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In CHEM 146, a capstone course for chemistry majors at San José State University, I run a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) developed in collaboration with many members of the IONiC VIPEr community. This CURE starts with every student in the lab developing and presenting their proposed project to the class. Each proposal is addressing the same overarching scientific aim: to study catalysts for catechol oxidation where at least one of the proposed catalysts has not been used for this reaction before. The proposal includes two related complexes that will be tested for catalytic activity in the oxidation of 3,5-di-tert-butylcatechol (3,5-DTBC) to 3,5-di-tert-butylquinone (3,5-DTBQ). The two complexes could use the same ligand framework with 2 different metals or use (slightly) different ligand frameworks with the same metal. Student need to determine how to synthesize these complexes from commercially available materials, how to characterize them using available instrumentation, and how to test them for the target oxidation catalysis. In the proposal, students need to include at least a couple of control runs to ensure that autoxidation cannot explain the reactivity in the catalysis trials.
The proposal phase of the CURE is run concurrently with 2 short, open-inquiry projects that are not directly related to the CURE. Several checkpoints and assessments are related to the proposal phase of the CURE, as follows. The dates in parentheses are from Spring 2026 to give a sense of how spread out they are. The class meets every Friday from 9 am - 3:40 pm.
- Proposal discussion post 1: Brainstorming (due 2/6)
- to share your initial thoughts on the proposal and get feedback from both me and your classmates
- 1-on-1 Check-in with instructor (during class on 2/13)
- you will sign up for a 20 minute window during class time, and you can use the time to get feedback on your proposal plan, proposal form, etc., to help make sure you're making good progress and give you a 1-on-1 opportunity to ask any questions you have regarding the proposal and associated assignments
- Proposal discussion post 2: Driving question (due 2/27)
- to share the question driving your proposal and the metrics you will use for determining whether the project is a success
- 1-on-1 Check-in with instructor (during class on 2/27)
- you will sign up for a 20 minute window during class time, and you can use the time to get feedback on your proposal plan, proposal form, etc., to help make sure you're making good progress and give you a 1-on-1 opportunity to ask any questions you have regarding the proposal and associated assignments
- Proposal form (due 3/6)
- to list out the details of your proposal plan and associated references so that you will be ready to go if your proposal is chosen
- Proposal presentation (during class 3/13)
- research projects cannot be completed without funding and resources and proposals are an important step in that process, this will be your chance to present and "sell" your idea to a set of peer reviewers
- Proposal reviews (during class 3/13)
- to practice giving constructive feedback to your peers
- to help guide your engagement with the proposal presentations
- Response to reviews (due 3/27)
- to practice receiving, processing, and addressing peer reviews
Course learning outcomes covered in the proposal phase of the CURE.
Students will be able to
CLO 1: Make predictions in a laboratory setting based on concepts from general, physical, analytical, and inorganic chemistry courses.
CLO 4: Develop a short research proposal based on literature precedent, and persuade reviewers (the instructor and fellow classmates) of its merits through written and oral presentations.
SciFinder or similar literature searching tools are helpful.
The in-class check-ins with the students were absolutely essential to the proposal writing process. See attachments for various assignments and notes.
General notes about the course
At SJSU, upper division undergraduate courses are numbered from 100-199 and graduate courses are numbered 200-299. This course is CHEM 146, and it is expected to be taken in Spring semester of a student's senior year, or, if the student will be graduating in Fall semester, students may take it in the Spring semester prior to gradation. Rarely, a junior doing inorganic before physical chemistry will take it in their junior year. This course does not rely on physical chemistry as a prerequisite, so students have been successful with this path as well. CHEM 145, the inorganic lecture course, which I also typically teach, is a prerequisite to this laboratory course. CHEM 146 is the only inorganic laboratory course currently offered at SJSU. It is only offered in Spring semester and has had between 6 and 16 students enrolled (from Spring 2018 to Spring 2026) with 11 students in the most recent run of the course, which these materials reflect.
Evaluation
See attachments for various assignments and notes.
Students have developed compelling proposals each of the three semesters I have run this CURE and were able to achieve some interesting results in the project phase of this CURE.