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In the lab of Assistant Professor of Chemistry Jean-Luc Ayitou, undergraduate researcher Will Blodgett has been working to utilize water as a solvent, a practice that, if widely adopted within industry, will help protect the environment. Gaining this sort of real-world experience is just one way Blodgett says he has benefited from working in Ayitou’s lab.

“This has opened up many doors for me to present at conventions, undergraduate research symposiums, and more,” he says.

Blodgett is a dual major in chemistry and chemical engineering and is enrolled in the Accelerated Master’s Program in chemistry. He says he also plans to pursue a Ph.D. in chemistry with the goal of one day becoming a chemistry professor and contributing to curing genetic diseases.

“Curiosity inspires me,” he says. “As an aspiring scientist, [I’m inspired by the prospect of] making discoveries on the forefront of the unknowns and how we can apply what we have discovered to make innovations in energy, medicine, materials, transportation, and new technologies. Teaching these discoveries also inspires me. We can make as many discoveries as we want, [but] none of it matters if we don’t inspire the next generation to keep going.”