DePauw professors genuinely care about you, your well-being and your academic journey.
-Danielle Sommerman
Bridget Gourley, in her more than three-decade career with DePauw, now serves as the inaugural dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. In addition to extensive teaching and research as a physical chemist, Gourley has served in numerous leadership positions. She received her bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and mathematics from the University of Puget Sound and her Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the University of Utah.
“The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences centers the liberal arts in all aspects of academic life at DePauw. It is who we are. We are creating the scaffold of tools and knowledge that develops students who think critically and creatively, and effectively communicate as global citizens and leaders in professions of their choosing,” says Gourley.
Bridget Gourley, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry, has been a member of DePauw’s faculty since 1988 and has served in a wide range of leadership roles including coordinator of the First Year Advising Program, director of the Women in Science Program, director of the Science Research Fellows Program, chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, chair of the Committee on Faculty, chair of the Faculty, chair of the Resource Allocation Subcommittee, and member of the Campus Climate Task Force. For the past four years, Dr. Gourley has also served as DePauw’s dean of the faculty.
As a physical chemist, Dr. Gourley is interested in the interactions of light and matter. Her most recent project in this area, supported by a National Science Foundation award, is entitled “Collaborative Research: Unraveling interactions that drive water-osmolyte interactions in confinement and impact self-assembly.” In addition to her scholarship and teaching in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Dr. Gourley has also taught several first-year seminars and has mentored more than 50 students in her laboratory, conducting undergraduate research projects as well as serving as the faculty advisor to Students of Color in STEM.
Nationally, Dr. Gourley has a steady stream of publications and presentations. She has had multiple leadership roles with the Council on Undergraduate Research and her work has significant support from various funding agencies and several National Science Foundation awards.
DePauw professors genuinely care about you, your well-being and your academic journey.
-Danielle Sommerman
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences acts as the foundation of a DePauw education. Learn more about DePauw and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and begin your transformative journey by visiting our admission page.
