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Sarah Joiner

Sarah Joiner
Assistant Professor of Chemistry
Biochemistry (B.S.), Chemistry (B.A. and B.S.), Liberal Arts

Sarah took her first chemistry class in high school and, like many others, was intimidated at first. She credits a great chemistry teacher to being the catalyst that made her grow to love the subject. She earned her B.S. in chemistry from Gannon University in Erie, PA and then moved to New Hampshire to work on her PhD at the University of New Hampshire with the goal of being the passionate educator that will influence students to love chemistry. During graduate school, Sarah completed her research in organic chemistry, focusing on integrating experimental and computational chemistry to understand molecular reactions and rearrangements. After completion of her PhD, she started working as a Lecturer and Laboratory Coordinator at the University of New Hampshire, teaching organic chemistry lectures and laboratories. After 5 years teaching in New Hampshire, Sarah moved back to Pennsylvania and joined the chemistry faculty at Seton Hill University in the fall of 2020.

Education

  • B.S., Gannon University (Erie, PA), 2010

  • Ph.D., University of New Hampshire (Durham, NH), 2015

Publications

  • “Acid-Catalyzed Rearrangements in Arenes: Interconversions in the Quaterphenyl Series.” Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Holt, C.; Johnson, R. P., Beilstein Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2019, 15, 2655-2663.

  • “Acid-Catalyzed Skeletal Rearrangments in Arenes: Aryl versus Alkyl Ring Pirouettes in Anthracene and Phenanthrene.” Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Brulet, J.W.; Song, M.K.; Johnson, R. P. Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2017, 82(24), 13076-13083.

  • “Molecular Deposition of a Macrocyclic Cobalt Catalyst on TiO2Nanoparticles.” Liu, C.; Louis, M. E.; Pantovich, S. A.; Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Rajh, T.; Li, G.Journal of Molecular Catalysis A: Chemical, 2016, 423, 293-299.

  • “Dehydropericyclic Reactions: Symmetry Controlled Routes to Strained Reactive Intermediates.” Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Johnson, R. P.; Agarwal J. Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2015, 80(23), 11779-11787.

  • “Scholl Cyclizations of Aryl Naphthalenes: Rearrangement Precedes Cyclization.” Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; McLaughlan, E. C.; Ajaz, A.; Thamatam, R.; Johnson, R. P. Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2015, 80(19), 9578-9583.

  • “Atropselective Syntheses of (-) and (+) Rugulotrosin A Utilizing Point-to-Axial Chirality Transfer.” Qin, T.; Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Khalil, Z. G.; Johnson, R. P.; Capon, R. J.; Porco, J. A. Nature: Chemistry, 2015, 7,234-240.

  • “Microwave Flash Pyrolysis: C9H8Interconversions and Dimerizations.” Ajaz, A.; Voukides, A. C.; Cahill, K. J.; Thamatam, R.; Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Johnson, R. P.; Australian Journal of Chemistry, 2014,67, 1301-1308.

  • “Scalable Synthesis of Quaterrylene: Solution-Phase1H NMR Spectroscopy of its Oxidative Dication.” Thamatam, R.; Skraba, S. L.; Johnson, R. P.; Chemical Communications, 2013, 49, 9122-9124.

  • “A Computational Model for the Dimerization of Allene.” Skraba, S. L.and Johnson, R. P., Journal of Organic Chemistry, 2012, 77(24), 11096–11100.

  • “Phenyl Shifts in Substituted Arenes viaIpsoArenium Ions.” Ajaz, A.; McLaughlan, E. C.; Skraba, S. L.; Thamatam, R.; Johnson, R. P.; Journal of Organic Chemistry,2012, 77(21), 9487-9495.

Awards

  • Summer TA Fellowship, University of New Hampshire - Summer research fellowship for exceptional performance as a teaching assistant and as a student (2014)

  • Pratt-Diniak Fellowship, University of New Hampshire - Awarded for excellence in teaching (2013)

  • Clarence L. and Helen M. Garland Grant Fellowship, University of New Hampshire - Summer research fellowship for outstanding graduate students in chemistry (Spring 2013)

Organizations

  • American Chemical Society

  • Alpha Chi Sigma, Mu Chapter

Presentations

  • “Using Catholic Social Teaching to Get Students to Think Beyond the Chemistry Textbook.” Joiner, S. L.; 55th Annual Meeting of Middle Atlantic Association of Liberal Arts Chemistry Teachers (MAALACT), Mount St. Mary’s University Emmitsburg, MD, November 2023.

  • “High Temperature Cationic Rearrangements of Arenes.” Skraba, S. L.; White, B. M.; Miller, H.; Johnson, R. P.; American Chemical Society National Meeting, New Orleans, LA, April 2013.

  • “High Energy Skeletal Rearrangements of Arenium Ions and Related Free Radicals.” Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Johnson, R.P. University of New Hampshire Graduate Research Conference, Durham, NH, April 2014.

  • “Molecular RearrangementsThroughIpso-Arenium Ions:The Biaryl Shift.”Skraba-Joiner,S. L.;Thompson,H. B.;Hoffman,C. L.; Ballantyne, N. S.;Mackinnon,A. M.; Johnson, R. P.;American Chemical SocietyNational Meeting, San Francisco,CA,August 2014.

  • “Substituent and Skeletal Rearrangements of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Superacid Media.” Skraba-Joiner, S. L., Johnson R. P.,University of New Hampshire Graduate Research Conference, Durham, NH, April 2015.

  • “Acid Catalyzed Skeletal Rearrangements in Arenes.” Skraba-Joiner, S. L.; Johnson, R. P.; Physical Organic ChemistryGordon Research Conference and Seminar, Holderness, NH, June 2015.

  • “University of New Hampshire and Eversource PR Event: Sustainability.” University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, October 2019.