The Team
Postdoctoral fellows
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Eva Maria Alvarez-Pari, Ph. D.
Postdoctoral Fellow (joined August 2022)
Ph.D. Chemistry, Max Planck Institute, 2022
(with Professor Tobias Ritter)
M.S. Chemistry, University of Oxford (with Professor Michael Willis)
and Friedrich-Alexander-Universität (with Professor Markus Heinrich)
I was born in Bolivia and I am interested in the discovery of new synthetic methodologies to tackle current issues in organic synthesis for the development of valuable building blocks for drug discovery. I am a Lindau Alumni who has selected to participate in 2017 for the Nobel Laurate Meeting in Chemistry. Through an ERASMUS fellowship, I moved to Europe to pursue my Masters degree in chemistry where I conducted research in the laboratories of Prof. Willis at the University of Oxford and Prof. Heinrich at the Friedrich-Alexander-Universität. I then moved to the Max Planck Institute for Organic Synthesis where I obtained my PhD under the mentorship of Prof. Ritter. I joined the Malapit group to work at the interface of organometallic chemistry and electrocatalysis for the discovery of novel organic reactions. Outside the lab, I am interested in hiking and outdoor activities or traveling.
Jake Evans, Ph. D.
🇺🇸
Postdoctoral Fellow (joined August 2024)
Ph.D. Chemistry, California Institute of Technology, 2024
(with Prof. Nate Lewis)
B.S. Chemistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 2019
(with Prof. James Cahoon)
Jake grew up in Fuguay-Varina, NC before attending UNC-Chapel Hill fro college, where he gained a love for college basketball. Jake performed research in the lab of Jim Cahoon while at UNC, then decided to continue his education, earning his PhD from Caltech in 2024 working in the lab of Nate Lewis. Jake joined the Malapit lab at Northwestern and is excited to use his expertise in materials and mechanistic electrochemistry to solve challenging problems in organic synthesis and energy/CO2 storage. Jake enjoys science outreach, especially at the K-8 level, and outside of lab can usually be found cooking up something new in the kitchen.
Contact: john.evans@northwestern.edu
Graduate students (PhD in Chemistry)
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Stella Fors
Graduate student (joined Fall 2021)
stellafors2026@u.northwestern.edu
2024 Mirzayan Fellow, National Academy of Sciences
2024 ACS CIBA Award in Green Chemistry
NSF GRFP, Honorable mention, 2021
B.S. Chemistry, 2020
University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)
Research with Prof. Hosea Nelson
Stella grew up near San Francisco and escaped the Bay Area gloom by moving to Los Angeles to pursue her undergraduate degree at UCLA. While at UCLA, she researched Au-mediated catalysis under Professor Hosea Nelson. After graduating in 2020, Stella worked as a polymer chemist at HRL Laboratories in Malibu. In 2021, she started her PhD at Northwestern. When she's not in lab, you can find her trail running, practicing yoga, spending time with her cat, and getting together with friends.
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An Kitamura
Graduate student (joined Fall 2021)
Quad Fellow by Schmidt Futures, 2023
B.S. Chemistry, 2021
Carleton College
Research with Prof. Deborah Gross
I'm from Kanagawa, Japan. My research interests are in organic and electrochemistry. In the Malapit group at Northwestern, I'm currently working on the design and synthesis of redox-active organic molecules for potential application energy storage technology. Outside of research, I enjoy photography and ice skating.
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Emily Mahoney
Graduate student (joined Fall 2021)
emilymahoney2026@u.northwestern.edu
2024 ACS ENFL Research Award, Gold Prize
B.S. Chemistry, 2021
Rochester Institute of Technology
Research with Prof. Hans Schmitthenner
Emily is from Cazenovia, a small town in upstate New York that is centered around an even smaller lake. When she is home she loves to swim, hike, climb and take her dog on walks. Emily attended Rochester Institute of Technology where she earned her bachelors degree in chemistry in 2021. At RIT, she focused on the synthesis of dyes utilized as cancer imaging agents. After taking a summer to travel and scuba dive, she came to Northwestern to begin her PhD. In the Malapit group, Emily is working on organic redox flow batteries and is very excited to be doing something that contributes to sustainable energy use in the future.
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Griffin Stewart
Graduate student (joined Fall 2022)
griffinstewart2027@u.northwestern.edu
B.S. Chemistry, 2021
Georgia Institute of Technology
Research with Prof. Seth Marder
I am a small town Southerner-turned-city person. My interest in chemistry ignited late in my high school days at the Mississippi School for Math and Science, and I have gained a special interest in sustainability, watching what pollution and climate change driven catastrophes have done to my home region in the deep south/Gulf of Mexico. In my free time, I enjoy cooking, brewing mead, painting my place with my high school sweetheart, and playing bridge.
