Fulbright College Associate Professor to Give Prestigious Lectures at Wabash College

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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Paul D. Adams, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences and the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology in the U of A Graduate School and International Education, has been invited to give the William & Wilma Haines Biochemistry Lectures at Wabash College.

The Haines Lectures are the most esteemed lectures offered by the college, and will be available to both students and the general public. Speakers are invited to the campus every year as a part of the William J. and Wilma M. Haines Fund for the Study of Biochemistry, which was set up to fund the research and study of biochemistry at Wabash College.

Adams's first lecture, called "Biophysical and Biochemical Approaches to Characterize Novel Molecular Details That Influence Ras-Related Protein Cell Signaling Function," will be a research lecture aimed at junior and senior undergraduates at the college.

His second lecture will be given to help involve the whole campus in the world of science. This lecture will be called "Diversity in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Today in Our Society: It Is So Much More Than Black, Brown, or White," and will encompass both science and societal aspects.

"I am beyond humbled by this prestigious honor," Adams said. "I am also honored to represent the University of Arkansas in sharing the research we are doing here in protein biochemistry and biophysics, as well as to provide hopefully novel perspectives on why diversity in science, technology, engineering and mathematics is so important to our society as we move forward into the next generation."

In addition to the lectures, the Haines Fund for Biochemistry supplies Wabash College with biochemical equipment and funds summer research internships for students.

After William J. Haines graduated as valedictorian, he became the first Wabash alumnus to earn a Ph.D. in biochemistry. He then went on to have a very successful career, and he and his wife endowed the Haines Fund to help other Wabash students do the same.

The Haines Lectures will be given on Feb. 1 and 2, 2017. A faculty dinner will be held for Adams, where he will be the guest of honor. He will also be able to visit with students and faculty on campus during his stay at Wabash College.