Cornelia Denson Gillyard Organic Chemist By Christian Mclawery

Childhood Cornelia Denson was born on February 1, 1941, in the town of Talladega, Alabama, the oldest of three children. Her father, Frank Denson, worked in the steel industry; her mother worked part-time as a nurse, in addition to volunteering in church and community organizations. An avid student, Denson found her high school science courses fascinating, and she devoted her free time to studying advanced concepts with her chemistry teacher. After graduating as valedictorian of her class, she chose to continue her education at Talladega College, both because of its excellent reputation and because it was close enough to allow her to live at home and save money.

Deciding her Career When she started college, Denson planned to major in biology. Within a year, a chemistry teacher had convinced her to switch her major to chemistry. Her work in chemistry, however, integrated her interest in biology. Denson loved the experimental research carried out in this new laboratory, and her enthusiasm led her back to graduate school. She attended Clark Atlanta University, graduating with her Master's Degree in Organic Chemistry in 1973. She attended Clark Atlanta University, graduating with her Master's Degree in Organic Chemistry in 1973. Her thesis project was a study to determine the chemistry and function of vitamin B12. She returned to Columbus, working now at the Battelle Memorial Institute on developing compounds that would turn sunlight into electricity. She stayed only for a year; in 1974, she married and moved back to Atlanta.

Cornelia Gillyard Within three years she was back in school, entering a specially designed chemical education program at Clark Atlanta University. While working on her doctoral dissertation, she began teaching at Spelman College, a private women's college in Atlanta. She taught organic chemistry, as well as chemistry courses for nonscience majors. After receiving her doctorate in 1980, Gillyard joined the faculty at Spelman, where she was named an associate professor. Lab in the "clean room" with Dr. Gary Mankey discussing thin film processing. (L-R) Rosalie Richards, Sher Kannar, Cornelia Gillyard, Dr.Gary Mankey, "Sam" Subramaniam all dressed up for "clean room" work.

Job description Organic chemistry is the science of designing, synthesizing, characterizing, and developing applications for molecules that contain carbon. Organic chemists create and study organic compounds, the reactions that produce them, and their chemical and physical properties. They create and explore new uses for new or existing organic materials. They carry out synthesis reactions and isolations in a laboratory environment using sophisticated instruments such as nuclear magnetic resonance; gas and liquid chromatography; and infrared, ultraviolet, and visible spectroscopy.

Education requirement In R&D, most bachelor-level organic chemists work "at the bench" in a laboratory setting, often working as part of a team with masters and doctoral scientists or engineers. The higher the degree, the greater the responsibility, so the PhD scientist will usually have over-all responsibility for the project's content and direction. But many bachelor's chemists work independently and all can advance in responsibility and pay commensurate with acquired experience.

Award The ACS Committee on Minority Affairs selected Dr. Cornelia Gillyard, Professor of Chemistry at Spelman College, as the 2009 recipient of the ACS Stanley C. Israel Regional Award for Advancing Diversity in the Chemical Sciences for the Southeastern Region . Dr. Gillyard’s work has been recognized with the Spelman College Presidential Award for Outstanding Service and the NOBCCHE Henry C. McBay Outstanding Teacher Award.

Mentoring Dr. Gillyard has served in various administrative capacities, including Department Chair, Associate Provost for Science Programs and Policy, Director of the Health Careers Program, and Director of Spelman’s Women in Science and Engineering program She has served in several roles, particularly with Women Chemists Committee and the Committee on Minority Affairs. She has mentored more than thirty students in directed research; twenty three of these students have gone on to earn advanced degrees, including six PhD’s , three PhD candidates, six MD’s, three DDS degrees, one PharmD graduate and five M.S. degrees. Gillyard’s formal mentoring activities also include service with several programs, including the NASA Women in Science and Engineering (WISE Scholars), the ACS Scholars Program and the Exxon Mobil Scholars Program.

Significance of Work Cornelia Gillyard work is very important because not only is she a teacher but she also love mentoring students. Her love for teaching has been demonstrated through all of her students. Most of the students who Cornelia Gillyard have inspired have went on and received degrees of all kinds. The Class of 2001 consisted of 24 participants representing 17 different HBCU colleges. 

Impact On My Life Cornelia Gillyard have made a great impact on my life because she is a selfless person who have helped many students succeed. To me when people mentor and help others they have a good heart because a selfish person only thinks of their self. I think their should be more people like Mrs.Gillyard because our world will be filled with more smart and talented people.

Internet sources www.chemistry.gsu.edu www.answer.com Book.google.com