ENMU Professor Receives NM EPSCoR Mentoring Award

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PORTALES, NM (05/31/2018) Dr. Juchao Yan, professor of chemistry at Eastern New Mexico University, received the 2018 New Mexico Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (NM EPSCoR) Mentoring Award.

NM EPSCoR is funded by the National Science Foundation to build the state's capacity to conduct scientific research by providing research facilities and new education and economic development programs. Dr. Yan was drawn to the program in 2001 when New Mexico became one of the EPSCoR jurisdictions.

"I consider myself a product of NM EPSCoR," explained Dr. Yan. "During my education, I came to love the STEM fields. It was the mission of EPSCoR that drew me to NM EPSCoR: 'EPSCoR enhances research competitiveness of targeted jurisdictions (state, territories, commonwealth) by strengthening STEM capacity and capability.'

"NM EPSCoR has financially supported my research projects, broadened my research horizon and built my research collaboration networks," he said.

"I am honored to receive the Mentoring Award from NM EPSCoR," explained Dr. Yan. "I feel great to be recognized for my mentoring accomplishments during the past 16 years at ENMU. This award sets a new starting point for my mentoring activities. I hope that I can do more and better in the near future."

When asked what being a mentor means to him, Dr. Yan said, "To me, a mentor is a role model, and also an advisor, a supporter, a tutor, a master and a sponsor.

"An effective mentor at primarily undergraduate institutions should, first and foremost, be creative, have good people skills and be inspiring. To be effective, a mentor should be a good listener, a good communicator and also a trusted ally, friend and/or advocate."

Dr. Yan was nominated for the award by David Arellano, an ENMU graduate who served as his research technician for three years.

"While I have watched other students grow and learn from Dr. Yan, I realized that he was helping me to do the same," David wrote in his letter of support for Juchao's nomination. "Thanks to Dr. Yan, I am graduating this semester with a master's degree in chemistry and, beginning this fall, I will be attending a university where I intend to get my Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering. This is just a small example of how I believe I have flourished under Dr. Yan's guidance and assistance."

The ENMU professor was born in Xixia, Henan, China. His mother passed away during his time in college, and his father passed away in 2007. They were both farmers and did not have any formal education. Dr. Yan and his three older brothers and two older sisters all have college degrees.

He earned a Bachelor of Science in Physical Chemistry from Jilin University, in Changchun, Jilin, China, in 1992, and a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry from the Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1997.

Before teaching at ENMU, Dr. Yan was a research assistant professor and postdoctoral fellow for the Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering at the University of New Mexico.

His favorite thing about ENMU is the "personal touch. I have had the opportunity to be a role model and to help everyone in my classes. This is quite different from lecturing for several hundred students in a big lecture hall at big schools."

Dr. Yan lives with his wife, Shu Chen, and their two sons, Tony and Justin, in Portales, New Mexico. Shu earned her Bachelor of Arts in Chinese Literature at Jilin University and her Bachelor of Business Administration at ENMU. Tony is in the 11th grade, and Justin is in the 7th grade. The family has three dogs: Forest, Brook and Happy.

The ENMU professor is a member of the American Chemical Society, the Electrochemical Society, the Materials Research Society and the Algal Biomass Organization. His professional service includes involvement with scientific journals, funding agencies and textbook publishers.

He has also won the 2014 Faculty Presidential Award for Excellence in Research/Scholarly/Creative Activity at ENMU, the 1997 Elite Award for Outstanding Research Achievement at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the 1995 First Award for Best Graduate Student at Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry and the Third Award for Top-Ten Undergraduate Student at Jilin University in 1990.

Original article: https://www.enmu.edu/about/news-and-events/enmu-news/academic-news/2564-enmu-professor-receives-nm-epscor-mentoring-award