The Chemistry Graduate Student Organization strives to involve graduate students in a professional capacity in the Chemistry Department at Colorado State University. The objective is to give graduate students the chance to have a more collective voice in the department. This organization is a focal point for students to plan professional development and departmental activities, develop outreach opportunities within the department, and to be more actively involved in events and activities within the department.
Meetings are held on the first Friday of every month at 3:00 PM in the Chemistry Graduate Student Lounge. We invite all interested graduate students to attend and join our email list by contacting chem_cgso@Mail.Colostate.edu if you are interested in joining!
Sabari Kumar
Sabari Kumar (he/him/his) — Co-president: Hi everyone! I’m a third year PChem grad student in the Kim group; my work uses techniques from computational chemistry and data science/machine learning to predict molecular properties. In my free time, I enjoy cooking, spending time with my dog, Sage, and biking and skiing around Colorado. As one of the CGSO co-presidents, I’m passionate about improving working conditions for graduate students and postdocs, and community outreach.
Brandon Portela
Brandon Portela (he/him/his) — Co-president: My name is Brandon Portela and I’m the co-president of the CGSO. I am a third-year graduate student in the Miyake & Paton group, and I focus on quantum mechanical modeling of photo- and electro-chemically driven reactions. In my free time, I enjoy going to different breweries, bars and catching up on Netflix shows.
Ava Chard
Ava Chard (she/her/hers)— Vice President: I am a 2nd year in the Reynolds group where I work on analytical method development in the Cannabis Research Center. In my free time I love hiking, cooking, and spending time with my cat!
Ren Borgia
Ren Borgia (she/her/hers) — Treasurer: My name is Ren, and I am a 2nd year joint between the Prieto and Neilson groups. My current research is focused on making and characterizing defect-tolerant semiconducting materials for applications in solar cells. In my free time, I compete in powerlifting and I enjoy reading, hiking, and cooking. As the treasurer of the CGSO, I’m excited to contribute to our chemistry community by helping to organize rewarding opportunities for students. I aim to facilitate interactions between students and the greater Fort Collins community through service opportunities, connections between students in different divisions through social events, and access to graduate school advice/information through panels and workshops.
Juniper Morales
Juniper Morales (they/them/theirs)— Secretary: Hey ya’ll, I’m Juniper, I am a 2nd year in the Sambur group. I’m currently working towards quantitively resolving ion-insertion in electrochromic materials via a novel microscopy method. In my free time, I enjoy rock climbing, in particular multi-pitch trad and alpine adventures. As secretary of the CGSO, I hope to increase diversity and foster inclusivity by building community amongst existing/incoming cohorts.
