Chemistry Department

Dr. Liz Gron

Liz Gron

Professor of Chemistry
Executive Director of Advising and Academic Success

Office: SLTC 206
Phone: (501) 450-1246
E-mail: gron@hendrix.edu 
Website: Green Chemistry at Hendrix 
  • Ph. D., University of Wisconsin
  • B.A., Colgate University
 

Liz Gron is an Professor of Chemistry at Hendrix College.  Her research interests focus on green chemistry, specifically in the area of organic reactions in near-critical water.  The research goal is to replace non-renewable petrochemical solvents while exploiting the unique properties of extremely hot water to investigate underlying mechanistic interactions between the reactants and the solvent.  Additionally, Professor Gron has developed educational materials for the introductory chemistry curriculum at Hendrix College.  At present, this work focuses on designing green experiments that teach analytical and environmental chemistry to introductory chemistry students.  This curriculum is unique in the country.  She has taught courses in general, analytical, and inorganic chemistry while at Hendrix.

Research and Teaching Interests

  • Green Chemistry

Advising Specialties

  • Chemistry

Affiliations

  • American Chemical Society, Inorganic Division, since 1983.
    • Session Chair
      • Catalysis Section A, 206th ACS National Meeting, Chicago 1993.
      • Catalysis Section D, 215th ACS National Meeting, Dallas 1998.
       
    • Committee for National Chemistry Week - Milwaukee Section of ACS, 1988.
     
  • American Association for the Advancement of Science: since 1988.
  • Council on Undergraduate Research: since 1994.
  • Project Kaleidoscope: Member of Faculty for the 21st Century Member and presenter at numerous workshops
  • Gordon Research Conferences
    • "Environmentally Benign Organic Synthesis," Poster Session Chair, July 1996.
    • “Organometallic Chemistry,” July 1998, July 1999.
    • “Chemical Education,” January 2001
     
  • Greener Educational Network – Ambassador site representative and founding member

Awards and Honors

  • Green Chemistry: Diels-Alder Reactions in High Temperature Water, The Petroleum Research Fund of the American Chemical Society, awarded May 2004.
  • A Proposal to Strengthen the Physical Sciences at Hendrix College through Research and Recruitment Research Corporation, L. U. Gron (PI), Co-PIs David Hales, Robert Dunn, and Ann Wright, Research Corporation,  awarded May 2004.
  • Educating Green Citizens and Scientists for a Sustainable Future; Liz U. Gron (PI), with M. Warfield Teague (co-PI), National Science Foundation –DUE-CCLI-Phase I, awarded May 2007.

Publications (undergraduate co-authors are underlined)

  • “Creating research-rich curriculum with an integrated upper-level undergraduate laboratory program,” L. U. Gron, D. A. Hales, and M. W. Teague, J. Chem. Ed. 2007, 1343-1347.
  • “Sustain the green revolution: educating scientists and citizens,” L. U. Gron, Chimica Oggi,/Chemistry Today, 25, 2007, 11-13.
  • "Hendrix Chemistry Labs Show Their True Color " L. Rodwell, T. Goodwin, and L. Gron HENDRIX: A Magazine for Alumni and Friends, 16, 2003, 14-17.
  • "Heck Reactions in Hydrothermal, Sub-critical Water: Water Density as an Important Reaction Variable," L. U. Gron, J. E. LaCroix, C. J. Higgins, K. L. Steelman, A. S. Tinsley Tetrahedron Letters, 40(49), 2001, 8555-8557.
  • “Tailoring Aqueous Solvents for Organic Reactions: Heck Coupling Reactions in High Temperature Water,” L. U. Gron and A. S. Tinsley Tetrahedron Letters, 40(2), 1999, 227-230.

Presentations

  • Educating environmentally responsible citizens and scientists through green, environmental chemistry with Warfield Teague and Shelly Bradley,American Chemical Society, San Diego, CA, March 2005.
  • “Where do we go from here: Educating Green Citizens and Scientists”invited talk,Green Chemistry and Engineering Education Workshop, Chemical Sciences Roundtable, National Academies of Science, Washington, DC November 2005.