SOAR chemistry students win Peer’s Choice Poster Award

Ripon College’s Department of Chemistry sent seven students to the American Chemical Society (ACS) Great Lakes Regional Meeting in Appleton, Wisconsin, where they showcased the research they conducted during the Summer Opportunities for Advanced Research (SOAR) program.

Six of the students presented their research. Juniors Chloe Studinski and M. K. Powers, along with Brennan Martin — a 2025 graduate from Ripon High School participating in SOAR this summer — were honored with the Peer’s Choice Award in a poster competition judged by their peers.

“Winning the Peer’s Choice Award means a lot because it’s a reminder that the work we’re doing isn’t just for nothing,” Studinski said. “It’s exciting to see that people are genuinely interested in the science and effort we put into our research. Not only did other people in the field take an interest in our work, but they felt compelled to vote for it, which makes the recognition even more meaningful.”

Studinski, a junior majoring in biomedical science, said their poster session was on “Biocatalytic synthesis of noncanonical amino acids from a hydroxy aldehyde surrogate.”

“Our research focused on developing a sustainable and efficient way to make noncanonical amino acids, which are molecules that are important building blocks in pharmaceuticals,” Studinski said. “To do this, we used biocatalysis, which involves creating molecules using enzymes. This process is more selective and environmentally friendly compared to traditional organic synthesis.”

The group specifically worked with an enzyme called ObiH, which synthesizes complex amino acids from simpler starting materials and hydroxy aldehyde surrogates, which are more manageable and easier to store than conventional aldehydes.

“Combining these surrogates with ObiH gives us products with high stereoselectivity, which is critical in pharmaceutical synthesis,” Studinski said. “Continuing research involves making different surrogates to get a broad scope of products and increasing product yields.”

Studinski credited the project’s foundation to the ongoing work of their adviser, Associate Professor of Chemistry Patrick Willoughby, who provided the research topic and support throughout the summer.

“I am really proud of all that the chemistry students were able to accomplish,” Willoughby said. “The new facilities (of the Franzen Science Center) really streamline things, but at the end of the day, bright and hardworking students are the ones who perform the experiments. This award demonstrates that their SOAR projects are important to the larger scientific community.”

Martin is a freshman at Washington and Lee University in Virginia. He took Organic Chemistry 1 and 2 at Ripon College during his senior year at Ripon High School.

“Chemistry is by far my favorite subject, so I was especially excited, and quite frankly surprised, when Dr. Willoughby offered me to be a part of SOAR in his organic chemistry lab,” Martin said.

At the ACS regional conference, Martin said they sat in on many inspiring workshops and presentations that showed the scope of chemistry research.

“Being a winner of the Peer’s Choice Award discouraged the imposter syndrome that I felt being a part of academic research, and it was a powerful reminder that our work has powerful implications for biosynthetic chemistry,” Martin said. “I also think that there were countless other projects that deserved the award just as much as we did, and it really goes to show our generation’s potential for advances in scientific research and discovery.”

Studinski said she appreciates the collaboration with her peers and professor.

“The project truly was a team effort, and I couldn’t have learned or enjoyed the experience as much as I did without the support and collaboration of M. K., Brennan and Dr. Willoughby,” Studinski said. “Working with them made the research more rewarding, and I am very grateful to them.”

Other students who went to the Great Lakes Regional Meeting include: senior Shane Dooley and juniors Jasmine Greuel, Graham Hallwood and Martina Palazzolo.