USU Chemists Recognized with Top Awards at Statewide American Chemical Society Meeting

Utah State University chemists Steve Scheiner and Jesse Brown were among a select group of scientists honored for outstanding research and service by the Central Utah and Salt Lake City sections of the American Chemical Society. The Aggies received awards during an annual ceremony on Nov. 7 at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, Utah.

Scheiner, a USU Cazier Professor, received the 2025 Utah Award for Outstanding Chemist of the Year,the organization’s top honor.

Brown, a doctoral candidate, was named the 2025 Utah Graduate Student of the Year.

“These are prestigious honors that recognize not only these scholars’ impressive research and academic accomplishments, along with their efforts in the advancement of chemistry,” said Lance Seefeldt, professor and head of USU’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. “It’s an honor for USU to be so well represented at the state level.”

Scheiner, who joined USU’s faculty in 2000, is a renowned computational chemist and educator who uses quantum mechanics to understand the nature of interactions between molecules. His work is broad but focuses on hydrogen bonds, which are fundamental to life.

Recognized by ScholarGPS, an international scholar-ranking analytics platform, as a highly cited world leader in hydrogen bond research, Scheiner was the 2010 recipient of USU’s D. Wynne Thorne Career Research Award, the university’s top research honor. He was recognized with USU’s Cazier Professor Lifetime Achievement Award in 2024.

Scheiner served as department head from 2000 to 2009. During his USU career, he has mentored many undergraduate, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Scheiner has secured millions in research funding from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Binational Science Foundation, the Army Research Office and IBM, among other organizations.

Brown, a doctoral candidate in analytical chemistry who conducts research with faculty mentor Yi Rao, studies carbon-nitrogen bond formation. He and Rao are studying synthetic catalysts that may create more environmentally friendly (less dependent on fossil fuels) ways to produce food, energy and pharmaceuticals.

Brown, who is an author or co-author on more than 25 peer-reviewed papers, is the recipient of multiple USU accolades, including the Jim and Carolyn Stahl Scholarship and the Stephen E. Bialkowski Environmental Chemistry Award.

“I was delighted to see my USU colleagues recognized by their professional peers for their outstanding contributions to the field,” said College of Arts and Sciences Dean Joseph Ward, who attended the Nov. 7 ceremony. “It was a meaningful reminder of the essential contributions that higher education makes to scientific discovery and economic development.”