Wilson Lecture
About the Leland Wilson Lectureship
Professor Leland Wilson, as first department head and professor in the Department of Chemistry for more than 20 years, left a legacy of professionalism and integrity that the faculty and staff in the department continue to sustain.
The Leland Wilson Lecture Series was initiated in 1997 by colleagues, family, and former students to honor Professor Wilson's many contributions to the Department of Chemistry and the University of Northern Iowa community.
In July 2007, Dr. Mary Sue and Ken Coleman made a generous donation of $100,000 to fully endow this lectureship and ensure its continual funding. Dr. Mary Sue Coleman is Professor Wilson's daughter and is currently serving as the president of the Association of American Universities.
2023 Lecture
Wilson Lecture – “All My Favorite Teachers are UNDEAD!” with Dr. Raychelle Burks. The lecture will be held in Lantz Auditorium in the McCollum Science Hall at UNI on Thursday, October 12, at 7:30 pm.
Dr. Burks received her BS in Chemistry from UNI, MS in Forensic Science from Nebraska Wesleyan, and PhD from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. She describes herself as a chemical detective. Dr. Burks and her team design new ways to detect a variety of drugs, explosives, and chemical weapons.
Dr. Burks was also a regular on Science Channel’s Outrageous Acts of Science and is a popular public speaker. She was recently honored as one of 120 Women in STEM (2022) that included a 3D printed statue of her on the national mall.
About Leland Wilson
Professor Leland Wilson, a native of Kentucky, joined the UNI faculty in 1955. Prior to coming to UNI, Wilson was a high school science teacher in Kentucky and Florida.
During his 24 years at UNI, Wilson taught physical science and chemistry, becoming an expert in a number of newly emerging instrumental techniques, including nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry. He was the first department head of the newly formed Department of Chemistry in 1968, and served in that capacity until 1975. He retired as professor of chemistry in 1979, and passed away in the summer of 1993 at the age of 79. With an infectious smile and an easy-going style, Wilson was able to motivate even the most reluctant students to expect more of themselves.
If you would like to contribute to the Leland Wilson Scholarship Fund, please contact:
Dr. Bill Harwood, Head
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
University of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls IA 50614-0423
Telephone: 319-273-2052
E-mail: bill.harwood@uni.edu
2022-2023
- Patrick Fier, principal scientist at Merck
2021-2022
- Dr. Greg Smith, Otto N. Frenzel III Senior Conservation Scientist at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields
2019-2020
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Dr. Eric Scerri, Professor, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles
2018-2019
- Dr. Jennifer Stern, Space Scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland.
2017-2018
- Dr. Auriel A. Willette, Assistant Professor of Food Science and Human Nutrition, Psychology, and Biomedical Sciences at Iowa State University.
2016-2017
- Dr. Annette Richards, Professor of Music and University Organist at Cornell University, and Dr. Catherine Oertel, Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Oberlin College.
2015-2016
- Dr. Kimryn Rathmell, Director of the Division of Hematology and Oncology and Professor of Medicine at Vanderbilt University.
2014-2015
- Dr. Shawn Domagal-Goldman, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
2013-2014
- Dr. Paul Kelter, award-winning teacher and researcher in Chemistry Education.
2012-2013
- Dr. Melanie Sanford, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Chemistry at the University of Michigan
2011-2012
- Dr. Harry B. Gray, Arnold O. Beckman Professor of Chemistry and Founding Director of the Beckman Institute, California Institute of Technology.
2010-2011
- Dr. R. Graham Cooks, Henry B. Hass Distinguished Professor of Analytical Chemistry, Purdue University.
2009-2010
- Dr. John Warner, President and Chief Technology Office Warner/Babcock Institute for Green Chemistry.
2008-2009
- Dr. Richard Zare, Professor of Chemistry, Stanford University
2007-2008
- Dr. Geri Richmond, Professor of Chemistry, University of Oregon
2006-2007
- Dr. Paul G. Wenthold, Associate Professor, Purdue University
2005-2006
- Dr. Charles D. Huss, Staff Emergency Department Physician, Mercy Hospital, Iowa City
2004-2005
- Dr. Nancy Wilson Ashbach, M.D., M.B.A., Professor of Health Policy, University of Denver, Family Physician
2003-2004
- Dr. John Talley, Microbia, Inc
2002-2003
- Dr. Becky Lewis, E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. Inc.
2001-2002
- Dr. M. Dale Hawley, Professor of Chemistry, Kansas State University
2000-2001
- Dr. Steven M. Heilmann, Corporate Scientist, 3M Corporate Research
1999-2000
- Dr. Mark J. Kurth, Professor of Chemistry, University of California, Davis
1998-1999
- Dr. Robert D. Koob, President, University of Northern Iowa
1997-1998
- Dr. Mary Sue Coleman, President, University of Iowa