The Distinguished Honors College Alumni Award is designed to recognize a Kent State graduate for his/her ongoing professional success and contributions to his/her community, Kent State University and the Honors College. Nomination forms are now available and are accepted at any time for future consideration.  Questions?  Contact Kim Brown, Coordinator of Alumni Relations.

2007 Sheryl Tucker

Dr. Sheryl Tucker, a 1990 graduate of Kent State University’s Honors College who now teaches at the University of Missouri-Columbia, has certainly been an invaluable contributor to the field of chemistry over the course of her distinguished career. During her undergraduate years, Professor Tucker majored in chemistry in hopes of one day attending law school. If it weren’t for the opportunity to participate in a research lab, she might very well have become a corporate attorney. Under the guidance of Professors Ken Street and William Acree, Professor Tucker gained an appreciation for academic research in chemistry and decided to pursue an academic career instead. She credits Professor Acree for exposing her to the possibilities that a doctoral research degree could provide. As an undergraduate, Dr. Tucker also garnered numerous awards and honors such as the Kent State University Undergraduate Award in Analytical Chemistry and the I. M. Kolthoff Enrichment Award, given to her by the American Chemical Society’s Analytical Division in 1989. After her graduation, Dr. Tucker proceeded to follow Professor Acree to the University of North Texas, where she earned her Ph.D in 1994. Dr. Tucker then went on to work for Duke University, where she contributed her expertise as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow until 1996.

Throughout her years as a scholar and professor, Dr. Tucker has been a renowned contributor to the scientific community. She is a member of the Society for Applied Spectroscopy, the American Chemical Society, and the Association for Women in Science. As an assistant professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Dr. Tucker contributed both to science and society by developing “The Magic of Chemistry” Program for Mid-MO Junior Girl Scouts, a hands-on, inquiry-based educational program designed to foster girls’ interest in science. In 2002, Dr. Tucker was given the ChemLuminary Award by the American Chemical Society Women Chemists Committee for “The Magic of Chemistry,” which was declared the “Best Single Event in a Local Section Promoting Women in Chemistry.” Three years later in 2005, Dr. Tucker was given the prestigious Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, Engineering Mentoring, a program supported and administered by the National Science Foundation, for her mentoring of middle-school girls through female college students studying science; she was one of ten nationally-selected recipients. Over 2,400 girls and 1,100 volunteers have participated in her outreach program.

Dr. Sheryl Tucker’s research interests include fundamental and applied studies that involve complex systems ranging from organized media to nanomaterials to biological and environmental substances. She is the author of over 90 scholarly articles, including a record-setting 20 written as an Honors student at Kent State University.

She has commented that as an undergraduate, Professor Acree instilled in her the confidence she needed to succeed. She is a firm believer that students need the type of mentorship she shared with her professors in order to realize their full potential, and today, she advocates keeping undergraduate research accessible to all students. As an associate professor at the University of Missouri-Columbia, she continues to keep strong ties with Kent State University by annually adopting a senior Honors thesis student.

Previous Distinguished Alumni Award Recipients

2006     Hugh B. Stewart

2005     Nora C. Jacobs

2004     Mary C. Peschel-Herlehy

2003    Michael C. Kelley

2002    Thomas A. Stauffer

2001     William H. Hildebrand

2000     Jacquelyn Weygandt White

1999     Catherine McMillan Teti

1998     Geraldine Wojno Kiefer

1997     Edgar L. McCormick