Department of Chemistry

Group Picture

Recent News

April 12, 2024

Postdoctoral Scholar Dr. Sourav Kanti Seth Among those Awarded the American Society for Photobiology Urbach Student Travel Award

Congratulations to Sourav for receiving the Urbach Student Travel Award to present his research work at the 42nd American Society for Photobiology Biennial Meeting in Chicago!


April 12, 2024

Graduate Student Chris Acquah Among those Awarded the American Society for Photobiology Urbach Student Travel Award

Congratulations to Chris for receiving the Urbach Student Travel Award to present his research work at the 42nd American Society for Photobiology Biennial Meeting in Chicago!


April 10, 2024

The Crespo Group Celebrates Graduate Students Nitza V. Falcón-Cruz and Karitza Díaz-González Accomplishments

Congratulations to Nitza and Karitza for receiving a 2024 NSF-GRFP award and Honarable Mentions, respectively!

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April 10, 2024

Memebers of the Crespo Group Watch the Solar Eclipse Together

A one-in-a-lifetime experience!

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April 4, 2024

Graduate Student Nitza V. Falcón-Cruz Among those Awarded the 2024 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship

Congratulations to Nitza for receiving the most prestigious graduate student award given from the National Sceince Foundation!

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April 4, 2024

Graduate Student Karitza Díaz-González Among those Receiving Honorable Mentions for the 2024 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship

Congratulations to Karitza for receiving Honorable Mentions from the the National Sceince Foundation!

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April 1, 2024

Postdoctoral Scholar Reshma Mathew joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Reshma. We wish you great success in your research work.


March 19, 2024

Special Issue Edited by Prof. Crespo Featured on the Front Cover of P&P

The Editorial is part of a Special Issue on "Nucleic Acid Photophysics" published in Photochemistry and Photobiology. High resolution copy of the cover art.

Newletter


December 11, 2023

Graduate Student Nitza Falcón joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Nitza. We wish you great success in your graduate education.


December 11, 2023

Graduate Student Tazrin Islam Tonny joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Tazrin. We wish you great success in your graduate education.


December 7, 2023

Crespo Group Paper Featured on the Front Cover of JPCL

Congratulations to Sean, Sarah, Michael, and Erqian for the cover art.

Newletter


August 19, 2022

Visiting Undergraduate Student Presents at CanSUR

Onel Ortiz was featured in the CanSUR Newsletter. Congratulations, Onel!

Newletter


February 25, 2021

Graduate Student Sarah E. Krul Presents Four-Year Seminar

Congratulations to Sarah for a successful presentation of her seminar. The video recording of the seminar can be accessed here.


February 25, 2021

Graduate Student Luis A. Ortiz-Rodríguez Presents Four-Year Seminar

Congratulations to Luis for a successful presentation of his seminar. The video recording of the seminar can be accessed here.


February 18, 2021

Graduate Student Sean J. Hoehn Presents Four-Year Seminar

Congratulations to Sean for a successful presentation of his seminar. The video recording of the seminar can be accessed here.


February 18, 2021

Graduate Student Naishka E. Caldero-Rodríguez Presents Four-Year Seminar

Congratulations to Naishka for a successful presentation of her seminar. The video recording of the seminar can be accessed here.


February 10, 2021

Collaborative Work Published in Nature

The research work titled The Kinetic Landscape of an RNA Binding Protein in Cells was a collaboration with Jankowsky and Licatalosi groups from the Center for RNA Science and Therapeutics and the Department of Biochemistry, CWRU School of Medicine. Photo credit: Alexa Jankowsky

Cover Image

January 27, 2021

Undergraduate Student Grace Sleyko joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Grace. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


January 1, 2021

Dr. Crespo Joins the Team of Associate Editors of Photochemistry and Photobiology

Congratulations to Dr. Crespo for becoming Associate Editor of the journal of the American Society for Photobiology, Photochemistry and Photobiology.


December 18, 2020

Graduate Student Chris Acquah joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Chris. We wish you great success in your graduate education.


November 4, 2020

Research Article, 'Thionated Organic Compounds as Emerging Heavy-Atom-Free Photodynamic Therapy Agents', Showcased in the Chemical Science Journal

The research work was highlighted with the Inside Back Cover image and features a Minireview by graduate student Luis A. Ortiz-Rodríguez published recently in Chemical Science, the flagship journal of the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Cover Image

August 19, 2020

Graduate Student Luis A. Ortiz-Rodríguez work Featured in The Daily

Luis' work titled, "Detection of the thietane precursor in the UVA formation of the DNA 6-4 photoadduct", was featured in The Daily. Congratulations to Luis!


