Iona College Chemistry Students Receive Honor at New York American Chemical Society Symposium

New Rochelle, NY (March, 2011) Two Iona College Chemistry seniors have won a prize for best poster presentation at a recent New York - American Chemical Society (NY-ACS) symposium. The students, Paul J. Sanstead and Nick Florio, presented on their research work titled "Effect of cationic surfactant template and its interaction with specific anion: The case of K2SO4 crystallization at the liquid-liquid interface," at the Inaugural NY ACS Younger Chemist Committee (YCC) Research Symposium at The Cooper Union, New York, NY on Saturday, March 19, 2011. The prize is given for both the quality of the scientific investigation represented by the poster, and for skill in presentation. Their work was performed under the mentorship of Dr. Sunghee Lee, chair of Iona's Chemistry department. "Nick and Paul's achievement mark a milestone in the upward trajectory of Iona Chemistry. People are beginning to take notice of how we integrate undergraduate students and research, and I am especially proud of how well they represented our efforts," said Dr. Lee.

Photo Caption Left to Right: Iona College Seniors, Paul Sanstead and Nick Florio winners for best poster presentation at New York - American Chemical Society symposium.

Paul Sanstead also recently received a distinction on his senior honors thesis, "Effect of Specific Anion on Templated Crystal Nucleation at the Liquid--Liquid Interface" (Dr. S. Lee, advisor/mentor). "Paul is a rare student who is more than deserving of this honor. He will graduate with two peer reviewed articles to his name - a rare and impressive accomplishment for any undergraduate. Paul is currently looking at graduate school options and we are confident he will be as successful in those endeavors as he has been during his undergraduate career," said Dr. Jeanne Zaino, director of the Honors Program.

Founded in 1940, Iona College is a four-year private, coeducational institution of learning in the tradition of the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers and American Catholic higher education. It is a diverse community of learners and scholars dedicated to academic excellence and the values of justice, peace and service. Iona offers undergraduate degrees in liberal arts, science, and business administration, as well as Master of Arts, Master of Science and Master of Business Administration degrees and numerous advanced certificate programs.

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Dawn Insanalli
Public Relations Office
Iona College, 715 North Avenue, New Rochelle, N.Y. 10801
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