Tschumper introduced convergent quantum chemistry to me and sophisticated methodologies. When I was a post-doc, Prof. C. Edwin Webster exposed me to a wide range of applications including NMR chemical shift modeling, organometallic chemistry, excited-state characterizations, and more.
I am very grateful to each of these incredible people.
I like SMACS
Be sure to check out the new SMACS website!
SMACS is the “Student Members of the American Chemical Society”, a professional organization for undergraduates interested in chemistry. I have been the faculty advisor to the Mississippi State SMACS chapter since 2016. We have managed to do a lot of great things with a lot of help from others.
It has been a lot of fun.
Some highlights:
- First ChemDawg NCW Tailgate Extravaganza – Oct. 2018
- First ACS ChemLuminary win by the Mississippi State SMACS group – Aug. 2019
- First ACS Innovative Project Grant (for NCW 2019 Escape Rooms) – Aug. 2019
- First SMACS-funded annual scholarship for chemistry majors (SMACS Chemistry Annual Excellence Scholarship) – Feb. 2020
SMACS NCW/CCEW Videos
2018 NCW
2019 NCW
2020 CCEW
I like MSU Esports
I was one of the faculty advisors to the MSU Esports group (2020–2022). Be sure to check them out.
- Discord: https://discord.gg/esportsmsu
- Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/esports_msu
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/esports_msu
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eSportsMSU/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/esports_msu/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr982QMNKdScvfkiynSGLHA
- Steam: https://steamcommunity.com/groups/msstateesports
- Merchandise: https://whatsneu.gg/collections/mississippi-state-esports
I like Halloween

Figure 5: Found my twin in Taylor Fultz! (2020)

Figure 6: Dr. Whitnee Nettles is Hattie, the Swamp Witch. (2020).