aerial view of Western's campus at night, with golden lights surrounded by dark trees

WWU's Chemistry Department receives a 2024 Jean Dreyfus Lectureship grant

The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation has announced eight new grants in the Jean Dreyfus Lectureship for Undergraduate Institutions program, with one of the eight grants going to Western Washington University's Chemistry Department.

The Jean Dreyfus Lectureship awards provide a $25,000 grant to bring a leading researcher to a primarily undergraduate institution to give at least two lectures in the chemical sciences. One of the lectures should be accessible and promoted to a wide audience that includes the general public. The remaining lecture(s) may be more technical. The lecturer is expected to spend more than one day at the institution to substantively interact with undergraduate students and a broad range of faculty over the period of the visit. 

A portion of the award is to support two undergraduates in summer research. The undergraduates engaged in summer research are expected to work with mentors in contemporary chemistry.

“We are proud to host a Dreyfus Lecturer for a third time,” said WWU Professor of Chemistry James Vyvyan, who wrote the proposal for the award, “And the summer research stipends provide invaluable research opportunities to our outstanding students.”  

The anticipated lecturer will be Professor Cathleen Crudden, A.V. Douglas Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in metal organic chemistry at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, who is tentatively scheduled to be on campus Feb. 20-21, 2025. More information about Crudden's lecture will be released as the lecture nears.  

About the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation

The purpose of the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, Inc., is to advance the science of chemistry, chemical engineering, and related sciences as a means of improving human relations and circumstances throughout the world. Established in 1946 by chemist, inventor, and businessman Camille Dreyfus as a memorial to his brother Henry, the Foundation became a memorial to both men when Camille Dreyfus died in 1956. Throughout its history the Foundation has sought to take the lead in identifying and addressing needs and opportunities in the chemical sciences through a series of programs and awards.