2024 - A Year in Review
from Biochemistry Chair Jim Goodrich, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair
Department of Biochemistry
ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ18
Jenny Smoly Caruthers Biotechnology Building
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The Biochemistry Department - At a Glance
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Since 1986,ÌýBiochemistry at the ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ18 hasÌýofferedÌýa world-class interdisciplinary research, education, and training environment in a beautiful mountain setting. Currently, the Biochemistry DepartmentÌýhas over 200 researchers, educators and staff including 21 tenure-trackÌýfaculty, 1 research faculty, 3 teaching professors, ~400 students in our BA program, ~75 Ph.D. students, ~42 postdocs and staff scientists, 7 administrative staff, and ~50 undergraduate students doing research in our labs.
The Biochemistry Department is renowned for its research. The faculty include aÌýNobel Laureate, 5Ìýmembers of the National Academy of Sciences, 3 Howard Hughes Investigators, and many other esteemed scientists who have established themselves as research leaders.
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2024 Biochemistry Grants + Fundraising Results
In 2024, the biochemistry department continued to perform exceptionally well in proposals issued, grants awarded, and even realized an increase in overall gifts, which were all essential to supporting the ongoing work of our faculty and students. The department ranks among one of the highest performing departments at CU Boulder in this regard.
Our goal in 2025 is to continue our upward trend and increase charitable contributions coming to the department as those are not tied to specific research projects in the ways that federal or even institutional foundation grants are written. This type of support gives the department much more flexibility to provide special awards, increased scholarships and fellowships, and to enrich our students' experiences through activities outside of classroom and lab environments.
If you are interested in impacting our success in 2025 with a charitable contribution - please reach out or simply visit our site to learn more about our priorities!
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T32 Training Grants - A Look Through the Years
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2024 Faculty News
In 2024, we have had a number of prestigious awards given, new faculty expected in early 2025, and the passing of an inspirational and talented faculty member and most importantly, a friend to most, especially those who knew him. We will provide highlights in this report but encourage you to review our website when you are able as it is often being updated with the latest of all that is happening with the faculty in our department.
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2024 Faculty Awards and Honors
In Memoriam - Dr. Jeffrey Cameron
CU Boulder Biochemistry unexpectedly said goodbye to one of our beloved and up and coming Professors, Dr. Jeffrey Cameron. More can be found on our site in the listing below.
2025 Incoming Biochemistry Faculty
The Biochemistry Department is welcoming one new Assistant Professor, Adelita Mendoza, in early January 2025, who will provide a strong addition to our strength in signal transduction/gene signaling. Our other new addition, Novella Keeling, will support our educational efforts as a Teaching Assistant Professor. We wish to welcome them both as they settle into Boulder, Colorado and CU Boulder Biochemistry!
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Total Biochemistry Student Enrollment -Ìý
A Five-Year Review
The department continues to hold or exceed undergraduate and graduate student enrollments year after year, and we do not anticipate this changing anytime soon. The consensus among new undergraduate enrollees and continuing students is that a biochemistry degree will allow them to influence life-impacting developments in human health, along with surprising benefits in environmental issues, building materials, and more. When graduate students are surveyed on why they selected CU Boulder Department of Biochemistry, overwhelming response was the quality and caliber of faculty and research - tied, with no surprise, with the lifestyle and location!
The figures to the right represent our total student population each year.
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Entering Biochemistry BA Majors - A Multi-Year Comparison
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The Department of Biochemistry experienced a fluctuation of new enrollees through the past five years, in part due to the 2020 and 2021 COVID epidemic. Fall 2024 saw a significant uptick of newly enrolled students, in large part due to stronger recruiting by the department on the whole and the guidance of Natalia Johnston, the department's Undergraduate Program Coordinator.Ìý
We see a general upward trend year-over-year and most new enrollees continue on in the department through the course of their degree program.
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Department of Biochemistry 2024 Spring Commencement
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Department of Biochemistry 2024 Spring Commencement
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Spring 2024 Commencement Details
For the first time in 2024, we welcomed a guest speaker to kick off our commencement and offer sage words of advice. This year’s speaker was Dr. Marvin Caruthers, a celebrated faculty member of CU Biochemistry and a visionary global leader in his field, responsible for founding several important biotechnology companies through the years and inspiring revolutionary discoveries in RNA and DNA technologies and methodologies.
2024 Graduating Class By the Numbers
In academic year 2023/2024 the Department of Biochemistry congratulated 8 students receiving a Ph.D. degree, 2 students receiving an M.S., and 63 students receiving BA degrees, with nearly 30% of those receiving Honors.
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2024 Undergraduate Student Successes
Undergraduate scholarships are crucial for our department as they allow us to recognize outstanding student achievements and let our students know that they are appreciated. In recent conversations, we found that these scholarships provide a bit of breathing room so students can get involved with extracurricular opportunities and be more social with their classmates. Increased unrestricted donations have allowed for the department to recognize additional, merit-worthy students who may not fit the specific scholarship criteria.
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2024 Biochemistry Scholarships - A Beneficial and Impressive Increase!
2024 Scholarship Awards Dinner
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CU Boulder Biochemistry Giving + Engagement
CU Boulder Biochemistry is investing in you – our community – and would like to feature news and other information about our alumni and friends directly on the website! Please visit our newly launched Biochemistry alumni and friends page and join us on LinkedIn via either our JUST LAUNCHED - CU Boulder Biochemistry Alumni & Friends Network for all alumni or P2P Alumni Network serving Ph.D. alumni - or join both networks!
And if you have news you’d like to share or would be willing to be featured in one of our profiles or feel you have fellow alumni who should be featured, reach out toÌýbchmundergrad@colorado.edu.
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We hope all of our alumni and friends will continue to be involved and even consider supporting us in a way that is meaningful to you. All levels of support are helpful!Ìý