UNCW Alumni Receive Pharmaceutical Chemistry Fellowships

Three UNCW alumni have been awarded fellowships in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry’s Pharmaceutical Chemistry doctoral program. Caitlyn Agee, Sarah Barr and Jared Wood are the first cohort of doctoral fellows for Pharmaceutical Chemistry.

Agee, the Maravai LifeSciences Fellow in Pharmaceutical Chemistry, is a rising fourth-year doctoral student studying under the guidance of Dr. R. Thomas Williamson in the Drug DISCOvery group. She earned a bachelor’s in biology with a minor in chemistry from UNCW. The focus of Agee’s research involves leveraging NMR spectroscopy and computational chemistry techniques for the structure elucidation of a variety of compounds ranging from synthetic small molecules to cyclic peptide natural products isolated from marine cyanobacteria.

Barr is the recipient of the Alcami Corporation Leadership Fellowship in Pharmaceutical Chemistry. She earned a bachelor’s in biology with a minor in chemistry from UNCW. Her doctoral thesis, in the Drug DISCOvery Lab under the guidance of Dr. Wendy Strangman, is focusing on medicinal plant based dietary supplements, applying a pharmaceutical industry-based approach to their evaluation. 

Wood, the Yousry and Linda Sayed Graduate Fellow, is a fifth-year graduate student pursuing a doctorate in the research laboratory of Dr. R. Thomas Williamson. He earned his bachelor’s in chemistry from UNCW. Wood enriched his post-baccalaureate studies with a nine-month internship/co-op at Merck & Co. Inc. Wood’s research focuses on the structure elucidation of natural and synthetic products.

“The department is excited to honor these talented doctoral students with research fellowships made possible by generous donations,” said Dr. Jeremy Morgan, chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. “Support that allows for enhanced research focus is vital to student success and program growth.”

UNCW launched the pharmaceutical chemistry doctoral program in 2023, and eight students are currently enrolled. The program prepares students for careers in academia and in the private sector as scientists for pharmaceutical companies and related chemical industries. UNCW also offers bachelor’s degrees in both chemistry and biochemistry, along with the master’s in chemistry.