Homecoming Lectures
Each fall during Homecoming, the department hosts a lecture from a UND chemistry alum.
We are proud of our UND alumni and look forward to hosting you at a future event.
2026 Alumni Lecture
Dr. Felix N. Ngassa '02
Friday, Oct. 2 | 4 p.m. | Abbott Hall 101
Reception to be held prior to the lecture in Abbott Hall Room 232.
About Dr. Ngassa
Dr. Felix N. Ngassa is an Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs in the Office of the Provost and a Professor of Chemistry in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. He earned his undergraduate degree in Chemistry at the University of Yaoundé 1 in Cameroon, West Africa, his doctorate in Organic and Physical Chemistry from the University of North Dakota, and his MBA from the Seidman College of Business at Grand Valley State University. Felix joined GVSU in August 2003.
Before serving in the Office of the Provost, Dr. Ngassa led both the University Academic Senate and its Executive Committee at Grand Valley State University for nine years- two years as Vice Chair and seven years as Chair. He also completed the prestigious American Council on Education (ACE) leadership fellowship during the 2023-24 academic year, where he learned from numerous leaders across the higher education landscape. He was recently selected for the 2025-26 cohort of the NAFSA Internationalization Executive e-Institute, which commenced in July 2025 and will run through July 2026. Dr. Ngassa’s leadership qualities and attributes include significant experience with faculty governance and a proven ability to lead within a system of shared governance. He embraces a leadership style that fosters collaboration, respect, and team building. Dr. Ngassa’s portfolio encompasses curriculum development, interinstitutional memoranda of understanding (MOUs), international education and scholarship, and inclusive excellence.
Dr. Ngassa’s expertise lies in the field of synthetic organic chemistry and computational physical chemistry. His research in these areas has contributed significantly to the academic community, resulting in numerous peer-reviewed publications. He has won several teaching and research awards, including the following: Professor of the Year; the Pan-Hellenic Association Excellence in Teaching; the GVSU Alumni Association Outstanding Educator Award; the GVSU Center for Scholarly and Creative Excellence (CSCE) Outstanding Undergraduate Mentoring Award; the GVSU CLAS Annual Faculty Service Award; and the Glenn A. Niemeyer Award for faculty excellence.
Previous Homecoming Lectures
Molecules to Medicines: From the Abbott Hall to Autoimmune Disease
Former Chief Clinical Officer - Lupus Therapeutics
2025 Alumni Virtual Panel
Presents: Who's Teaching Who? Still Learning after 25 Years of Teaching.
Chair and Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry - Elmhurst University, Chicago, Ill.
2024 Alumni Virtual Panel
2023 Alumni Lecturer
- Principal Investigator, Genetics and Pre-eclampsia Study, Turtle Mountain Community College, Belcourt, ND
- Investigator, Strong Heart Study, Missouri Breaks Industries Research Inc, Eagle Butte, SD
2023 Alumni Virtual Panel
2022 Alumni Lecturer
Assistant Professor, Chemistry, Carthage College, Kenosha, Wisconsin
Presents: All Life is an Experiment . . . a UND Chemist's Adventure!
2022 Alumni Virtual Panel
Dr. Sandra Hazelton Pratt, '09
Dr. Run "Rain" Li, '17
Dr. Jana Rousova Hepner, '17
Dr. Jason Hicks, '18
Dr. Yuhui Jin, '09
2021 Alumni Lecturer
Research Fellow in the Performance Coatings Group,General Industrial, Valspar
Presents: The Use of Electrochemical Methods to Study Coatings and Corrosion
Alumni Virtual Panel
Dr. Aize Li, 2010
Dr. Inna Popova,2008
Dr. Jiao Chen, 2014
Dr. Julius Ngwendson, 2008
2020 Alumni Lecturer
Senior R&D Manager, EMD Performance Materials, Sheboygan WI.
Presents: Synthetic Chemists & the Semiconductor Industry
Alumni Virtual Panel
Dr. Anastasia Andrianova, 2017
CEO, Inventor & Founding Member of HepQuant, Greenwood Village, CO
Presents: Measuring the Liver’s Function
St. Luke's Hospital - Duluth, MN
Presents: A Special Kind of Crazy
Associate Professor of Chemistry, Tennessee Tech
Presents: A career path is never a straight line
Associate Dean of Natural Sciences, College of Letters & Science University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Presents: My Journey Exploring the Role of Iron in Biological Systems
President, Trinidad State Junior College Trinidad, CO
Presents: Education Matters.
General Manager, Chemistry, Manufacturing and Control Center Takeda R&D
Presents: “Concrete Chemistry: Opportunities for an Organic Chemist
Global Leader for Biotechnology Registration and Operations at Dow AgroSciences
Presents: A Global Perspective on Plant Genome Editing Technologies: Applications and Regulatory Outlook
Professor of Pathology and Bioengineering at the University of Washington, Seattle.
Presents: Regenerating the Heart: A Journey from Chemistry Major to Stem Cell Biologist
Professor of Chemistry,Department of Chemistry, College of Letters and Science, UCDavis
Presents: Nucleic Acid Chemical Biology: Studies in RNA interference and RNA editing.
Dr. Patrick Shum, Ph.D. 1988, A Journey of Chemistry: From the Peace Garden State to Interstate 95
Dr. Jeffrey Banning, Ph.D. 1987
Dr. Kathryn Uhrich, B.S. 1986
Dr. Bonnie Avery, Ph.D. 1994
Dr. Arlan Norman, B.S. 1962
Dr. Dan Dutton, M.S. 1970 & Ph.D. 1973
Dr. Curt M. White, M.S. 1974
Dr. Fathi M. Saad, Ph.D. 1970
Dr. Richard J. Paur, B.S. 1967 & M.S. 1968
Dr. Sean G. Dwyer, B.S. 1966 & Ph.D. 1970
Leon D. Royer, M.S. 1962
Dr. Francis Randall, Ph.D. 1970
Dr. Ray A. Dickie, B.S. 1961
Dr. Owen Webster, B.S. 1951
Dr. Darryl Fahey, B.S. 1964 & Ph.D. 1969
Dr. Arlan Norman, B.S. 1962
Dr. Joyce Yagla Corey, B.S. 1960 & M.S. 1961
Dr. Marion Swendseid, B.A. 1938 & M.A. 1939
Dr. Victor Hruby, B.S. 1960 & M.S. 1962