About Me

I am currently an instructor at Twin Springs High School in Scott County, Virginia, and also currently serve as an adjunct faculty member in chemistry at Mountain Empire Community College in Big Stone Gap, Virginia. I received my Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Tennessee—Knoxville, in May 2012 and B.S. degree in chemistry and materials science and engineering from the University of Virginia—Charlottesville in May 2004. My doctoral dissertation was conducted at the University of Tennessee in consultation with Dr. George Schweitzer, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Siemens Molecular Imaging. In my research, I developed a system designed to selectively affect the behavior of yttrium—a significant component of mined lanthanide ores and clays—from other elements found within the lanthanide series in solvent extraction systems. I also developed a method for the analysis of separated products using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).

Education:

University of Tennessee | Knoxville, TN

Ph.D. Inorganic Chemistry | 2012

University of Virginia | Charlottesville, VA

B.S. Chemistry, Materials Science | 2004