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Everything you (n)ever wanted to know about where I went to school
                       
                       
blankHaycock Elementary School        
1985-1992
 
 

Haycock Cougar LogoI am a proud alumnus of Haycock Elementary School in Falls Church, Virginia.  My seven years at Haycock generated a ton of good memories: the annual fun fairs and field days, wallball, gravel tag, Agent USA and Oregon Trail (on Apple IIe computers), sixth-grade "wills", chess tournaments, mob-like "community vs. GT" soccer games, and field trips to the National Zoo, Merrifield Post Office, Camp Highroads, and Williamsburg. It seems like all of that stuff was eons ago. Maybe I'll eventually get around to writing about some of the especially memorable things, like the Muppet-themed PE show where I voiced Kermit the Frog, the time in fifth grade when I royally choked in the school spelling bee, and the time my friend Mickey shot me in the head with a BB gun.

 
                       
      Kindergarten Ms. Terri Horton        
                 
      First Grade Mrs. Judith Weiss        
                 
      Second Grade Mrs. Rose Lynne Schwartz        
                 
      Third Grade Ms. Carrie Thompson        
                 
      Fourth Grade Ms. Deborah Juncker        
                 
      Fifth Grade Ms. Willa Hennigan        
                 
      Sixth Grade Ms. Cynthia Allen        
                       
                       
blankLongfellow Intermediate School        
1992-1994
 
                       
  Longfellow Lancers LogoAfter Haycock, I went to Longfellow Intermediate School. (No, I don't know who's responsible for naming schools in eastern Fairfax County.) The highlight of my time at Longfellow was math class with the incomparable Mr. Williams. The attention that his classes required set the perfect tone for the rest of high school. Aside from things that happened in Mr. Williams' Room 211, I really don't have any strong memories of my two years at Longfellow. It's kind of weird in that by the time you get used to the place, you're already on your way out the door for high school. And I'm sorry to see that Mr. Lynch has retired; he was a junior-high-school principal straight out of central casting.  
                       
    Seventh Grade
1
Social Studies Joan Alexander  
       
2F
Industrial Arts Donald White  
       
2S
Introduction to Foreign Language Sylvia Shenk  
       
3
Math 7 Vern Williams  
       
4
Gym 7 JoAnne Packer  
       
5F
Literary Arts Susan Sloan  
       
5S
Speech and Theater Gerard Hausheer  
       
6
English 7 Kathy Weldon  
       
7
Science 7 Elizabeth Hankins  
             
    Eighth Grade
1
English 8 Karen Selwyn  
       
2
Civics Jane Anne Houser  
       
3
Science 8 Diane Hurd  
       
4F
Spanish I Diane Hall  
       
4S
Peer Helping JoAnne Packer  
       
5F
Gym 8 Carolyn Hudson  
       
5S
Spanish I Diane Hall  
       
6
Algebra / Geometry Vern Williams  
       
7F
Speech and Theater (Deborah?) Wynn  
       
7S
Gym 8 Dana Aladj  
                       
                       
blankThomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology      
1994-1998
 
                       
  TJHSST LogoI went to high school at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST). TJ's a great place:  (almost) everyone is studious and takes classes seriously, but the school is less nerdy than you'd think. And unlike most high schools, kids don't steal stuff left on top of lockers or beat each other up (too much). It was at TJ that I was first introduced to organic chemistry and chemical research in the fantastic tech lab run by Dr. John Liebermann. That, obviously, had some major repercussions for me. It was also nice to be able to take science courses on things like optics and marine biology, just to get a taste for the subjects. After TJ, the workload in college was no big deal. In fact, it was probably a little less intense.  
                       
