Dr. Aimee Morris

Dr. Aimee Morris
Chair and Professor of Chemistry

Expertise

  • Inorganic and bioinorganic chemistry
  • Catalysis using transition metal compounds

Education

  • Ph.D., Chemistry, Colorado State University, 2009
  • Bachelor of Science, Chemistry, Western Washington University, 2004

Contact:

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Media Contact

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About Dr. Aimee Morris

Aimee Morris is an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Fort Lewis College. Before joining Fort Lewis, Dr. Morris was a faculty associate at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and a National Institutes of Health neuro-postdoctoral fellow at Brandeis University. She joined the college in 2012 as a visiting inorganic chemistry instructor and became a full-time faculty member in 2014. She researches inorganic chemistry and its biological applications. Currently, Dr. Morris’ research group is designing and synthesizing small molecule cobalt complexes to investigate their potential use as prodrugs in hypoxic cancer cells. Her other research interests include testing catalytic applications of small metal-containing complexes. Dr. Morris has mentored Fort Lewis undergraduate student researchers under the National Institute of Health-Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC) U-STAR program, the National Science Foundation (NSF) Four Corners STEM Success (FOCUSS) program, and the National Institute of Health Biomedical Learning and Student Training (BLaST) program. In addition to mentoring students on research projects, Dr. Morris is the Co-Principal Investigator on the NSF Four Corners Noyce Scholars program targeted at increasing the number of STEM-qualified teachers in K-12 in the Four Corners region. Read more about the Noyce program at Fort Lewis College.

Selected Publications and Presentations

Lind, N. M.; Joe, N. S.; Newell, B. S.; Morris, A. M., High Yielding, One-Pot Synthesis of Bis(1H-indazol-1-yl)methane Catalyzed by 3d-Metal Salts, Reactions 2022, 3, 59-69; https://doi.org/10.3390/reactions3010005.

Herrod, A; Morris, A. M. “Progress toward the Synthesis of a new Co(III) Coordination Complex with 5-methyl-1H-indazole ligands”, Poster presentation at the 2022 Spring National American Chemical Society Meeting, San Diego, CA, March 2022.

Lind, N. M.; Morris, A. M. “Progression to a One-pot Synthesis of Bis(1H-indazol-1-yl)methane”, Poster presentation at the 2022 Spring National American Chemical Society Meeting, San Diego, CA, March 2022.

Adams, M. A.; Kincade, J. A.; Runyan, E. C.; Torraco, A. N.; Morris, A. M., Primary Amine-Functionalized Ligand Substitution and Biotinylation of Co(III) for Ligand-Anchored Artificial Metalloenzymes, Metamorphosis Fall 2021, http://metamorphosis.coplac.org/index.php/metamorphosis/article/view/304.

Hart, K. F.; Joe, N. S.; Miller, R. M.; Nash, H. P.; Blake, D. J.; Morris, A. M. “Synthesis and characterization of trans-dichlorotetrakis(imidazole)cobalt(III) chloride: a new cobalt(III) coordination complex with potential prodrug properties,” Bioinorganic Chemistry and Applications 2018, Article ID 4560757, https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/4560757.

Miller, R. M.; Nash, H. P.; Morris, A. M. “Synthesis of a New Cationic Cobalt(III) Coordination Complex and its Potential Applications as an Indole Ring Forming Catalyst,” Poster presentation at the 253rd American Chemical Society National Meeting in San Francisco, CA, April 2017.

Joe, N. S.; Morris, A. M. “A New Octahedral Cobalt(III) Complex as a Possible Anti-Cancer Prodrug: Synthesis and Characterization Studies in Solid-State and Solution,” Poster presentation at the 2015 SACNAS National Conference, Washington, D.C., October 2015