By Andrea Gibson
A new partnership between Ohio University and the University of Leipzig in Germany will allow graduate students and faculty members in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry to collaborate on research with European scientists.
Three German graduate students arrived in Athens this month to participate in the exchange program. Steffen Tschirschwitz will study organic chemistry with Associate Professor Mark McMills, Alexander Demund will study physical chemistry with Assistant Professor Greg Van Patten and Corinna Sykora will study analytical chemistry with Associate Professor Peter Harrington.
"The agreement with the University of Leipzig will allow us to merge and strengthen new ideas," said John A. Bantle, vice president for research at Ohio University. "This program will allow a sustained research and teaching environment that will improve the quality of our work."
A delegation of Ohio University chemists visited the University of Leipzig in summer 2002 and determined that the two institutions share common interests.
"If you look at the strengths of our department and the strengths of their department, they complement each other," said Jennifer Hines, an assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Ohio University who has taken a lead role in the partnership.
The international partnership will aid the department's graduate students, many of whom accept jobs in industrial and government laboratories. It's not uncommon for American chemists to collaborate with scientists in other countries to conduct biotechnology, pharmaceutical and materials research, Hines said.
"Once you get into industry, you are exposed to these big global companies," she said. "Living in a different country can help students become aware and respectful of cultural differences they may encounter on the job."
The opportunity for foreign study will make the department's graduate program stand out, said Kenneth Brown, chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. The department currently is home to 76 graduate students.
"The University of Leipzig has an outstanding chemistry facility and many excellent faculty," Brown said. "We are in the process of establishing several research collaborations and anticipate a very fruitful relationship between the departments, our faculties and our students."
One of the department's graduate students will travel to Germany in the fall, Hines said, and the department is seeking others to participate in an exchange visit that will last about three months.
The University of Leipzig, founded in 1409, is one of the oldest universities in Germany. It has 25,000 students. Prestigious faculty members in science have included Justus Liebig (1803-1873) who revolutionized the world of agriculture by pioneering the isolation, production and use of artificial fertilizers to increase agricultural yields.
"Students and faculty of our department very much welcome the agreement," said Harald Morgner, a professor in the Wilhelm-Ostwald-Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry at the University of Leipzig. "The lively and stimulating atmosphere in the undergraduate and graduate labs in Ohio University will make any stay of our students in Athens a valuable experience."
Andrea Gibson is director of research communications.