July 31, 2020

Undergraduate Student Collin Merrick Presents at CWRU Virtual Intersections

Collin's presentation is titled, "Photophysical Properties of Potential Topical Photodynamic Therapy Agent 6-Selenoguanine", and can be watched here. Excellent work, Collin!


July 27, 2020

Crespo Group Article Featured by the Editors of Nature Communications

The article titled, "Detection of the thietane precursor in the UVA formation of the DNA 6-4 photoadduct", was featured in a dedicated Editors' Highlights webpage.

Here is a summary of the Nature Communications article:

Award


July 17, 2020

Former Crespo Group Member Brennan Ashwood Selected as the Recipient for the 2020 ASP Editor's Student Research Award

This award honors an individual who has published outstanding research as a first author in Photochemistry & Photobiology, the official journal of American Society for Photobiology (ASP), within three years of being nominated for the award. Congratulations to Brennan for winning this prestigious award. You can read Brennan's contribution here: Photochemical and Photodynamical Properties of Sulfur‐Substituted Nucleic Acid Bases.


June 12, 2020

Graduate Student Luis A. Ortiz-Rodríguez Among those Awarded with the Gratuate Teaching Award

Congratulations to Luis for receiving a Graduate Teaching Award.

Award


May 22, 2020

Graduate Student Naishka Caldero-Rodríguez Among those Awarded with the Dumitru and George D. Mateescu Student Citizenship Award

Congratulations to Naishka for receiving the Dumitru and George D. Mateescu Student Citizenship Award.

Award


March 9, 2020

Sean Hoehn Wins Best Graduate Student Oral Presentation at the ACS 2020 MIM

Congratulations to Sean for winning one of the best graduate student oral presentations at the ACS 2020 Meeting in Miniature. Job well done!


January 28, 2020

Invited Review Article by the Crespo Group Among the Top Cited Papers in P&P between 2018-2019

Congratulations to Brennan Ashwood and Marvin Pollum for this accomplishment! Their article, Photochemical and Photodynamical Properties of Sulfur‐Substituted Nucleic Acid Bases, published in Photochemistry & Photobiology, is one of the journal's top cited papers between January 2018 and December 2019!

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December 20, 2019

Naishka Caldero-Rodríguez Selected for a YCC ACS Leadership Development Award

The Younger Chemists Committee (YCC) of the American Chemical Society (ACS) has selected Naishka for a Leadership Development Award to support your participation in the YCC Leadership Development Workshop in Atlanta, Georgia. Congratulations to Naishka for this great accomplishment.


June 6, 2019

Recent Invited Review Article by the Crespo Group Among the Top 20 Downloaded Papers in 2017-2018

Congratulations to Brennan Ashwood and Marvin Pollum for this accomplishment! Their article, Photochemical and Photodynamical Properties of Sulfur‐Substituted Nucleic Acid Bases, published in Photochemistry and Photobiology, is one of the journal's top downloaded papers between January 2017 and December 2018!

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April 30, 2019

Graduate Students Sean Hoehn and Luis Ortiz-Rodríguez Among those Awarded with the Dumitru and George D. Mateescu Student Citizenship Award

Congratulations to Sean and Luis for receiving the Dumitru and George D. Mateescu Student Citizenship Award at the Academy Awards Luncheon

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April 19, 2019

Graduate Students Naishka Caldero-Rodríguez, Sean Hoehn, and Luis Ortiz-Rodríguez Present at Case Research ShowCase

From left to right: Naishka Caldero-Rodríguez, Sean Hoehn, and Luis Ortiz-Rodríguez

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Naishka discussing her poster

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Sean ready to talk about his work

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December 31, 2018

A New Milestone for The Crespo Group

In 2018, the research published by the group reached for the first time a rate of 500 citations/year!

The Crespo Group Citation Distribution by Year:

The Crespo Group


December 5, 2018

Graduate Student Cameron Griffith joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Cameron. We wish you great success in your graduate education.


April 10, 2018

Dr. Crespo Received the 2018 Morton L. Mandel Award for Oustanding Chemistry Faculty

Congratulations to Dr. Crespo for receiving the 2018 Mandel Award.

Morton Mandel and Carlos Crespo after lunch ceremony:

Crespo and Mandel


November 20, 2017

Graduate Student Luis Ortiz-Rodríguez joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Luis. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


November 20, 2017

Graduate Student Sean Hoehn joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Sean. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


November 20, 2017

Graduate Student Naishka Caldero Rodríguez joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Naishka. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


May 31, 2017

Dr. Crespo's Academic and Research Accomplishments Highlighted in the Art|Sci Magazine

Here is the link to the full article.


