McCormick Lab Members

Dr. Theresa McCormick

Associate Professor of Chemistry
Ph.D. | Queen's University, Kingston Ontario, 2008
Postdoctoral Fellow | NSERC, University of Rochester, 2009-2010
Postdoctoral Fellow | University of Toronto, 2011-2013

503-725-2332
t.m.mccormick@pdx.edu

Research Lab Homepage

Theresa McCormick received her Ph.D. from Queen's University in Kingston Ontario. She then studied water splitting with Prof. Richard Eisenberg at the University of Rochester, followed by a second postdoc studying the reactivity of tellurophenes with Prof. Dwight Seferos at the University of Toronto. She started at Portland State University in September 2013. When she isn't in the lab you can likely find her at the curling club. 

Joe Ewers

PhD Candidate

Hi my name is Joe (he/him) and am a first year PhD student in the McCormick lab. My research will focus on the photocatalytic aerobic oxidation of benzylic alcohols for the production of hydrogen peroxide. Specifically, I will be working to improve the selective electrochemical reduction of the oxidation products to mitigate waste created by the reaction and improve hydrogen peroxide yields. In my free time I enjoy rock climbing, skiing, and anything else that gets me into the PNW wilderness!

Amelia Jellison

PhD Candidate

Hi! My name is Amelia (she/her) and I am a first PhD student working in the McCormick Lab. I have research experience involving a lot of air free and redox chemistry; I'm currently involved in tellurorhodamine dye research. Outside of the lab I'm a bookworm and I love hiking.

Aireth Lavigne

PhD Candidate

Hi my name is Aireth (She/her/hers) and I am a first year Graduate student working with the McCormick Lab. My research focuses on the synthetic development and characterization of previously inaccessible tellurorhodamine dyes. Getting to solve the unique issues of synthesizing and designing complex dyes is a fun challenge! Outside of lab work I love trail running, and you can always find me up some dirt road trail in the woods,or having a beer on top of a mountain!

Sloan Oakrest

PhD Candidate

Hello,  my name is Sloan (they/them) and I am a PhD student in the McCormick Lab. I am assisting in the investigation of photochemical aerobic oxidation of primary and secondary benzylic alcohols catalyzed by NHPI which produces hydrogen peroxide. I am primarily an organic chemist and will be determining the effect of various substrates on the scope of aerobic oxidation reactions.  Outside of the lab I am a parent, muralist, writer and explorer.  I look forward to seeing you around!

Bret Steinkamp

PhD Candidate

Hello! I am Bret (he/him/his) and am currently a PhD candidate in the McCormick research group. The focus of my current research is to create a predictive model of singlet oxygen quantum yield that can help guide synthesis of new dyes. My future research plans focus on understanding the photochemical properties of tellurorhodamine dyes. I enjoy being social, hockey, and video games.