Neil K. Garg is currently a Distinguished

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

and holds the Kenneth N. Trueblood Endowed Chair at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

. Garg's research is focused on the chemical synthesis of organic compounds, with an emphasis on the development of new strategies for the preparation of complex molecules possessing unique structural, biological, and physical properties. His group has made breakthroughs in catalysis, especially strong bond activation of esters and amides using nickel catalysts, and in the understanding and utilization of strained intermediates, such as arynes, cyclic alkynes, and cyclic allenes. His laboratory has completed the total syntheses of many natural products, including welwitindolinones, akuammilines, and tubingensin alkaloids. Garg is a co-Founder of ElectraTect, Inc., He has inspired a series of student-created

music videos A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...

to encourage students to learn organic chemistry. He has led other innovative projects, such as the Organic Coloring Book series, The O-Chem (Re)-Activity Book, the Backside Attack smartphone app, QR Chem, RS Chemistry, Virtual Reality Chemistry, ChemMatch, Biology And Chemistry Online Notes (BACON). and #MentorFirst. These resources have benefited hundreds of thousands of people in more than 150 countries worldwide.

Education

Garg received his B.S. from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

in 2000. He went on to earn his Ph.D. at the

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...

, where he studied organic chemistry under the supervision of

Brian Stoltz Brian M. Stoltz is currently a professor of chemistry at the California Institute of Technology. The primary focus of his research is chemical synthesis with an emphasis on expanding the scope of allylic alkylation for the preparation of complex ...

as a DoD NDSEG Fellow, completing his studies in 2005. Upon completion of his graduate work, he held an NIH post-doctoral appointment in the

laboratory A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physicia ...

of Larry Overman at University of California - Irvine from 2005 to 2007.

Awards and honors

* Mukaiyama Award, 2022 * Fellow of the American Institute of Chemists, 2022 * Royal Society of Chemistry’s Horizon Prize (Garg Molecular Educators Team), 2021 * Royal Society of Chemistry’s Horizon Prize (Tang/Houk/Garg Pericyclase Team), 2021 * ACS Edward Leete Award, 2019 * James Flack Norris Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Teaching of Chemistry, 2019 * US Defense Science Study Group (DSSG 2022-2023), 2019 *

’s Distinguished Alumnus Award, 2019 * ASBMB Award for Exemplary Contributions to Education, 2019 * Fellow of the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all d ...

, 2018 *

Robert Foster Cherry Award The Robert Foster Cherry Award is a prize given biennially by Baylor University for "great teaching". The Cherry Award honors professors at the College or University level, in the English-speaking world, with established track records of teaching ex ...

for Great Teaching, 2018 *

for Great Teaching, Finalist, 2017 *

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society (professional association) in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the Ro ...

's Higher Education Award, 2017 *

Elias J. Corey Award for Outstanding Original Contribution in Organic Synthesis, 2017 *

Mitsui Chemicals is a Japanese chemicals company listed on the Nikkei with business interests in Japan, Europe, China, Southeast Asia and the USA. It is one of the leading chemical companies in Japan and is part of the Mitsui conglomerate. The company mainly ...

Catalysis Science Award of Encouragement, 2016 *

’s Merck Award, 2016 *

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...

, 2016 * Thieme-IUPAC Prize, 2016 * Tetrahedron Young Investigator Award, 2016 * California’s US Professor of the Year,

Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching (CFAT) is a U.S.-based education policy and research center. It was founded by Andrew Carnegie in 1905 and chartered in 1906 by an act of the United States Congress. Among its most nota ...

, 2015 * UCLA Gold Shield Faculty Prize, 2015 *

Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award, 2015 * UCLA Distinguished Award for Teaching and Eby Award for the Art of Teaching, 2014 * Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, 2013 * A. P. Sloan Research Fellowship, 2012 *

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

Hanson–Dow Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2011 *

NSF CAREER Award The National Science Foundation CAREER awards, presented by the National Science Foundation (NSF), are in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through research and education, and the integration of these endeavors i ...

, 2010

Current

Garg was promoted to Distinguished Professor at

in 2020. In 2018, he became the inaugural holder of the Kenneth N. Trueblood Endowed Chair in Chemistry & Biochemistry. He has served as Vice Chair for the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry (2012-2016) and currently serves as the Department Chair (2019–present). He also served as Faculty-in-Residence in the UCLA dormitories from 2012-2021.

References

External links

Garg's research group
at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garg, Neil University of California, Los Angeles faculty California Institute of Technology alumni 1978 births Living people 21st-century American chemists