November 16, 2016 to November, 2017

Group News To be Updated

Group news during this time period will be added in the near futere. Stay tune!


November 15, 2016

Graduate Student Marvin Pollum Completed Successfully the Dissertation for Doctor of Philosophy Degree

Congratulations to Marvin, or should we say Dr. Pollum, for this superb accomplishment in his professional career. We thank you for all the contributions that you have made to the Crespo Group and for raising the bar for the next generation of graduate students. We wish you great success in your future endeavors.

1. Marvin in the champagne uncork and signing ceremony!

Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo

2. Dr. Pollum and Dr. Crespo

Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo

3. Group and Family Celebration: Cheers!

Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo


July 28, 2016

Research work on the 'Photochemical Etiology of Promising Ancestors of the RNA Nucleobases' Showcase in PCCP

The research work of graduate students Matthew Brister and Marvin Pollum published recently in a themed collection on the "Prebiotic Chemistry and the Molecular Origins of Life" was highlighted by the Royal Society of Chemistry in the Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics journal with the journal's back cover image.

Cover Image

April 26, 2016

Graduate Student Marvin Pollum Wins Student Citizenship Award

The award was presented by the Department of Chemistry during the Undergraduate Academic Awards Luncheon. Congrats to Marvin, well deserved!

Marvin Pollum


April 26, 2016

Undergraduate Student Brennan Ashwood Wins the W. R. Veazey Prize

The award was presented by the Department of Chemistry during the Undergraduate Academic Awards Luncheon. The W. R. Veazey Prize is given for Excellence in Physical Chemistry. Congrats to Brennan, well done!

Brennan


April 23, 2016

Dr. Crespo Named the 2015-2016 John S. Diekhoff Award for Graduate Teaching Recipient

The award was highlighted in the Daily. The John S. Diekhoff Award is presented to four full-time faculty members who make exemplary contributions to the education and development of graduate students at Case Western Reserve University. The award was created in honor of John Diekhoff, who served in several capacities during his tenure here. From 1956 to 1970, he served as professor of English, chair of the Department of English, dean of Cleveland College, acting dean of the School of Graduate Studies and vice provost of the university. In 1978, the university created the award to recognize outstanding contributions to the education of graduate students through advising, mentoring, and classroom teaching. Initially, the award was presented to two full-time faculty members who serve as outstanding mentors to graduate students, connect them with experts in their discipline, engage them academically, and actively promote their professional development. In 2009, the award was expanded to recognize two full-time faculty members who excel in the teaching of graduate students. The award is sponsored by the Graduate Student Senate and School of Graduate Studies. A committee of graduate and professional students reviews the nominations and recommends the winners.


April 15, 2016

Undergraduate Student Brennan Ashwood Winner First Place Undergraduate Oral Presentation in Physical Chemistry

Congratulations Brennan for winning the first palce in the undergraduate oral presentation in physical chemistry at the ACS Meeting in Miniature!


April 1, 2016

Undergraduate Student Brennan Ashwood have been awarded a 2016 Caltech SURF fellowship

Congratulations Brennan!


March 23, 2016

Dr. Crespo Receives 2016 ACS Project SEED Summer I Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of seven high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. This is the seventh consecutive year that Dr. Crespo has received funding from the ACS SEED Program to coordinate this program at CWRU.


March 23, 2016

Dr. Crespo Receives 2016 ACS Project SEED Summer II Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of five high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. The Project SEED Summer II Program supports the research work of high school students that have participated in Project SEED Summer I Programs at CWRU. This is the sixth consecutive year in a raw that Dr. Crespo has received funding to coordinate the Summer II research program at CWRU.


February 8, 2016

Undergraduate Student Kieran Farrell joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Kieran. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


January 25, 2016

Dr. Crespo Nominated for the 2016 John S. Diekhoff Award for Distinguished Graduate Student Teaching

Dr. Crespo was recently nominated for the 2016 John S. Diekhoff Award for Distinguished Graduate Student Teaching. This award recognizes outstanding contributions to the education of graduate students at CWRU through work in the classroom.


December 12, 2015

Dr. Crespo Invited to Serve as the Guest Editor for a High-Profile Special Issue to be Published in Molecules

The topic of the Special Issue is "Experimental and Computational Photochemistry of Bioorganic Molecules" and the deadline for manuscript submissions is October 15, 2016.


