Our Programs - National Symposium - 2007

Taking the Next Step: The Transfer of Knowledge

The Leadership Alliance National Symposium (LANS) was held July 27-29, 2007 at the Sheraton Stamford Hotel, Stamford, Connecticut.

View the Summer Symposium Photo Gallery: Who Was There

View the Schedule of Events:  LANS At-A-Glance

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Donna J. Nelson
Associate Professor, Chemistry
University of Oklahoma

Dr. Donna Nelson is an associate professor of chemistry at the University of Oklahoma. She received her B.S. in chemistry at the University of Oklahoma, earned a Ph.D. in chemistry at the University of Texas, and did her postdoctorate at Purdue University. She joined the University of Oklahoma in 1983 and was a visiting professor at MIT in 2003.  In physical organic chemistry, she developed a new synthetically useful technique for gathering mechanistic information on addition reactions of alkenes. She now applies her research to single-walled carbon nanotube reactions. She has also conducted surveys and studies related to the participation of women and minorities in the sciences, student learning, and factors influencing student selection and retention in science majors. Dr. Nelson is Cherokee/Chickasaw and has collaborated with Native American tribes to determine incidences in, effects of, and attitudes toward diabetes in Oklahoma Native Americans. She has received many awards, including a Guggenheim Award, the National Organization for Women “Woman of Courage” Award, a Sigma Xi Faculty Research Award, and was recently recognized by SACNAS as Distinguished Scientist of the Year ‘06. She is an inductee in the American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellows and Minority Health Professions Foundation Hall of Fame.