Faculty

Upon earning a doctorate in chemistry at Oklahoma State University, Reilly served as a National Research Council Associate and a Chemical and Biological Defense Postdoctoral Fellow at U.S. Edgewood Chemical and Biology Center in Maryland.

The research involved a metabonomic approach to investigate the toxic effects of nerve agents on an animal model. The project used proton nuclear magnetic resonance and chemometric methods to correlate spectral patterns for the classification of samples and the determination of key metabolites.

In 2008, Reilly joined the faculty at Bethany and started teaching a variety of chemistry courses with a focus on quantitative analytical techniques, instrumentation, and data analysis methods. Research with undergraduate students and improving chemical education are her current areas of motivation.

As a child, Reilly was always encouraged to explore the world of science and took all of the courses in math and science offered in high school.

In her sophomore year, the chemistry class started with the teacher conducting a series of demonstrations that were exciting and raised the class’ interest in the material that the students were going to be studying for the year.

It was the teacher’s passion and the demonstrations that sparked Reilly’s interest that continued into college.

After a year of doubting that she could be a chemistry major and then having a summer research experience in computational chemistry, she declared a major in chemistry. She found a supportive academic and research adviser who guided her through a bachelor’s degree and on to graduate school.

Education
B.S, Mercyhurst (College) University (2000)
Ph.D. Oklahoma State University (2006)

Areas of Passion & Research
Integration of various active learning methods into courses
Curriculum development of interdisciplinary courses involving chemistry and a variety of fields including food science and art
Development of quantitative analytical techniques
Instrument and data analysis experience including UV-VIS spectroscopy, gas and liquid chromatography, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)
Computer skills in data analysis programs such as R Statistical Package

Personal interests
Outreach programs for STEM education
Committee work for chemistry societies
Travel both domestically and internationally, when possible

Favorite Quote, Book, or Movie … Why?
“Science is a way of thinking much more than it is a body of knowledge.” — Carl Sagan