John Sivey
Towson University and the Jess and Mildred Fisher College of Science and Mathematics announce the appointment of John D. Sivey, assistant professor of chemistry, as the 2015-2018 Jess and Mildred Fisher Endowed Professor in the Biological and Physical Sciences.
He is the 10th member of the Fisher College faculty to attain the distinction.
“Professor Sivey is garnering national attention for his research, which has important applications to agriculture and the environment,” said David Vanko, dean of the Fisher College. “In just three years he has made a truly positive impact in the lives of students, from chemistry majors to honors college students.”
Sivey came to TU in August 2012. He earned his Ph.D. in environmental engineering and chemistry from the Johns Hopkins University in 2011. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Central Michigan University and a master’s degree is from Clemson University. He was a postdoctoral associate at Yale University before joining TU’s faculty.
Sivey teaches analytical chemistry, instrumental analysis, and an honors course titled The Polluted States of America. His research explores halogenation—the formation of bonds between carbon and halogen atoms such as chlorine or bromine. Halogenation plays a role in the synthesis or activity of selected pharmaceuticals, pesticides, flame retardants, bleach and other disinfectants. His investigation of bromination chemistry has potential applications to improved treatment methods for drinking water, wastewater and swimming pools; new insights into inflammatory diseases linked to bromination of biomolecules; and enhanced methods for producing bromine-containing pesticides and pharmaceuticals.
Sivey has nine journal articles published or in press, many of which have student co-authors. He has mentored students in three M.S. and six B.S. thesis projects. He has served as the principal or co-principal investigator on grant projects funded by the American Chemical Society, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the National Science Foundation. He was a finalist for the 2015 AGRO New Investigator Award, the highest award for early-career scientists from the American Chemical Society’s Division of Agrochemistry. He also serves on the Towson University Diversity Action Committee and the Honors College Advisory Council.
The Fisher Endowed Professor Program was established by the Robert M. Fisher Memorial Foundation to honor the memory of Jess Fisher ’34, his wife Mildred and their family, and to maximize the benefit of their philanthropy for students in the Fisher College of Science and Mathematics. A specific objective is to incorporate high-quality research opportunities into students’ undergraduate learning experiences through the support of the scholarly growth of highly promising early-career faculty members in the physical and biological sciences.
Fisher Professors are appointed by the dean for a three-year term.
