About Us

EXECUTIVE MEMBERS

Prof. Peng Liu

Faculty Advisor 2022-present

Prof. Raúl Hernández Sánchez

Former Faculty Advisor

Pitt Chapter Founder

Raúl Hernández Sánchez is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh. He was born in Chihuahua, México. During his undergraduate years Raúl worked intermittently as a research assistant in the laboratory of Prof. Sossina Haile (Caltech) in the summers of 2007-09, and spring of 2008. Later, he explored the formation of ionic membranes under the guidance of Prof. Beate Klösgen at the Southern University of Denmark in the spring of 2009. He received a B.Sc. in Chemistry from the Department of Chemistry at ITESM Campus Monterrey in 2010 defending a thesis under the direction of Prof. Jesús Angel Valencia. He then moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts to pursue a Ph.D. in Chemistry at Harvard under the mentorship of Prof. Ted Betley. After completing his thesis on the Coordination Chemistry and Electronic Structure of Iron Clusters, he then moved to Columbia University as a Columbia Nano Initiative Postdoctoral Fellow to work under the supervision of Prof. Colin Nuckolls. At the University of Pittsburgh, his group's research interests reside at the interface between inorganic, supramolecular, and materials chemistry.

Yasha Kaushal

President, 2022-Present

PhD Candidate

Yasha is an engineer-turned-astrophysicist and enthusiastic about science communication and public outreach. She is a fourth year graduate student in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pittsburgh pursuing PhD in Astrophysics. Her research focuses on the dynamics and evolution of early universe galaxies through the cosmic time. During her under-graduation in India, she jointly established Aero-Astro Club in her home institution for space science enthusiasts and organized various Astronomy and Aero-modeling events. Currently, she is serving as an Outreach Coordinator for Women and Minorities in Physics (WMP) Club at Pitt, President for Pitt chapter of Alliance for Diversity in Science and Engineering (ADSE@Pitt), Society of Physics Students (SPS) Mentor to three undergraduate students, Peer Mentor to three first-year graduate students and as a WMP representative in the Students of Color in Solidarity Club (SOCS Task Force). She believes that the power of public engagement, communication and collaborative efforts amongst various diversity groups can help address many existing challenges in student community.

Samia Afrin

Vice President, 2022-Present

Graduate Research Assistant, Chemistry Department

Samia is a second-year graduate student in the chemistry department at pitt from Star Research Group. She was born and raised in Dhaka, Bangladesh where she completed her undergraduate and Masters program from Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering department, University of Dhaka. Her Master's thesis work was based on preparing semi-interpenetrating polymer network hydrogels for drug delivery management in wound healing. During this period, she also participated in Sakura Science Exchange Program for young scientists at Materials Chemistry and Biochemistry lab, Kumamoto University, Japan. She started her Ph.D. studies here at pitt under the supervision of Dr. Alexander Star and her work is primarily focused on modified carbon nanomaterials for chemical sensing. At present, she is serving as Vice President for Pitt chapter of Alliance for Diversity in Science and Engineering (ADSE@Pitt) and for Krishnachura: Bangladeshi Student Association, University of Pittsburgh. She believes in diversity and inclusion and interested in outreach initiatives by making an interactive diversified platform in STEM. In her free time, she loves travelling, hiking and playing ukulele.

Sarah Craig

Communications Manager, 2022-Present

Graduate Research Assistant, Meyer lab, Chemistry Department

Sarah is a second-year graduate student investigating the effects of meso-scale polymer sequencing on bulk materials properties in the Meyer lab here at Pitt, after having gotten her undergraduate degree in chemistry at the University of Rochester while doing organometallic synthesis in the Kennedy lab. The environment of mathematics and chemical engineering classes she has taken encouraged her to get involved in outreach and diversity efforts in STEM. In her free time, she enjoys fencing, theatre, and drinking lots of coffee.

