LSU Chemistry Students Recognized at Choppin Honors Convocation

Tai Hua

Tai Hua is an Ogden Honors College junior conducting research with Prof. Kenneth Lopata. His work explores how coordination compounds can drive attosecond electron dynamics and provides key theoretical benchmarks for other computational methods. He recently submitted a first-author paper coauthored with Lucas Kurkowski and Prof. Lopata.

He also serves as Vice President of the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society (SAACS), demonstrating strong leadership within the chemistry community. Last spring, Tai received the Dr. Linda Allen Excellence in Academics and Research Award.

After graduation, Tai plans to attend graduate school and continue his studies in chemistry. With a passion sparked in elementary school and refined through undergraduate research, he aspires to a research career in higher education or a national lab, guiding and inspiring future scientists along the way.

George Tisdale

George Tisdale is an Ogden Honors College student majoring in Chemistry with minors in Materials Science & Engineering and Mathematics. Since his freshman year, he has conducted research in Prof. Clifton Wagner’s group, focusing on the exploratory synthesis of coordination complexes with polyaromatic heterocycles.  

After taking Prof. Baranets’ Practical X-Ray Crystallography graduate course and working with crystallographer Dr. Frank Fronczek, George launched an independent research project to grow crystals, collect diffraction data, and solve their 3D structures. He independently learned to use the LSU HPC capabilities to run DFT calculations on his produced structures. He has presented his work at LSU Discover Day and the MateriAIZ Winter School, co-authored two manuscripts, and is preparing a paper based on his independent study.

George serves as Treasurer of the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society (SAACS) and is active in Research Ambassadors and Bridge LSU. He also tutors students in seven science subjects at the Shell Tutorial Center and volunteers regularly in the Baton Rouge community.

Following graduation, George plans to pursue a Ph.D. in chemistry and aspires to conduct research at a national lab, continuing to explore and contribute to the advancement of chemical science.

Daniel Le Lorier

Daniel Le Lorier, a graduating senior, conducts undergraduate research with Professor Semin Lee, focusing on the development of molecular receptors for the selective binding of lithium ions. He successfully defended his senior thesis and will graduate with Honors from the LSU Ogden Honors College. This upcoming fall, Daniel will continue his academic journey in the Chemistry Ph.D. program at Texas A&M University.

Ayesha Weerakoon

Ayesha Weerakoon, a graduating senior, conducts undergraduate research in Professor Donghui Zhang’s lab, where she studies polyampholytes. Her work involves synthesizing multiblock peptoid-based polyampholytes and characterizing their pH-dependent behavior in aqueous solutions. She recently presented her research at the 2025 LSU Discover Day, earning third place in the STEM poster competition. After graduation, Ayesha will begin medical school at Lincoln Memorial University–DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine, where she will continue her pursuit of science through a career in medicine.

Parker Collett

Parker Collett, a graduating senior, conducts research in Prof. Daniel Kuroda’s lab, where he applies infrared spectroscopy and machine learning to differentiate between animal tissue types. His work has successfully distinguished two distinct tissue types to date. Parker is also a recipient of the 2025 ACS Division of Physical Chemistry Undergraduate Award. After graduating from LSU, he will begin a PhD program in Chemistry at the University of Notre Dame.

Ella Madura

Ella Madura, a senior majoring in both chemistry and studio art (painting and drawing), has conducted undergraduate research under the guidance of Prof. Víctor García-López and Prof. Sviatoslav Baranets. In Prof. García-López’s lab, she focused on the synthesis and characterization of molecular cages for triplet energy transfer photocatalysis and co-authored a published research article. Currently, in Prof. Baranets’ group, she is developing and investigating novel heteroanionic semiconductors, including chalcohalides. Ella is set to graduate in December 2025 and plans to pursue graduate studies.

Julia Carroll 

Julia Carroll, a chemistry senior and MARC scholar, serves as president of the LSU Chapter of the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society (SAACS), where she has led a team of officers in organizing outreach initiatives, professional development events, and efforts to promote undergraduate research. Under her leadership, the club has expanded its membership through engaging and inclusive programming. Julia also conducts undergraduate research in Prof. David Spivak’s lab and has previously worked in Prof. John Pojman’s group. After graduating, Julia plans to pursue a Ph.D. in macromolecular chemistry.

Lilia Lopez Medina

Lilia is a junior conducting research on artificial molecular machines under the guidance of Prof. García-López. She is a part of the SCI Lead student counsel and a member of the editorial team for The Cypress Review. Her ultimate goal is to pursue a graduate degree in environmental chemistry.