    Ninth Grade
1
Accelerated Computer Science Michael Steuben  
       
2
Algebra II / Trigonometry Andre Edgar Samson  
       
3
Gym 9 Paco Roman  
       
4
Spanish II Pat Forry  
       
5
Biology Larry Gaudreault  
       
6
Principles of Engineering & Tech. Erick Gottschalk  
       
7
English 9 Roger Green  
                       
    Tenth Grade
1
AP Computer Science Sally Bellaqcua  
       
2
Gym 10 Jim Jullien  
       
3
AP Chemistry I John Liebermann, Jr.  
       
4
Spanish III JoAnne Becker  
       
5
Precalculus Rebecca Barnes  
       
6
English 10 Barbara Nelson  
       
7
World History Ron Maney  
                       
    Eleventh Grade
1
Physics Michael White  
       
2
AP Chemistry II John Liebermann, Jr.  
       
3
AP U.S. History John Struck  
       
4
English 11 Jane Gullickson  
       
5
AP Calculus BC Gary Young  
       
6F
Optics Robert Latham  
       
6S
Marine Biology Lisa Wu  
       
7
Spanish IV Deanna Kuhn  
                       
    Twelfth Grade
1
AP Journalism Carol Lange  
       
2
AP Statistics Mary Mortlock  
       
3
Geosystems Lance Hill  
       
4
U.S. Government Konrad Molter  
       
5
Organic Chemistry / Lab John Lieberman, Jr.  
       
6
Organic Chemistry / Lab John Lieberman, Jr.  
       
7F
Philosophy Jay Lamb  
       
7S
Comparative Religion Jay Lamb  
                       
                       
blankNorthern Virginia Community College      
1995-1998
 
                       
  NVCC LogoWhile I was in high school, I concurrently enrolled at Northern Virginia Community College for fun. I mainly took computer courses, with some other random subjects mixed in. I'd probably pick the business classes as the most enjoyable. It seemed like the subject matter had the most everyday/practical value. The two composition classes I took allowed me to skip the freshman Expository Writing Program at NYU. For some reason, NYU wouldn't take AP credit for these classes but did accept my transfer credits from Nova. This saved me hours of pain in college; my friends universally hated "expos".  
                       
    Summer 1995 MTH 166 blankPrecalculus and Trigonometry  
                       
    Fall 1995 CIS 125 blankComputer Program Design  
                       
    Summer 1996 BUS 100 blankIntroduction to Business  
        ENG 111 blankCollege Composition I  
        PED 116 blankFitness and Wellness  
        PED 154 blankVolleyball  
                       
    Fall 1996 STD 100 blankOrientation  
        IST 117 blankIntroduction to Microcomputer Software  
                       
    Spring 1997 BUS 200 blankPrinciples of Management  
        ENG 115 blankTechnical Writing  
                       
    Summer 1997 IST 172 blankComputer Programming: C  
        IST 232 blankDatabase Management  
        SPD 110 blankIntroduction to Speech Communication  
                       
    Fall 1997 IST 212 blankIntroduction to Telecommunications  
        IST 216 blankPC Hardware Troubleshooting  
        IST 278 blankComputer Programming: C++  
                       
    Spring 1998 IST 100 blankIntroduction to Information Systems  
        IST 220 blankMicrocomputers: Operating Systems, Architecture, and Hardware  
        IST 251 blankComputer Information System Development  
                       
                       
blankNew York University       1998-2002  
                       
  NYU Torch LogoThe day after being named a finalist in the 1998 Westinghouse competition, I received a package from New York University that contained a course catalogue and the offer of a nice scholarship attached to an undergraduate research grant.  I had always wanted to go to college at a place where I felt wanted, and they certainly showed a lot of interest.  The decision paid off: NYU was a great place to be an undergrad.  The classes were excellent and the chemistry department had a great support structure for undergrad research. As an ancillary benefit, I got to live smack dab in the middle of lower Manhattan and partake in all it had to offer. I was able to get involved in research early, as a freshmen, and my experience in the lab of David Schuster cemented my plans of making a career out of chemistry.  
                       
    Major: Chemistry with Departmental Honors, Summa cum laude  
                       
    Thesis Title: The Synthesis and Photophysical Study of Porphyrin-Fullerene Dyads
 
                       
                       
    Fall 1998 Honors Organic Chemistry I  
        Organic Chemistry Lab I  
        Calculus III (Multivariable)  
        Seminar:  Brain, Eye, Computers  
        Engineering Design Lab I  
        World Cultures: Latin America  
                       
    Spring 1999 Physics I  
        Honors Organic Chemistry II  
        Organic Chemistry Lab II  
        The Contemporary Chemist  
        Linear Algebra  
                       
    Fall 1999 Physics II  
        Physical Chemistry I  
        Advanced Independent Study/Research  
        Expressive Cultures: Sound  
        Antiquity and the Renaissance  
                       
    Spring 2000 Physics III  
        Physical Chemistry II  
        Organic Chemistry III  
        Advanced Independent Study/Research  
                       
    Spring 2001 Experimental Methods (Physical Chemistry Lab)  
        Advanced Organic and Inorganic Laboratory  
        Societies & Social Sciences: Economic Perspectives  
        Advanced Independent Study/Research  
                       
    Fall 2001 Senior Honors in Chemistry I  
        Inorganic Chemistry  
        Tutorial in Chemistry: Photochemistry  
        Ordinary Differential Equations  
                       
    Spring 2002 Senior Honors in Chemistry II  
        Classical Mythology  
        Intermediate Spanish II  
                       
                       
blankHarvard University       2002-2010  
                       
  NYU Torch LogoFor graduate school, I continued my academic journey up the East Coast to Harvard. It was quite an experience.  
                       
    Degree: Ph.D. in Chemistry  
                       
    Thesis Title: I. Delivery Templates of Patterned Paper for the Fabrication of Planar Materials
 
        II. Thiol-Thioester Exchange as a Reversible, Covalent Binding Interaction  
                       
                       
    Fall 2002 Chem 153   Organotransitionmetal Chemistry  
        Chem 158   Materials Chemistry  
        Chem 206   Advanced Organic Chemistry  
                       
    Spring 2003 Chem 105   Physical-Organic Chemistry  
                       
                       
                       
                       
                       
                       
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