Samantha Cavalier

Social Media Coordinator, 2022-Present

Neuroscience major/ Chemistry minor

Sam Cavalier is a sophomore Neuroscience major with a minor in chemistry and a certificate in Conceptual Foundations of Medicine. She is on the premed track, and in her free time, she enjoys listening to music, doing pilates, and hanging out with her friends.

Harrison Hall

Business Manager, 2022-Present

Economics and Computer Science Major, 2026

Harrison is a first-year student pursuing a degree in Computer Science and Economics. He was born and raised in Rochester, NY, where he enjoys hiking, fishing, and hanging out with friends.

Ethan Pazur

Executive Member

PhD Candidate

Ethan was born and raised in Dearborn, Michigan. He obtained his BS in chemistry at Lake Superior State University where he studied NMR methods to determine alcohol content in beer. He is currently pursuing a PhD in chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh under the guidance of Professor Peter Wipf. Ethan’s research interests include total synthesis of natural products, medicinal chemistry, and methodology development. Besides chemistry, he enjoys spending time outdoors and reading short stories.

Sara Chedid

Executive Member

PhD Candidate

Sara was born in Jbeil, Lebanon and immigrated to the United States in 2006. She earned her B.S. in Chemistry at The University of Massachusetts Amherst, where her research focused on designing DNA-based fluorescent probes to study transient protein-lipid interactions on cellular membranes. She is currently pursuing her PhD at the University of Pittsburgh under the guidance of Dr. Kabirul Islam, applying chemical approaches to better understand epigenetic mechanisms in biology and disease. When she is not working, you can find her catching up with friends around a fire or on a dance floor.

Previous Officers And Club Founding Members

Alysia Mandato

President

PhD Student

Alysia is a third year graduate student in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh. She earned her undergraduate degree in biochemistry at John Carroll University in her hometown of Cleveland, OH where she did research on post-translational modifications. She is currently mentored by Dr. Sunil Saxena where she studies protein-DNA interactions using biophysical chemistry. She is passionate about inclusion in STEM and outreach to unserved communities. Outside of research, she is usually at the dog park with her dog Lucy.

Julisa Rozon

Business Manager

PhD Candidate

Julisa is a third year graduate student in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh. She is currently advised by Jennifer Laaser where she works on studying the dynamics of ion containing polymers. In the early days, she worked with Raul Hernández Sánchez to establish the ADSE@Pitt chapter. Julisa is just as enthusiastic about her research as she is about outreach initiatives and promoting a supportive environment in STEM. If she isn't working on her research or ADSE@Pitt initiatives, you can find her building her ceramics skills.

Jean-Marc Lawrence

Executive Member

PhD Candidate

Jean-Marc was born and grew up in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. He moved to the US when he was 17 and completed high school in Plano, Texas, then moved up north and graduated from University of Connecticut in 2017 with a B.S. in Chemistry. Through his undergraduate career, he started along the Pre-Med path but once he began research with Dr. Mark Peczuh, Jean-Marc knew his career path was in the field of chemistry. Soon after, he moved to Pittsburgh to pursue his PhD in Organic Chemistry, with his work focusing on allylic alcohol transposition and oxidative C-H functionalization. In his spare time, he likes to play golf, softball and attend the occasional concert.

Victor Espinoza-Castro

Executive Member

PhD Student

Victor was born in Sinaloa, Mexico but grew up in Los Angeles, CA. He earned his B.S. degree in Chemistry at California State University, Fullerton (CSUF). As a McNair Scholar at CSUF, he worked in the lab of Dr. Peter de Lijser and studied the reactive intermediates that form from the photooxidation of oxime and oxime ethers. Over the Summer of 2019, he worked with Dr. Alina Schimpf at the University of California San Diego (UC San Diego). At UC San Diego, he synthesized polyoxovanadate clusters and frameworks in order to form thin films using polyethylene glycol. He came to the University of Pittsburgh in the Summer of 2020 to pursue his PhD in Chemistry.

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