CHEMISTRY ALUMNI REUNION 2023
Our November 2023 Alumni Reunion was a great success! Thank you to all our attendees who joined us virtually and to Emily Seo and Jolene Reid for their inspiring talks.
We look forward to our next Alumni Reunion in the Spring, stay tuned for more details.
We Are Pleased to Announce Our Alumni Award Recipients for 2023!
Alumni Award of Distinction | Dr. Mark Namchuk, PhD '93
This award recognizes an alumnus whose accomplishments are of such excellence that they provide inspiration and leadership to students and other alumni. The recipient has shown significant leadership either in their professional career and/or community service.
Dr. Mark Namchuk is the Puja and Samir Kaul Professor of the Practice of Biomedical Innovation and Translation at Harvard Medical School. He Joined HMS is 2020 as the inaugural Executive Director of the school’s Therapeutics initiative and was appointed as the first Professor of the Practice at HMS in the Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology in 2021. The therapeutics initiative looks to accelerate the progression of discoveries at HMS from breakthrough biological insight towards a medicine and includes a scientific core to support drug discovery efforts and an on-campus biotech incubator. The initiative also aims to train the inventors of tomorrow’s medicines and includes the therapeutics graduate program for PhD students and a masters in therapeutic sciences that will be launched in 2025.
Namchuk joined HMS after a 24-year research and development career in biotech. In 2015, he joined Alkermes as SVP of research and nonclinical and pharmaceutical development. Previously, he held a number of research positions over a 17 year career at Vertex including SVP of Research. During his time in biotech he played a key scientific or leadership role in drug discovery efforts that led to 25 clinical candidates across 8 different therapeutic areas, with numerous first in class molecules progressing to the clinic. To date these programs have led to six approved drugs and an additional molecule in active Phase 3 clinical development.
Namchuk obtained a BSc with honours in chemistry from the University of Alberta, a PhD in bio-organic chemistry from the University of British Columbia and was an HFSP post-doctoral fellow at UCSF.
Young Alumnus Award | Dr. Love-Ese Chile, PhD '17
This award recognizes a young alumnus (aged 35 or under) whose accomplishments are of such excellence that they provide inspiration and leadership to students and other young alumni. The recipient has shown significant leadership either in their professional career and/or community service.
Dr. Love-Ese Chile is the Managing Owner of the circular economy research and consulting firm Regenerative Waste Labs. With her scientific background, Love-Ese has taken her expertise into the industry and is passionate about mobilizing her knowledge into initiatives to build climate resilience in Canadian communities. Recently named a 2024 Clean50 Emerging Leader, Love-Ese leads a team at the intersection of bioproducts, circular economy policy and organic waste recovery. She engages in projects to implement initiatives that add value to businesses and organizations that generate large volumes of organic waste. Love-Ese has worked with regional governments, NGOs and businesses to facilitate action that drives the use and recovery of circular bioproducts within the Canadian economy.
Learn about our previous alumni award winners here