December 11, 2015

Undergraduate Student Brennan Ashwood Received Second Place in the Undergraduate Poster Competition at Intersections: SOURCE Symposium and Poster Session

Congratulations to Brennan for job well done!


December 4, 2015

Dr. Crespo is invited to present an oral presenttion at the 47th American Chemical Society Central Regional Meeting

The title of Dr. Crespo presentation is "Early Events in the Photochemistry of Nucleic Acid Bases". The invited talk was presented as part of the Frontiers in Nucleic Acids Chemistry symposia at the 47th American Chemical Society Central Regional Meeting, Northern Kentucky, Covington, KY; May 18-21, 2016.


December 4, 2015

Undergraduate Student Brennan Ashwood to be Nominated by CWRU to the National Competition of the Barry Goldwater Scholarship

Brennan received one of the four Barry Goldwater nominations from the university and will now be entering the national competition. Congratulations Brennan! The Crespo Group wish you success in this national competition!


December 3, 2015

Graduate Student Glesmarie Ortíz-Zayas joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Glesmarie. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


November 9, 2015

Dr. Crespo Invited to Present a Talk at The Power of Diversity Lectures Series at CWRU

Dr. Crespo will present a talk tittle "Diversity in the Physical Sciences: A Personal Journey" organized by the Office for Inclusion, Diversity and Equal Opportunity at Case Western Reserve University.

The Crespo Group Poster


November 7, 2015

Graduate Student Marvin Pollum Wins First Place in Elevator Pitch Competitions at CWRU

Marvin wins the first place at the Elevator Pitch Competitions organized by The Burton D. Morgan Foundation. Congratulations to Marvin for job well done!

The Crespo Group Poster


November 7, 2015

Undergraduate Student Brennan Ashwood Received First Place in the Undergraduate Poster Competition at CSIRC

Brennan Ashwood Received First Place in the Undergraduate Poster Competition at Cleveland State Interdisciplinary Research Conference. Congratulations to Brennan for job well done!


November 4, 2015

Dr. Crespo Invited to Present a Talk at the International Symposium: Sunlight-triggered DNA Lesions and Skin Cancer

Dr. Crespo will present an invited talk tittle "Ultrafast processes in DNA photochemistry" in the International Symposium: Sunlight-triggered DNA Lesions and Skin Cancer organized by the Ramón Areces Foundation at the Universitat Politècnica de València, València, Spain.


October 1, 2015

The Crespo Group Celebrates the 2015 International Year of Light

The Crespo Group Celebrates the 2015 International Year of Light with a poster display in the Kelvin Smith Library at CWRU.

The Crespo Group Poster


Here is Marvin representing the group in the Kelvin Smith Library:

Marvin representing the group at KSL


August 1, 2015

Undergraduate student Brennan Ashwood wins First Prize for Best Poster in the 2015 Astrobiology Graduate Conference (AbGradCon2015) Undergraduate Poster Competition

Brennan Ashwood


July 31, 2015

Marvin Pollum Presentation in the Astrobiology Graduate Conference 2015 Published Online

Marvin talk was titled "DNA and RNA Survival Against Harsh UV Radiation on Prebiotic Earth: Will Just Any Purine Base Do? It can be viewed here.


June 25, 2015

Marvin Pollum Wins First Prize for Best Poster in the ASP Virtual Poster Symposium

Congratulations to Marvin for wining the prize for best poster in the first American Society for Photobiology Virtual Poster Symposium. The poster is available here. Job well done!


April 28, 2015

Brennan Ashwood Wins the Merck Index Award

Congratulations to Brennan for wining the Merck Index Award for Outstanding Organic Chemistry Student in the 2015 Department of Chemistry Undergraduate Academic Awards Lunceon.


April 17, 2015

Graduate student Marvin Pollum Presents at Case Research ShowCase

Marvin Pollum


April 17, 2015

Graduate student Matt Brister Presents at Case Research ShowCase

Matt Brister


April 17, 2015

Undergraduate student Brennan Ashwood Presents at Case Research ShowCase

Brennan Ashwood


April 13, 2015

Dr. Crespo Receives 2015 ACS Project SEED Summer I Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of seven high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. This is the sixth year in a road that Dr. Crespo has received funding from the ACS SEED Program to coordinate this program at CWRU.


April 13, 2015

Dr. Crespo Receives 2015 ACS Project SEED Summer II Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of four high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. The Project SEED Summer II Program supports the research work of high school students that have participated in Project SEED Summer I Programs at CWRU. This is the third time that Dr. Crespo has received funding to coordinate the Summer II research program at CWRU.


