Emeriti and Retired Faculty

Bio: Professor Pope joined NTAC in 1943. He taught classes in General Chemistry and Qualitative Analysis. He retired in 1964.

Bio: Dr. Murchison was the Head of Chemistry from 1933 until 1966. A major in the US Army reserve, he established a strict and well-organized operation and guided the Department from the 2-year North Texas Agricultural College to a 4-year bachelor’s degree-awarding Arlington State College. Called to active duty during World War 2 , he was the commanding officer at the Baytown, Texas production facility that produced 60% of the toluene needed for TNT manufacture but returned to Arlington in 1946. He later served several years as Assistant Dean of the College of Science during the transition to the University of Texas at Arlington until his retirement in 1974. The 1961 College yearbook “The Reveille” was dedicated to him. He was listed in American Men of Science and in Who’s Who in Education. The John T. Murchison Award was established in his honor to recognize an outstanding Chemistry Senior each year.

Bio: Dr. Burman joined NTAC in 1944 and served during the transitions to Arlington State College and then UTA until 1975. He was faculty sponsor of the campus Circle K , and was active in the Arlington community with Scouts and Dad’s Club. The 1963 issue of the College yearbook “The Reveille” was dedicated to him.

Bio: Professor McAfee joined NTAC in 1946. He taught classes in General Chemistry and Quantitative Analysis. He served as Acting Chairman for the two years prior to the arrival of Donald Martin in 1969 during which time the Masters degree in Chemistry was initiated, a momentous event for the Department, signaling the beginning of the graduate programs. He retired in 1975.

Bio: Dr. Willoughby joined Arlington State College in 1954, being the first woman to earn the Ph.D. in Engineering at Purdue University. She established the program and courses in Polymer Chemistry and conducted research in that field. She was the President of he Sigma Xi club and the editor of the ChemSpec publication. A Daughter of the American Revolution and a member of the Arlington Historical Society, she produced a 6-page history of UTA and the Chemistry Department.

Bio: Dr. Martin came to UTA as Chairman of the Chemistry Department and held that role until 1977. Under his leadership the Masters degree program was expanded and a proposal for the Ph.D. degree was developed and submitted. The Bachelors degree program in Chemistry received approval from the American Chemical Society and a B.A. degree in Chemistry was introduced. The B.S. degree in Biochemistry was initiated. Several new research-active faculty were hired during this time.

Bio: Mrs Benham came to Arlington State College in 1960 initially as a laboratory instructor and was promoted to Assistant Professor and then to Associate Professor. She taught the Quantitative Analysis courses, and introduced courses in Forensic Chemistry and Photography. She initiated the Science Learning Center and obtained federal funding for the Women in Sciences Program in the College of Science.

Bio: Dr. Francis joined Arlington State College in 1955 initially teaching General Chemistry and subsequently Organic Chemistry. He later took a leave of absence to obtain his Ph.D. at TCU. He served as Undergraduate Advisor for several decades, was Associate Chair under several different Chairmen, and also was Interim Chair during the Summer prior to Richard Timmons’s arrival. He authored the Student Guide and Solutions Manual for the textbook Contemporary Organic Chemistry written by Andrew Ternay. Honors include College of Science Teacher of the Year, AMOCO Outstanding Teacher, Piper Distinguished Professor, UTA Academy of Distinguished Teachers and ACS Salutes to Excellence.

Bio: Dr. Girardot came to UTA in 1966 as Professor of Inorganic Chemistry. He was appointed as the founding Dean of Science the following year and served until 1974. He established one of the first funded research programs in Chemistry studying Mossbauer spectroscopy with the first postdoctoral fellows in the Department, and later developed an interest in Environmental Chemistry and lead pollution. He received the AMOCO Teaching Award.

Bio: Dr. Baker arrived at UTA from Syracuse University in 1971 to take up the position of Dean of the Graduate School, but as a chemist he also established a funded research program in inorganic chemistry, and taught classes when he was available. He later became VP for Academic Affairs, a position he held for almost 20 years. The newly built Chemistry Research Building was named in his honor for leading the efforts to ensure its construction. The impact of this building and the later Chemistry and Physics building on the subsequent success of the Department cannot be overstated.

Bio: Dr. Marynick joined UTA in 1978 and quickly established his program in Computational Chemistry. He authored over 200 scientific papers in major journals and The Chemistry 1284 Laboratory Manual for UTA first-year chemistry students. He served as Associate Chair and Graduate Advisor for several years and was a member of numerous College and University Committees including Chairman of various UTA Computing Committees. Honors awarded include College of Science Teacher of the Year, UTA Distinguished Research Award, and ACS-DFW Doherty Award. He was appointed to the Jenkins Garrett Professorship.

Bio: Dr. Bellion arrived at UTA in 1970 the mandate to develop teaching and initiate research in biochemistry. He initiated the B.S. degree in Biochemistry in 1974 and later the B.S. in Biological Chemistry. As result of the success of these programs, his proposal to add Biochemistry to the Department name was approved in 1992. He was awarded one of the first two NIH research grants given to UTA scientists. He was elected as a member of the first UTA Faculty Senate and later was voted as Chairman. He directed NSF-funded Undergraduate Research Programs and started the first Undergraduate Research Symposium at UTA. He served as Associate Dean of Science for seven years. This was followed by a stint as Department Chair (Interim) for four years, during which seven new faculty members and many new staff were hired and the Department moved into the new Chemistry and Physics building.

Bio: Dr. Pomerantz came to UTA in 1976 as Professor of Organic Chemistry. He later began a successful program of nationally funded research in the chemistry of conducting polymers. Following this he took leave of absence to serve as a Grant Program Manager at the National Science Foundation and after he returned to Arlington he commenced a 4 year term as Associate Chair. Honors awarded include UTA Distinguished Record of Research, and ACS-DFW Doherty Award.

Bio: Dr. Schelly came to UTA from the University of Georgia in 1977 to teach Physical Chemistry and began his research program studying fast reaction kinetics. He was a director of the Mathematical Sciences Ph.D. program and ran the Center for Reaction Kinetics. He served for one year as Interim Chair after Dr. Timmons stepped down. Honors awarded include UTA Distinguished Record of Research, ACS-DFW Doherty Award and the Kerr Medal of the Society for Colloidal and Molecular Electrooptics.

Bio: Dr Timmons arrived at UTA in 1978 to become Chairman of the Department, a position he held for 12 years. During this period, the D.Sc degree in Applied Chemistry was established, and subsequently changed to the Ph.D. degree. He then resumed his research activities with a world-recognized program on surface chemistry and plasma deposition studies. Honors include Chancellor’s Outstanding Teacher Award, Distinguished Faculty Research, ACS-DFW Doherty Award, Distinguished University Professor, UTA Academy of Scholars, and Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.