Promotions
Dr. Xiaohua Peng, who joined UWM in 2009, was recently promoted to full professor. Her research explores innovative ways to design tumor-targeted cancer therapies and bioorthogonal theranostic systems, with support from the National Institutes of Health. Her team recently made an exciting discovery — combining an H₂O₂-activated prodrug with vitamin C achieved complete tumor remission with no observed side effects or recurrence. Beyond her research, Dr. Peng is passionate about mentoring students and fostering collaborations that connect chemistry with the life sciences.
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry is pleased to announce the promotion of Shama P. Mirza, PhD, to Full Professor, recognizing her scholarly excellence, impactful research, dedicated mentorship, and sustained service. An expert in analytical chemistry, mass spectrometry, and proteomics, Professor Mirza advances MS-based approaches for translational biomedical research, with a focus on cancer biology, pharmacokinetics, and biomarker discovery, particularly in glioblastoma. She has built a highly productive research program with numerous peer-reviewed publications. Through an NSF MRI grant, she led the acquisition of an Orbitrap Exploris mass spectrometer playing a key role in strengthening UWM’s research infrastructure and, as Director of SAILARC, expanded access to advanced analytical technologies. A committed educator and mentor, she has received multiple mentoring honors. Her leadership and service have strengthened UWM’s research mission.
Prof. Leggy Arnold was awarded a $416,696 grant by the National Institute of Environmental Health Science for their project “Medical countermeasures to chlorine exposure based on GABA(A) receptor targeting”.
In the News
UWM’s new Chemistry building was honored in the 2025 Mayor’s Design Awards.
Kevin Blackburn’s knowledge of building operations and his understanding of departmental needs was critical to the successful opening of the new Chemistry Building. His expertise on flow logistics, hazardous materials management, safety and security was critical during the design phase and continued to be essential to the architects, engineers, contractors and movers.
He successfully purged the old building of $5 million of capital assets, starting in 2014. He weighed in on building design and function, ordered new equipment and safely moved equipment and chemicals into the new spaces.
Blackburn credits the success of this project to his coworkers, adding, “There are wonderful folks on campus, and it would not be proper to accept this award without stating this acknowledgment.”