March 12, 2015

Collaborative Research Work Accepted in JACS

The research work is titled: Electronic and Structural Elements that Regulate the Excited-State Dynamics in Purine Nucleobase Derivatives, and is part of an ongoing collaboration with the groups of Leticia González and Inés Corral at University of Vienna and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, respectively.


March 11, 2015

Marvin Pollum Wins Graduate Student Award at the ACS 2014 MIM

Congratulations to Marvin for wining one of the Graduate Student Awards at the ACS 2014 Meeting in Miniature. Job well done!


February 20, 2015

Undergraduate Student Eric Jiang joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Eric. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


December 15, 2014

Research Work of Graduate Student Marvin Pollum Accepted in JACS as Communication

Marvin's paper is titled: 2,4-Dithiothymine as a Potent UVA Chemotherapeutic Agent. Congratulations!


December 10, 2014

Hannah Jenkins and Kelsie Leary Win Second Prize at CWRU Intersections SOURCE Poster Presentation

Hannah and Kelsie won the 2nd prize in Natural Sciences & Mathematics. The title of their poster is "Oxidative Damage of DNA/RNA Nucleotides by the Folic Acid Derivative, 6-Carboxypterin, Upon UVA Exposure"; congratulations!

Here is Hannah and Kelsie presenting his poster:

Hannah & Kelsie


October 30, 2014

Dr. Crespo is invited to present an oral presenttion at the 45th American Chemical Society Central Regional Meeting

The title of Dr. Crespo presentation is "DNA Under Attack: Electronic and Structural Elements that Regulate Nucleic Acids Photostability". The invited talk was presented as part of the Diversity in Chemical Sciences symposia at the 45th American Chemical Society Central Regional Meeting, Green Tree, Pittsburgh, PA; October 29 to November 1, 2014.


August 26, 2014

Undergraduate Student Brennan Ashwood joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Brennan. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


August 24, 2014

Undergraduate Student John "Andy" Landschulz joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Andy. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


August 1, 2014

ACS Project SEED I & II Fellows Present Summer Posters

High school students and their graduate student or faculty mentors.

Luis Ortiz

2014 ACS Project SEED poster presentation.

SEED


July 31, 2014

Visiting Undergraduate Student Luis Ortiz-Rodríguez Present Poster at Intersections: Summer Poster Session

The poster is entitle "Unraveling the Photophysics of Sulfur-Substituted Nucleobases".

Here is Luis presenting his poster

Luis Ortiz


July 1, 2014

Dr. Crespo Promoted to Associate Professor of Chemistry with Tenure

Congratulations to Dr. Crespo for this achievement!


June 5, 2014

New Laser is Installed

The new laser is here and installed. Work is currently in progress to get it coupled to the ultrafast system and optimized. Thanks to The Crespo Group members for their dedication. Here is a short timeline of the work already done. Enjoy!


May 8, 2014

Graduate Student Marvin Pollum Receives the American Society for Photobiology’s Frederick Urbach Memorial Student Travel Award

Marvin received the American Society for Photobiology’s Frederick Urbach Memorial Student Travel Award to present his research work at the 37th American Society for Photobiology’s conference in San Diego, California. Congratulations!


April 29, 2014

Undergraduate student Veronica Laos Receives the 2014 Hypercube Scholar Award

Veronica received the 2014 Hypercube Scholar Award for 'outstanding senior pursuing graduate work' at the Department of Chemistry, Academic Awards Luncheon. Congratulations!


April 29, 2014

Graduate student Marvin Pollum Receives the Case Research ShowCase First Place Poster Award

Marvin received the First Place Poster Award for his poster entitled "Unraveling the Potential of Sulfur-Substituted DNA and RNA Bases as Photosensitizers" at the Department of Chemistry, Academic Awards Luncheon. The poster was presented at the 2014 Case Research ShowCase on April 18th. Congratulations!


April 18, 2014

Graduate student Marvin Pollum Presents a Poster at Case Research ShowCase

Marvin's poster is entitled "Unraveling the Potential of Sulfur-Substituted DNA and RNA Bases as Photosensitizers".

Marvin Pollum


April 11, 2014

Undergraduate students Hannah Jenkins and Kelsie Leary Receive the SOURCE P-SURG Summer Research Fellowship

Hannah and Kelsie received a summer research award from the Provost-Summer Undergraduate Research Program (P-SURG). Congratulations!


April, 2014

Briana's Research Experience Featured in the Imagine Magazine.

