Home
Members

Members

Postdoctoral Fellow

Tuhin Subhra Pal is a postdoctoral fellow in the Wentz Lab. He completed his PhD from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur, where his research focused on designing functional polymers for specialty adhesive applications using covalent and supramolecular strategies. His doctoral work emphasized developing self-healing polymers through click chemistry, bio-inspired adhesive systems via dynamic covalent and supramolecular chemistry, and bio-based sustainable polymer materials. As part of his PhD, he also served as an Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellow (OVDF) at Purdue University, USA. He is a recipient of the DAAD fellowship from the German Academic Exchange Service. Outside of his academic pursuits, Tuhin enjoys going to the gym, playing cricket and badminton, sketching, and traveling for relaxation and enjoyment.

Sarah Napier

Second Year Graduate Student

Sarah is originally from San Antonio, Texas, and received her undergraduate degree in Chemistry at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. At LSU Sarah joined Semin Lee's lab, where she worked on catalysts for alkyne metathesis. In the fall of 2024, Sarah began her PhD journey in Organic chemistry at Indiana University. She is the first graduate student to join the Wentz group and her research focuses on the synthesis and investigation of PAH and PDI materials.

Samuel Bickford

First Year Graduate Student

Samuel is from Iowa City, Iowa by way of Charleston, Illinois. He received his B.S. degree in Chemistry from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, where he did undergraduate research in the labs of Dr. Sarah Luesse and Dr. Kevin Tucker. While working for Dr. Luesse, Samuel worked on a variety of studies focused on the Oxy-Michael Ugi-Smiles (OM-US) reaction, including evaluation of component variations, investigation of chiral acid catalyst influence on product chirality, and analysis of reaction products through chiral HPLC methods. In his free time Samuel enjoys playing and watching sports, fishing, and going to the gym.

Ivan Nguyen

First Year Graduate Student

Ivan was born and raised in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. At the beginning of high school, he moved to Concord, NC to participate in a study-abroad program. He later earned his B.S. in Chemistry from Elon University, where he conducted undergraduate research with Dr. Sienerth. His work focused on the synthesis of group 9 polypyridyl metal complexes featuring cobalt and iridium, aiming to evaluate cobalt-based systems as potential replacements for rhodium catalysts in efficient CO₂ reduction. Ivan will join the Wentz Lab in Spring 2026 as a Ph.D. student, where his research will center on the synthesis of boron complexes and their reactivity in small-molecule activation. Outside of the lab, he enjoys listening to music, cooking, building models, and collecting blind boxes.

Brian Sobel

First Year Graduate Student

Brian grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina and received his undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Washington University in St. Louis. There, he did undergraduate research in the lab of Dr. Kevin Moeller on the bioenzymatic synthesis of β-hydroxy-leucine as building blocks for macrocyclic G-protein inhibitors. Brian joined the Wentz lab in the fall of 2025 as a PhD student and will be focusing on the synthesis of boron-based chromophores. In his free time, he enjoys reading, baking, and keeping his two cats (Bug and Goose) out of trouble.

Amber Crisp

Undergraduate Student

Amber is a 3rd year undergraduate student majoring in biochemistry. She is excited to expand her knowledge of lab techniques by working in a synthetic chemistry lab. Some hobbies she enjoys in her free time include hiking, running, and cooking.

Giovonni Espinosa

Undergraduate Student

Giovonni Valentino Espinosa is part of the 2028 class, majoring in biochemistry with a Native American & Indigenous Studies minor. Giovonni peer tutors within the GROUPS scholars program for calculus, biology, and chemistry classes. He is excited to shadow and learn the techniques, knowledge, and equipment needed in the Wentz laboratory. Outside of the lab, Giovonni is part of the Paso a Paso and ASL club and enjoys playing guitar, swimming, diving, tennis, dancing, and attending NASA & FNECC events.