Principal Investigator
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Johnathan N. Brantley
John began his academic career at Western Kentucky University, where he completed a B.S. degree in 2010.He then joined the laboratory of Professor Christopher Bielawski at the University of Texas at Austin. As an NSF predoctoral fellow, John investigated mechanically facilitated transformations within polymeric matrices. Following the completion of his Ph.D. in 2014, John began his postdoctoral studies under the guidance of Professor Dean Toste at the University of California, Berkeley. As an NIH postdoctoral fellow, John explored the synthesis and reactivity of trifluoromethyl iodonium salts. He joined the faculty at the University of Tennessee as an Assistant Professor in 2017. Vertical Divider
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Graduate Students
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Nick is a third year graduate student who completed his B.S. at the University of Tennessee in 2017, where he investigated the synthesis of lipid probes for protein tagging in the laboratory of Professor Michael Best. Nick's current focus has switched from small molecules to polymers, and he is pursuing his doctorate under the tutelage of Professor Johnathan Brantley. Nick's research is centered on developing new materials with unique properties and exploring their applications. His interests outside of the lab include video games, reading, and watching movies.
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Breana is a third year graduate student from Oliver Springs, TN. For undergrad, she attended Coastal Carolina University where she graduated in three years with a B.S. in Biochemistry. Breana is currently focusing on developing functional metallopolymers in the Brantley group. She aspires to go into academia. Breana watches Netflix and plays drums in her free time.
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Alan is a second year graduate student from Ann Arbor, Michigan. Alan graduated with a B.S. in chemistry from Eastern Michigan University. After graduation he worked as a synthetic organic chemist at Cayman Chemical in both the forensic and production departments. Alan joined the Brantley lab in Fall 2018 where he is currently focused on developing functional polymers from uncommon monomers. When he isn’t working, Alan enjoys cooking and playing sports.
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Justin is a first year grad student from Spartanburg, South Carolina. He attended Wofford College and graduated in 2017. After working for two years, he joined the Brantley Group in fall 2019 with the hopes of one day joining a team at a national lab. During his free time, Justin enjoys smoking barbecue and cheering on the Volunteers.
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Postdoctoral Scientists
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Brian hails from Colorado Springs, CO, where he pursued his undergraduate studies in the chemistry program at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. After being granted his B.S. in Chemistry in 2011, an interest in pursuing chemical education led to his application and entrance to the chemistry graduate program at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, in 2012. Under the tutelage of Dr. Peter T. Wolczanski, he developed first-row transition metal-mediated symmetric enamine coupling and furthered studies into the preparation of novel iron alkylidenes towards application in olefin metathesis, which culminated in being awarded a Ph. D. in Chemistry in 2017. Currently, Brian has joined the research group of Dr. Johnathan N. Brantley at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, where he works to develop novel polymeric materials and organic synthetic methods.
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Undergraduate Students
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Abby Fish
afish4@vols.utk.edu |
Abby is an undergraduate junior majoring in Biochemistry and Cellular and Molecular Biology and minoring in Spanish. She plans to pursue a career in research after her undergraduate studies. Specifically, she wants to obtain her PhD in cancer biology and work in the field of pediatric cancer drug development. In her free time, Abby enjoys teaching dance, spending time with her friends and family, and serving as a peer mentor for the First-Year Studies classes here at UT.
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Anna Blue
ablue3@vols.utk.edu |
Anna is an undergraduate senior majoring in Kinesiology and minoring in chemistry. She plans to pursue medicine after her undergraduate studies. She hopes to obtain an MD-PhD and practice clinical medicine as well as conduct research. In her free time, Anna enjoys teaching piano, painting, and volunteering.
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Natalie Parsons
nparsons@vols.utk.edu |
Natalie is an undergraduate junior majoring in Chemistry with a minor in VolsTeach. She hopes to one day receive her PhD in Chemistry and pursue a career abroad in teaching and research. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, running, and reading.
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