Atwood Receives Schoellkopf Award

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Jim D. Atwood, professor and chair of the Department of Chemistry in the University at Buffalo's College of Arts and Sciences, has received the 2005 Jacob F. Schoellkopf Medal recognizing achievement in chemical technology.

The Western New York section of the American Chemical Society awards the honor to one locally based chemist each year. The society has presenting the medal annually since 1931, making it the oldest of its kind nationally. UB scientists also won the award in 1996, 1999, 2000 and 2002.

Atwood received the award in recognition of his proficiency in the laboratory and as a writer and editor.

During his career, Atwood has published the definitive textbook in his sub-discipline, "Inorganic and Organometallic Reaction Mechanisms," authored 130 manuscripts in the areas of organometallic chemistry and homogeneous catalysis, and edited numerous books and journals. He serves on the editorial board of Organometallics and Inorganic Reaction Mechanisms and as co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Coordination Chemistry.

A UB faculty member since 1977, Atwood has served as chair of the Department of Chemistry since 1998. During his tenure, the department increased its faculty members from 26 to 33, its research budget from $4.2 million to $9.3 million, its graduate students from 107 to 143, and its undergraduate majors from 128 to 274.

Atwood received the UB College of Arts and Sciences Excellence in Teaching Award in 2002 and the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2003.

He earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry magna cum laude from Southwest Missouri State University and a doctorate in chemistry from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

He resides in Getzville.