Colorado State University Chemistry Professor Named AAAS Fellow

Note to Reporters: A photo of Nancy Levinger is available with the news release at http://www.news.colostate.edu/.

Nancy Levinger, a University Distinguished Teaching Scholar in chemistry at Colorado State University, has been named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a prestigious honor awarded to a select group of scientists across the country each year.

Levinger is being honored for pioneering research on the dynamics of liquids in confined environments and how those environments affect the chemistry, physics and biology of those liquid molecules. Her fundamental studies provide critical information that develop scientists’ understanding of complex processes such as systems for drug delivery, chemical catalysis and development of new materials. "My research focuses on how molecules move in confined spaces and how that, in turn, affects the chemical, biological and physical processes occurring in these systems," Levinger said.

Levinger joined the faculty at Colorado State in 1992 as an assistant professor. She is a Fellow of the American Physical Society where she now serves on the executive council and as a councilor in the Division of Chemical Physics. She has received numerous university and general teaching awards including the Undergraduate Research Mentoring Award.

She has taught a range of courses at the university from introductory chemistry to graduate-level classes. When she returns from a year-long sabbatical in Fall 2011, she’ll be teaching introductory chemistry.

“From the time they’re freshmen, students attending Colorado State University are learning from some of the best scholars in their fields,” said Ellen Fisher, chair of the Department of Chemistry. “This AAAS honor for Dr. Levinger is extremely well deserved. It is a strong testament to her enthusiasm and dedication to advancing scientific knowledge and to her ability to translate that cutting-edge science for our students in the classroom.”

In its most recent rankings, U.S. News and World Report named the graduate program in the Department of Chemistry at Colorado State one of the top 50 programs in the country. The ranking was included in the 2011 edition of America’s Best Graduate Schools, which was released in April. The chemistry department is a Program of Research and Scholarly Excellence at Colorado State.

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