Ognjen Miljanic, assistant professor of chemistry, strives for innovation in both
his research and teaching endeavors. That trait led to his selection as a 2013 Cottrell
Scholar. Miljanic is the first University of Houston (UH) faculty member to receive
this recognition and the only scholar of this year’s 13 recipients from Texas. 
The honor, awarded by the Research Corporation for Science Advancement (RCSA), goes
to early-career science educators in the physical sciences and related fields. Recipients
receive $75,000 to further their research and educational programs.
Selection is highly competitive. Only about 10 percent of those who apply are approved
by the RCSA’s peer-review process. The Cottrell Scholar Program Award is one of several
faculty awards recognized in the Top American Research Universities report as defining
Tier One universities. The program strives to establish a network of scholar educators
through their annual Cottrell Scholar Collaborative, a forum for sharing methods to
improve undergraduate science education in American research universities and increase
retention of undergraduate science majors.
“The yearly meetings focus on establishing educational collaborations that will help
bring our initiatives to completion faster,” Miljanic said. “It is a great honor to
be part of the Cottrell Scholar Collaborative.”
Proposals for the Cottrell Scholar Award cover research and education endeavors equally.
Miljanic’s proposal to RCSA included several educational initiatives. All of his ideas
are based on his desire to enhance his students’ educational experience, with a particular
focus on the unique demographics of UH students. One activity involves “eLectures”
designed to help the students enrolled in his large 5:30 p.m. organic chemistry class.
“Many of these students are commuters with full-time jobs, and their work sometimes
requires them to miss a lecture or two,” he said. “The recorded lectures approximate
the classroom experience. They can listen in their free time at home as many times
as they need. I encourage students not to miss lectures, but if they do, there is
a back up.”
Miljanic tapes the lectures ahead of class in a studio-like setting, dividing each
eLecture into five to 10 concepts. This structure makes it easy for students to locate
concepts they need to review. Each concept is cross-linked with related topics, both
within the lecture and with external resources.
Another initiative involves building 3-D printed models to illustrate concepts in
chemistry, such as potential energy surfaces and orbital interactions of aromaticity.
He uses the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics 3-D printing facility to create
the models.
“Some concepts are difficult to put on a blackboard,” Miljanic said. “The 3-D models
make the class more interactive. Students can touch them and pass them around.”
On the research side of his proposal, Miljanic hopes to mimic nature by achieving
“molecular self-sorting” in manmade mixtures of chemical compounds. Working on ways
to better imitate nature’s ability to manufacture many of the molecules necessary
for life, Miljanic aims to apply these insights in the preparation of new molecules
for use in sensing, separations and energy-relevant applications.
“Nature simultaneously makes hundreds of really complex molecules. For example, an
orange tree doesn’t shut down all other systems when it needs to make vitamin C. It
makes it in parallel with glucose and many other things,” he said. “I am working to
translate this concept into a laboratory setting in order to make multiple value-added
chemicals in parallel with each other in the same reaction flask.”
His research is not designed to replicate nature but rather to make sophisticated
synthetic molecules with applications in environmental analysis, energy-related research
and basic chemical industry.
“Ognjen is truly dedicated to excellence in both his research and teaching,” said
David Hoffman, chairman of the chemistry department. “It is great to see his creativity
and hard work recognized at the national level. My colleagues and I are very proud
to have him on our faculty.”
With an anticipated award start date of July 1 for the Cottrell award, Miljanic has
been invited to attend the 2013 Cottrell Scholar conference – “Connecting Educators,
Building Communities” – in Tucson, Ariz., July 10-12. The highly interactive conference
gives scholars the opportunity to share their proposed educational activities with
others, provides time for team building and the development of collaborative projects
and offers a chance to engage with well-known speakers from a national perspective
regarding possibilities for taking ideas to the next level.
Miljanic’s past awards include a National Science Foundation CAREER Award and UH Teaching
Excellence Award for Innovation in Instructional Technology, both awarded in 2012.
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About the University of Houston
The University of Houston is a Carnegie-designated Tier One public research university
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About the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics
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