I am originally from north-central Pennsylvania and received my education at the Lehigh University (BS and PhD) in southeastern Pennsylvania. I then stayed in the Lehigh Valley for five years working at J. T. Baker Chemical Co. (Phillipsburg, NJ) on the development of new plant growth regulators and deep-UV photoresists. I was awarded patents in each of these areas. I then decided to pursue an academic career and accepted a position as an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at UAB in 1983. I was promoted to Associate Professor in 1989 and to Professor in 1999. My two daughters both attended Vestavia High School; one went to Auburn University and the other to the University of Alabama. Rita, my wife of nearly 40 years, has worked at both UAB and Southern Research Institute.