Presenting Author
Rochester Institute of Technology
Paul Craig is professor of chemistry at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). He earned a B.S. in chemistry from Oral Roberts University (1979) and a Ph.D. in biological chemistry The University of Michigan (1985). He joined the Department of Chemistry at RIT in 1993, with plans to “use computers to teach biochemistry.” He has taught courses in biochemistry, general chemistry, analytical chemistry and bioinformatics. His students have developed computer simulations of protein separations (chromatography and electrophoresis – both 1D and 2D) and software for molecular visualization and predicting protein function. He helped to found the BioMolBiz working group (https://qubeshub.org/community/groups/biomolviz) which promotes molecular visualization literacy. He currently leads the BASIL consortium (Biochemistry Authentic Scientific Inquiry Lab; http://basiliuse.blogspot.com; https://basilbiochem.github.io/basil/), a growing team of faculty members from >10 campuses who are implementing a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) where students use in silico and in vitro techniques to predict and test protein function. In 2017, he received the Chemical Pioneer award from the American Institute of Chemists, the American Society for Biochemistry & Molecular Biology Award (ASBMB) for Exemplary Contributions to Education in 2018, and is a member of the ASBMB fellows class of 2022. He is an associate of the Molecular Sciences Software Institute, where he developed a course on Python Scripting for Biochemistry. He has been married to his wife, Elsa, since 1986, and they are very proud of their four children.