May 27, 2009

The American Chemistry Society has honored OSU chemistry professor Richard Bunce with the 2009 Oklahoma Chemist Award..

Bunce was recognized at the society’s annual meeting in Tulsa. He was honored for research in heterocyclic chemistry, a field that is important in medicinal and pharmaceutical chemistry degree programs.

Bunce’s research has attracted more than $500,000 to OSU. Grants have been awarded from prestigious organizations that include the National Institutes of Health, Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology, Department of Energy, Dow AgroSciences, Eli Lilly and Company, DuPont and Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

The society deemed his work with undergraduate and graduate students “a major contribution to science education in Oklahoma.” Bunce received the Arts and Sciences Faculty Adviser Award in 2001 and 2006.

Bunce earned a bachelor’s degree from Marietta College in Ohio and a doctorate from the University of Wisconsin - Madison. He was an NIH postdoctoral fellow at the University of California - Berkeley before joining the chemistry faculty at OSU in 1983.

The Oklahoma Chemist Award is given once each year to one individual and is the highest honor for any chemist within the state.  OSU chemists have received the honor 12 times since its inception in 1971.

The chemistry department is one of 24 departments in the College of Arts and Sciences at OSU. To learn more visit http://cas.okstate.edu.