Erin Gray is the Next Speaker in the Anne and Edgar Basse Jr. Author Talk Series Gray will deliver a lecture on the process of developing a new chemical reaction on Oct. 22.

By Emily Innes Stanley
October 19, 2026

Erin Gray, associate professor of chemistry, will deliver a lecture titled “From Reaction Flask to Publication: The People and Process Behind Undergraduate Research in Chemistry” at Washington and Lee University at 12:30 p.m. on Oct. 22 in the Houston H. Harte Center Gallery in Leyburn Library. The talk is free and open to the public, and a light lunch will be provided.

The lecture is sponsored by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the University Library and is part of the library’s Anne and Edgar Basse Jr. (’39) Endowment, which was created in 1988 to support the varied activities of the University Library Special Collections and Archives.

Many essential products — such as live-saving pharmaceuticals, crop-protecting agrochemicals and everyday plastics — rely on the ability to synthesize molecules. But questions remain regarding how these molecules can be made efficiently, sustainably and affordably. In her presentation, Gray will describe the development of a new chemical reaction, from the initial discovery and optimization to exploring its applications and sharing the findings with the broader scientific community, while also highlighting the contributions of undergraduate students to this research.

“Our recent research publication included seven W&L undergraduate student coauthors, highlighting their essential role in conducting and advancing scientific research,” Gray said. “The Basse Salon discussion will provide insight into the process of scientific discovery at W&L, including formulating an idea, securing funding, conducting experiments, training the next generation of scientists and disseminating the results. I’m excited to share our work with the campus community.”

Gray’s teaching and research focuses on synthetic organic chemistry and catalysis. As the founder of the Remote Supergroup for Chemistry Undergraduates, she also supports research and professional development opportunities for students and faculty at more than 40 primarily undergraduate institutions.

Gray has been a member of the W&L faculty since 2019. She serves on the Faculty Executive Committee and is a faculty co-adviser for the W&L Chemistry Club. She earned a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from Furman University and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Princeton University. She also served as a postdoctoral scholar in the Department of Chemistry at Stanford University.