🇨🇳
Jessica Zhong
Graduate student (joined Fall 2022)
weiyuzhong2027@u.northwestern.edu
B.A. Chemistry, 2022
Colgate University
Research with Prof. Ernest Nolen
Jessica spent her childhood in Chengdu, Hong Kong, and Charlotte, NC. She earned her bachelor's in Chemistry at Colgate University, where she focused on the synthesis of Tn antigen mimics for glycoconjugate cancer vaccine development. Beginning a new chapter of her life at Northwestern, Jessica is excited to be working on reaction discovery using the powerful tools of organometallic chemistry, organic synthesis, and electrocatalysis. Besides chemistry, Jessica is also passionate about ballet, ice skating, and late night karaoke.
Visiting research scholars
Diego Rojas
Graduate student, Year 0 (Summer 2024)
Northwestern University
BS in Chemistry, 2024
University of Michigan
Research with Prof. Alison Narayan
Diego is from Rockville, Maryland, and received his BS in Chemistry from the University of Michigan. During his time in Ann Arbor, he worked in the lab of Professor Alison Narayan harnessing biocatalytic oxidations for total synthesis. Outside of the lab, he enjoys watching sports and swimming.
Undergraduate students
Rossul Aldhufari
Undergraduate researcher (joined Winter 2022)
rossulaldhufari2025@u.northwestern.edu
BS in Chemistry (class of 2025)
Northwestern University
Arch Scholar and Posner Fellow, 2022
SURG Fellow, 2023
Chris Rapala
Undergraduate researcher (joined Summer 2023)
christopherrapala2026@u.northwestern.edu
BS in Chemistry (class of 2026)
Northwestern University
ACS DOC SURF Award, 2024
I'm a Northwestern undergraduate from West Dundee, a small town in the Chicago suburbs, so Evanston and nearby Chicago is familiar but much more accessible, which is exciting. I've always known I would be in chemistry since the early days of baking soda and vinegar volcanoes; furthering my exploration of the field has proven extremely valuable. Seeing the application of the chemical techniques in solving real-world problems is definitely one of my favorite parts of chemistry, especially organic chemistry. Hands-on, precise work like this is also what I love to do in my time off--I dabble in baking and gardening, but I also enjoy being an actor and audience member for Northwestern theatre.
Ian Vanswearingen
Undergraduate researcher (joined Winter 2022)
ian.vanswearingen@northwestern.edu
BS in Chemistry; BS in Physics (class of 2025)
University of Illinois at Chicago
Come join us!
We are looking for talented graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and undergraduate researchers. We are located along the shore of Lake Michigan and about 10 miles north of downtown Chicago.
Interested postdoctoral applicants should send an email to Christian with a cover letter and CV with contact information of at least two references.
Prospective graduate students should apply to the PhD program in Chemistry at Northwestern.
Undergraduate students looking for a research experience should email Christian with their resume.
Former members
Former postdocs and graduate students:
Dr. Maxime Boudjelel
Postdoctoral Fellow (March 2022 – April 2024)
Current: Scientist, Merck
Postdoctoral scholar, UC Riverside, 2020-2022 (with Professor Richard Schrock)
Ph.D. Molecular Chemistry, Université Paul Sabatier, 2019
Jia Yap, MS
BS/MS student (Jan 2022 – May 2024)
BS/MS in Chemistry (class of 2024)
Northwestern University
Current: Scientist, Petronas, Malaysia
Mohammed Ullah, MS
Graduate student (Dec 2022 – Nov 2023)
Former visiting scholars and undergraduate students
Jinxiao Li
Visiting undergraduate scholar (July 2023 – May 2024)
Current: PhD Student, University of Minnesota
Henry Shavel
Undergraduate researcher (Jan 2022 – May 2024)
BS in Chemistry (class of 2024)
Lorenzo Ballerini
ERASMUS Visiting scholar (Jan–July 2023)
Current: PhD student, University of Sheffield
Dr. Yanqin He
Visiting Scholar (Feb 2022 - April 2023)
Current: Lecturer
Liaocheng University, China
Robert (Min) Reynolds
Research Assistant (Summer 2022)
Current: Graduate Student
Kanatzidis Group
Northwestern University
Stephonda Lewis
NIH MARC Fellow, Visiting Scholar (Summer 2022)
Current: BS Biomedical Sciences and Chemistry (senior)
Research with Professor Kyle Lambert
Mira Goldstein
High school research intern (Summer 2022)
from North Shore Country Day
Current: BS Chemistry student
Rice University
Research with Professor Raul Hernandez Sanchez
Daniel Thomas
Current: BS in Chemistry & Integrated Science Program
(class of 2025)
Northwestern University
Baker Research Scholar and SURG Fellow
Izzy Huang
Undergraduate researcher (Jan to June 2022)
Current: BS in Chemical Engineering (class of 2025)
Northwestern University