Dr. David A. Boyles was recently named the first Gaines Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. The Gaines Professorship was established in memory of Dr. Jack Gaines by his children, Holly Yonamine and Brett Gaines, who decided to continue their father's legacy of giving back to the School of Mines.
Boyles joined the faculty of the School of Mines in 1980. Prior to this, he taught organic laboratories at the School of Mines as a student working on his master's degree in chemistry. Gaines served as his laboratory supervisor as well as major professor during that time.
"Although faculty research was a low-key endeavor at the School of Mines during that time, Gaines represented a historical link to the past tradition of organic chemical science for those of us who were his students, imparting an appreciation of both the origins of modern molecular organic chemistry as well as industrial organic chemistry which is pervasive in today's world," Boyles said.
Boyles went on to receive his doctoral degree in 1988 from Purdue University with a major in synthetic medicinal chemistry and a minor in natural products chemistry. His current School of Mines research group in the Department of Chemistry includes a postdoctoral research assistant, three doctoral students and several undergraduates, all of whom are funded from active grants from federal agencies to synthesize and investigate new polymeric materials, work which has led to patents and disclosures. Agencies that have funded Boyles' research include the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, National Science Foundation, United States Department of Agriculture, Army Research Laboratory, Army Research Office, Office of Naval Research, and the Air Force Research Laboratory.
"I am grateful to Holly and Brett for having established this memorial to their father," Boyles said. "On behalf of the legacy of Jack R. Gaines, I am honored to be selected the inaugural recipient of the Dr. Jack R. Gaines Professorship by the selection committee, and am likewise honored to transmit the tradition of organic chemistry to my students in both classroom and laboratory."
"This professorship is a great way to honor our father who loved organic chemistry and enjoyed both research and teaching students, especially in the lab room," said Holly Yonamine. "Anytime a student had a question, he was willing to spend as much time as was necessary to get the issue resolved. He was truly a great professor," added Brett Gaines.
