Early Career Faculty Excellence | Excellence Awards | SIU

2014: Kyle N. Plunkett, an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, earns praise from his colleagues for his outstanding research and exceptional teaching, in addition to a sincere interest in student success.  Plunkett came to SIU Carbondale in 2010.  Plunkett teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in organic chemistry. Organic chemistry at the undergraduate level provides students the basis for how atoms bond together to form organic, carbon-containing, compounds and how they can be manipulated to make new chemical species. Organic chemistry drives innovation in fields including energy, space, medicine and engineering.

Boyd M. Goodson, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry, praises Plunkett’s “innovation and excellence” both in and out of the classroom.  That includes meeting with students once per week at Neely and Felts residence halls, initiating a second-year chemistry “Honors” section that meets outside of class once a week and engaging students in cutting-edge research.

In March 2014, Plunkett received a $650,000 five-year research grant from the National Science Foundation.  The grant will support Plunkett and a team of graduate students in their efforts to develop new organic-based materials utilized to make organic solar cells that can convert sunlight into electricity, which could also lead to new solar cell efficiencies.  Goodson writes that the competitive award requires “is a substantial recognition of a young scholar.”

During his time at SIU, Plunkett has generated 11 peer-reviewed publications, several with graduate students and two with undergraduate co-authors.  He currently also has three master’s-level and three doctoral-level students working in his lab, and has mentored 11 undergraduate researchers, including two research rookies.