Connie Allen

Dean of the Classes of 2009 & 2010
Lecturer in chemistry

Specialization
Environmental stress responses of carotenoid-enriched and non-enriched galactolipid membrane systems, ozone damage and oxidative stress in plant tissues, using raman imaging and other vibrational spectroscopic analytical techniques

In addition to teaching in the chemistry department, Connie Allen serves as academic dean for the classes of 2006 and 2007. In that capacity, she coordinates academic advising, academic orientation, and academic support programs such as tutoring, undergraduate academic advising, and learning skills. “My experiences as a chemistry professor, mentor, advisor, scholar, and parent have equipped me with many tools for helping students succeed,” says Allen.

As a chemist, Allen’s professional experience includes the prestigious NRC Postdoctoral Fellowship in the Biotechnology Division of the National Institutes of Technology and Standards (NIST), as well as fellowships from USDA (Climate Stress Lab) /UMCP (Dept of Natural Resources) and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

Before coming to Mount Holyoke, Allen was a member of the chemistry faculty at Yale University.

Recent Publication

• Allen, B., Vrettos, J.S., Tinocco, Arthur, Brudvig, G.W., and Howard, D.L., 2005, "Catalytic Oxygen Evolution by a Bioinorganic Model of the Photosystem II Oxygen-Evolving Complex" Journal of Chemical Education (May 2005)