Professor Ellen Sletten was presented with the 2018 UCLA Alpha Chi Sigma (AXΣ) Glenn Seaborg Award at the annual AXΣ Seaborg Banquet on May 5th.
The event, held at the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles, was attended by both members of Alpha Chi Sigma, UCLA chemistry & biochemistry faculty members, and their guests. At the banquet, Sletten gave a brief presentation about her recent work and the direction of her research in the future.
“Thanks to Alpha Chi Sigma for sponsoring this award every year to recognize our early-career faculty” said Sletten. “It was a wonderful evening and I was honored to share our work on fluorous nanotherapeutics with everyone.”
The event was organized by AXΣ members Nhung Nguyen and Jocelyn To. “The Glenn T. Seaborg Award lies close to Alpha Chi Sigma, Beta Gamma Chapter’s heart” said Nguyen. “Jocelyn and I take great pride in organizing this event to honor Glenn T. Seaborg and showcase Professor Sletten’s amazing contribution to the field of chemistry.”
Sletten holds the John McTague Career Development Chair in the UCLA Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. She received her B.S. in Chemistry from Stonehill College in 2006. She pursued her Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley with Prof. Carolyn Bertozzi. Sletten performed her postdoctoral studies in the laboratory of Prof. Tim Swager at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an NIH Postdoctoral Fellow. She joined the faculty at UCLA as an Assistant Professor in 2015. To learn more about her research, visit the Sletten group’s website.
At the dinner, Sletten gave a brief presentation about her research.
The Seaborg Banquet is a tradition for the Beta Gamma chapter of Alpha Chi Sigma. The Alpha Chi Sigma Glenn T. Seaborg Award (not to be confused with the Glenn T. Seaborg Medal awarded by the department) is presented annually at the banquet to an early-career UCLA chemistry and biochemistry faculty member in recognition of his/her outstanding achievements, with emphasis on research and scholarly impact. Consideration is also given to outstanding teaching, mentoring and professional service.
Alumnus Professor Glenn T. Seaborg (’34 Chemistry), for whom the award is named, was one of the founding members of the Beta Gamma Chapter – pursuing his interests in chemistry well after his years at UCLA, he became a Nobel Prize Laureate in 1951.
Sletten and her husband Dominic Larubina pose in front of a diorama at the National History Museum.
(Left) Event Co-Chair Nhung Nguyen, event helpers Annie Phan and Cydney Martinez, and Co-Chair Jocelyn To pose for a fun photo. (Right) Jessica Nyon (center) with her guest and (right) Hoi Xen Ping.
(Left) Alex Umanzor, Aiden Hsu, and John Kozlowski. (Right) Pledge Ariana Tam, Selena Hernandez, and Fiona Tozier.
(Left) AXΣ alum Steven Du ‘16 and Alex Do. (Right) Pledge Wesley Yuen, Pledge Edgar Romero, Sean Lee, Pledge Lucas Rimcezi.
Seaborg Co-Chairs Joselyn To and Nhung Nguyen lead the guests in some ice breaker activities.
Professor Richard Kaner and his wife Sara. Professor Ellen Sletten, her husband Dominic Larubina, Professor Ken Houk, and UCLA chemistry instructor and alum Dr. Hung Pham (Ph.D. ’15).
UCLA Chemistry & Biochemistry faculty at the event – Professors Justin Caram, Ellen Sletten, Chong Liu, Hosea Nelson, and Alex Spokoyny
Event photos by Landi from Nikki Bacon Photography.