Briana's Summer Research Experience in the ACS Project SEED Program was Recently Featured with an Article by The Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth in the Imagine Magazine.


March 29, 2014

Dr. Crespo Receives 2014 ACS Project SEED Summer I Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of five high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. This is the fifth year in a road that Dr. Crespo has received funding from the ACS SEED Program to coordinate this program at CWRU.


March 29, 2014

Dr. Crespo Receives 2014 ACS Project SEED Summer II Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of four high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. The Project SEED Summer II Program supports the research work of high school students that have participated previously in Project SEED Summer I Programs at CWRU. This is the third time that Dr. Crespo has received funding to coordinate the Summer II research program at CWRU.


January 27, 2014

Undergraduate Student Margaret Angus joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Maggie. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


December 12, 2013

Graduate Student Regina DiScipio joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Regina. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


June 24, 2013

Dr. Crespo in the daily news.

Here is the story about his NSF-funded investigation.


June 19, 2013

Dr. Crespo is invited to present a talk at the 2013 Gordon Research Conference on Photochemistry

The title of Dr. Crespo presentation is "Excited-State Dynamics in Sulfur-Substituted DNA Base Analogues". The talk will be presented on Tuesday, July 14 at the 2013 Gordon Research Conference on Photochemistry.


June 17, 2013

High School Student Raymond Santiago joins the Crespo Research Group as ACS Project SEED Fellow

Welcome to the group, Raymond. We wish you every success in your summer research experience.


April 19, 2013

Undergraduate student Veronica Laos Present Poster at Intersections: SOURCE Symposium and Poster Sessions

The poster is entitle "Does Absorption of Ultraviolet-A Light by Folic Acid Lead to DNA Damage?".

Here is Veronica presenting her poster

Veronica Laos


April 12, 2013

Graduate student Marvin Pollum and undergraduate student Akash Adhia Present Poster at Research ShowCase

The poster is entitle "Enhancing Power Conversion Efficiency in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells by Adding DNA to the Mix".


April 12, 2013

Graduate student Huijuan Huang and undergraduate student Veronica Laos Present Poster at Research ShowCase

The poster is entitle "Excited-State Dynamics of Folic Acid and 6-Carboxypterin upon UVA Excitation".


April 12, 2013

The Crespo Group Presentation at Research ShowCase

Here are some photos of graduate students Huijuan Huang and Marvin Pollum and undergraduate student Akash Adhia presenting their work at Research Showcase

1. Huijuan modeling with her poster

Huijuan Huang

2. Marvin and Akash modeling with their poster

Marvin Pollum and Akash Adhia

3. Huijuan (back) and Marvin (front) explaining their work

Marvin (front) and Huijuan (back)

4. Marvin explaining his work

Marvin Pollum


April 11, 2013

Dr. Crespo Receives 2013 ACS Project SEED Summer I Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of four high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. This is the fourth year in a road that Dr. Crespo has received funding from the ACS SEED Program to coordinate this program at CWRU.


April 11, 2013

Dr. Crespo Receives 2013 ACS Project SEED Summer II Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of one high school student in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. The Project SEED Summer II Program supports the research work of high school students that have participated previously in Project SEED Summer I Programs at CWRU. This is the second time that Dr. Crespo has received funding to coordinate the Summer II research program at CWRU.


April 2, 2013

Dr. Crespo receives a Carl Storm Underrepresented Minority Fellowship to Present in the 2013 Photochemistry GRC

Congratulations to Dr. Crespo for receiving a Carl Storm Underrepresented Minority Fellowship to participate in the 2013 Photochemistry Gordon Research Conference.


March 14, 2013

Dr. Crespo receives a NSF CAREER Award

Congratulations to Dr. Crespo for winning a National Science Foundation CAREER Award. The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is a Foundation-wide activity that offers the National Science Foundation's most prestigious awards in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organizations. Such activities should build a firm foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research.


February 22, 2013

Dr. Crespo becomes Member of the Editorial Board of Modern Chemistry & Applications

Dr. Crespo joins the Editorial Board of the journal Modern Chemistry & Applications.


February 4, 2013

Visiting Graduate Student Lara Martínez-Fernández Joins the Crespo Group

The Crespo Group welcomes Lara and wishes her a productive and joyful stay. Lara is a visiting graduate student from the research group of Prof. Inés Corral in the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.


January 7, 2013

The Crespo Group is now on Facebook and on Twitter

Follow us on Facebook and on Twitter at @CrespoGroup.


