Chemistry and Biochemistry Ph.D. student Abigail Gyamfi was recognized by the California Section of the American Chemical Society Summer Experiences for the Economically Disadvantaged (SEED) Program and the Women Chemists Committee (WCC).
“This is the first time a graduate student has been recognized by the California Section of the ACS, so Abigail is pretty unique,” WCC Co-chair and Project SEED Coordinator Elaine Yamaguchi said.
In summer 2022, Gyamfi volunteered to mentor an undergraduate student in Professor Hrant Hratchian’s computational chemistry research group through ACS Project SEED Program. The Project SEED Program is a summer fellowship program that provides high school students research opportunities in chemistry or a related field under the direct supervision of a scientist-mentor in both academia and industry. The program offers a virtual summer camp to students focusing on college readiness and professional development, lab preparedness and exposure to chemistry-related career paths.
Gyamfi has contributed to writing meeting summaries for the WCC published in the ACS California Section newsletter called The Vortex.
“It is really rare to find a graduate student who is doing so much while she is in graduate school. That is why Abigail is so unique, and we recognize her contributions to our section,” Yamaguchi said.
Gyamfi remains committed to advancing her graduate research, contributing to the scientific community and inspiring the next generation of scientists.
"At the heart of everything I do is community service. This recognition from the California Section of ACS is especially meaningful because it reflects my commitment and inspires me, as a first-generation student, to serve as a role model in STEM," she said. “I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. Elaine Yamaguchi and my Ph.D. advisor, Dr. Hrant Hratchian, for their exceptional mentorship and strong support.”
