Campus Faculty


James T. Spencer

Laura J. and L. Douglas Meredith Professor
Associate Dean for Science, Mathematics and Research
B.S., S.U.N.Y. College at Potsdam    Ph.D., Inorganic Chemistry, Iowa State University
Email: jtspence@syr.edu

Professor Spencer obtained his B.S. from S.U.N.Y. College at Potsdam and his Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from Iowa State University in 1984.

Dr. Spencer joined the faculty at Syracuse University in 1986 after completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Virginia. Prof. Spencer has recently received several honors for his research and teaching work including the "Distinguished Achievements in Boron Science" Award from the BUSA International Conference. He was recently appointed the Laura J. and L. Douglas Meredith Professor for Teaching Excellence, the Associate Dean for Science, Mathematics and Research in the College of Arts and Sciences, and was presented with the 2009 University College Award for Excellence in Teaching. He has chaired a variety of scientific meetings for the American Chemical Society, Boron Science International Conference (BUSA), and the Foresight Conferences on Molecular Nanotechnology, among others.

Dr. Spencer has presented numerous invited lectures including at the IMEBORON X International Conference, the Gordon Research Conference in Inorganic Chemistry, and the International Symposium on Solid State Imaging and CVD. He has served as a consultant for the Lockheed Martin Corporation, General Electric Corporation, the Merix Corporation, UltraSolids Inc., JGB, and IBM, among others.

Dr. Spencer's research interests involve the exploration and application of inorganic compounds to important technological problems. He is the author of over 75 papers and 8 patents and has presented over 150 research lectures at regional, national and international meetings. Spencer also serves at the Music Director of the national award winning Syracuse University Brass Ensemble. Laura J. and L. Douglas Meredith Professor Professor, Chemistry B.S., S.U.N.Y. College at Potsdam





Michael B. Sponsler

Professor, Chemistry
Ph.D., California Institute of Technology

Email: sponsler@syr.edu

Professor Michael B. Sponsler joined the Syracuse University faculty in 1989, after receiving his B.S. degree in chemistry from Bowling Green State University in 1982 and his Ph.D. in chemistry from Caltech in 1987. He did postdoctoral work at the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Sponsler's research interests are focused on new molecules and materials with potential applications in electronics or optics. Projects include organometallic wires and connection strategies for molecular electronics, organometallic conducting materials, and electrically switchable holographic recording materials. Dr. Sponsler has organized and chaired symposia at meetings of the American Chemical Society. He has presented many invited lectures, including at American Chemical Society national meetings, Pacifichem international conferences, an Annual Meeting of Nano Science and Technology in South Korea, an Optical Society of America national meeting, and an international meeting of the Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers. Dr. Sponsler has served as research advisor to over 70 students and associates. In 2006, he authored the solutions manual to accompany a very popular new graduate-level textbook, "Modern Physical Organic Chemistry."