December 17, 2012

Graduate Student Matthew Brister joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Matt. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


November 28, 2012

Graduate Student Nicholas Dunn Completed Successfully the Oral Qualifying Examination Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree

Congratulations Nick and best wishes for continued sucess in your graduate studies.


November 14, 2012

Graduate Student Aaron Vogt Completed Successfully the Dissertation for Doctor of Philosophy Degree

Congratulations to Aaron, or should we say Dr. Vogt, for this superb accomplishment in his professional career. We thank you for all the contributions that you have made to the Crespo Group and for laying the foundation for future graduate students to come. We wish you great success in your future endeavors.

1. Aaron opening the champagne!

Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo

2. Aaron Signing the Bottle

Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo

3. Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo

Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo

4. Group Celebration: Cheers!

Dr. Vogt and Dr. Crespo


November 13, 2012

Graduate Student Marvin Pollum Completed Successfully the Oral Qualifying Examination Requirements for the Ph.D. Degree

Congratulations Marvin and best wishes for continued sucess in your graduate studies.


September 5, 2012

Collaborative Research on Gold(I) Organometallic Complexes Featured in the Department’s News & Highlights Site

The femtosecond transient absorption study on the nonequilibrium excited-state dynamics in mono- and di(organophosphine)gold(I) naphthalene derivatives performed by graduate student Aaron Vogt was published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society and featured in the Department's News & Highlights site. Congratulations Aaron.


August 7, 2012

Graduate Student Huijuan Huang has completed the Oral Qualifying Examination requirements for the Ph.D. degree

Congratulations Huijuan and best wishes for continued sucess in her graduate studies.


July 1, 2012

Dr. Crespo Appointed to the Frank Hovorka Assistant Professorship in Chemistry

June 26, 2012

High School Student Briana Sealey returns to the Crespo Research Group as ACS Project SEED Fellow

Welcome back to the group, Briana. We wish you all the best in your second summer research experience.


June 26, 2012

High School Student Omar Mahmoud joins the Crespo Research Group as ACS Project SEED Fellow

Welcome to the group, Omar. We wish you every success in your summer research experience.


April 10, 2012

Dr. Crespo Receives 2012 ACS Project SEED Summer I Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of three high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. This is the third year in a road that Dr. Crespo has received funding from the ACS SEED Program to coordinate this program at CWRU.


April 10, 2012

Dr. Crespo Receives 2012 ACS Project SEED Summer II Award

The American Chemical Society Committee on Project SEED awarded Dr. Crespo with an institutional award to support the summer research experience of two high school students in science and engineering laboratories at CWRU. The Project SEED Summer II Program supports the research work of high school students that have participated previously in Project SEED Summer I Programs at CWRU. This is the first time that Dr. Crespo has received funding to coordinate the Summer II research program at CWRU.


April 5, 2012

Undergraduate Student Veronica Laos Receives a P-SURG Summer Research Fellowship

Veronica received a summer research award from the Provost-Summer Undergraduate Research Program (P-SURG). Veronica is among the first group of students selected to participate in the 1st Annual P-SURG summer program at CWRU. Congratulations!


December 1, 2011

Undergraduate Student Veronica Laos joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Veronica. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


December 1, 2011

Undergraduate Student Hannah Jenkins joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Hannah. We wish you every success in your undergraduate research experience.


November 30, 2011

Graduate Student Marvin Pollum joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Marivin. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


November 30, 2011

Graduate Student Nicholas Dunn joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Nick. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


November 9, 2011

Dr. Crespo becomes Member of the Editorial Board of ISRN Spectroscopy

Dr. Crespo joins the Editorial Board of the journal ISRN Spectroscopy.


June 1, 2011

High School Student Briana Sealey joins the Crespo Research Group as ACS Project SEED Fellow

Welcome to the group, Briana. We wish you every success in your summer research experience.


May 31, 2011

Qing Wang, Chengwei Wen, and Cao Guo Completed Their Master Degree in Chemistry

Congratulations to Qing Wang, Chengwei Wen, and Cao Guo for completing successfully their MS degree in Chemistry. The Crespo group wish them all the very best in their future endeavors.


March 5, 2011

Dr. Crespo becomes Committee Member for the American Society for Photobiology

Dr. Crespo joins the committee of Grants and Awards of the American Society for Photobiology.


January 1, 2011

Funding from the Department of Defense is Renewed

The Department of Defense renews contract to investigate nitrogen-rich compounds and their interaction with DNA.


December 15, 2010

Graduate Student Huijuan Huang joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Huijuan. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


December 01, 2010

Dr. Crespo is Selected in the 40-40 Club

The 40-40 Club recognizes young Hispanic leaders in the greater Cleveland community. Read the news at The Kaleidoscope Magazine.


June 1, 2010

High School Student Matthew Beard joins the Crespo Research Group as ACS Project SEED Fellow

Welcome to the group, Matthew. We wish you every success in your summer research experience.


April 15, 2010

Crespo Group Members Present at Research ShowCase 2010

Aaron and Leah both presented posters at the CWRU annual Research ShowCase. Aaron's poster was entitled "Exciting Environmental Pollutants" and Leah's was entitled "On the Interaction of the Pharmaceutical Salbutamol with Light in Water Solutions." Abstracts may be viewed here

Aaron and Leah at Research ShowCase


April 2, 2010

Leah Dodson is accepted in the Ph.D. Chemistry Graduate Program at Caltech

Congratulations to Leah for this remarkable achievement. The Crespo group wishes you great success in this new and exciting adventure.


March 19, 2010

Graduate Student Aaron Vogt Receives the ACS Award in Physical Chemistry

Aaron received a Graduate Student Award in Physical Chemistry for his oral presentation at the ACS Cleveland Meeting-in-Miniature, Cleveland State University. The title of his presentation was "Ultrafast Branching Dynamics in Nitronaphthalene Derivatives upon Light Absorption".


December 2, 2009

Graduate Student Cao Guo joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Cao. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


December 2, 2009

Graduate Student Qing Wang joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Qing. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


April 5, 2009

Undergraduate Student Leah Dodson Receives a SOURCE Summer Research Fellowship Again

Leah received a summer research award from the SOURCE (Support of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors) Summer Program. This is the second year that Leah received this summer research award (see News from April 30, 2008 below). She presented her work at recent poster sessions, including the 2009 CERMACS Undergraduate Poster session and Intersections, a Case undergraduate poster session.


April 2, 2009

Do-Yong Kim is accepted in a Ph.D. Graduate Program in Chemistry

Congratulations to Kim for his admittance to the Ph.D. graduate program in Chemistry at Texas A&M University. The Crespo Group wishes you all the best in your professional career.


January 30, 2009

The Crespo Group Receives Funding from the Department of Defense

In response to the U. S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center BAA, Dr. Crespo is awarded with a contract to study the interaction of nitrogen-rich compounds with DNA and amino acids components. Congratulations to the students involved in this research project.


January 1, 2009

The Crespo Group is awarded with the ACS PRF New Investigator Research Grant

The Board of Directors of the American Chemical Society has approved the recommendation of The ACS Petroleum Research Fund Advisory Board that Dr. Crespo receive a Petroleum Research Fund for the period 1/1/2009 through 8/31/2011 to support the group research efforts in the "Photochemistry of Environmentally Relevant Nitro-Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons". Congratulations to those directly involved in this research project.


December 22, 2008

Graduate Student Chengwei Wen joins the Crespo Research Group

Welcome to the group, Chengwei. We wish you every success in your graduate education.


October 31, 2008

Graduate Student Aaron R. Vogt successfully completed the Oral Qualifying Examination requirements for the Ph.D. degree

Congratulations Aaron and best wishes for continued sucess in your graduate studies.


April 30, 2008

Graduate Student Aaron Vogt Wins Award

Aaron received the Graduate Teaching Award at the 2008 Chemistry Department awards ceremony.

Undergraduate Student Leah Dodson Wins Award and Summer Research Fellowship

Leah received the Analytical Chemistry Award at the 2008 Chemistry Department awards ceremony. To finish out the year, Leah was also accepted into the SOURCE (Support of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors) Summer Scholars program. This program provides the funds necessary for undergraduate students to complete research during the summer under faculty advisors.
Visit the SOURCE website

Leah receiving award


April 17, 2008

Aaron Vogt Presents Poster at 2008 Research ShowCase

Aaron represented the Crespo Group on April 17, 2008 at CWRU's Research ShowCase. His poster "Light-Induced Degradation of Nitro-Aromatic Pollutants in the Environment" represented his first year here at Case.

Aaron with poster


November 2007

Dr. Crespo Featured in CienciaPR

Dr. Crespo was spotlighted by CienciaPR a Puerto Rican scientific newsletter this November. Learn more by clicking on the CienciaPR link located in the Related Sites section.


October 2007

Dr. Crespo Awarded Funding

Dr. Crespo was awarded financial support from the National Science Foundation, Academic Careers in Engineering and Science (NSF ACES) Program. Check out the NSF ACES website here.