Amy E. Witter | Department of Chemistry

Curriculum Vitae

Amy E. Witter

Associate Professor of Chemistry
Dickinson College
PO Box 1773
Carlisle, PA 17013
(717) 245-1681

Education

Ph.D. , Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry, 1996, University of California, Davis, CA.

Dissertation: Metal-Ligand Complexation Reactions in Aquatic Systems.

B.A., Chemistry, 1987, Wellesley College, Wellesley, Massachusetts.

Experience

2006-2008:       Chair, Department of Chemistry, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
2005-       :       Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA

2002-       :       Adjunct Professor of Oceanography, College of Marine Studies, Lewes, DE
1999-2005:       Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
1996-1999:       Postdoctoral Researcher, College of Marine Studies, Lewes, DE

1991-1996:       Ph.D. candidate, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA

1987-1991:       Research Assistant, Department of Chemistry, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA

Current Research Interests

- Glycan profiling of marine glycoproteins

- Effects of urbanization on sources and transport of PAHs to the Conodoguinet Creek Watershed

Awards and Honors

"Strategic Plan Advancement Award" from Dickinson College, 2003.
Certificate of Merit, ACS Division of Environmental Chemistry, 1996.
Outstanding Graduate Teaching Assistant, 1995.
Jastro-Shields Graduate Research Scholarship. An Investigation of Copper Complexation in Northern California Rice Field Waters using Differential Pulse Anodic and Cathodic Stripping Voltammetry. 1995.
Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry Block Grant, 1995.
Donald G. Crosby Fellowship, 1993-94.
Graduate Student Travel Award, California Separation Society, 1993.
Jastro-Shields Graduate Research Scholarship. The Structural Elucidation of Novel Organosulfur Compounds Extracted from Produced Water. 1993

Publications (Research)

Scott, B.F., MacDonald, R.W., Kannan, K., Fisk, A., Witter, A.E., Yamashita, N., Durham, L., Spencer, C., and D.C.G. Muir. (2005) Trifluoracetate (TFA) Profiles in the Arctic, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans. Environmental Science and Technology, 39: 6555-6560.

Witter, A.E., and Luther G.W. (2002). Spectrophotometric measurement of seawater carbohydrate concentrations in neritic and oceanic waters from the U.S. Middle Atlantic Bight and the Delaware Estuary, Marine Chemistry, 77: 143-156.

Luther, G.W., Rozan, T.F., Witter, A., and Lewis, B. (2001, Sept 28). Metal organic complexation in the marine environment. Geochemical Transactions, Article 9. Retrieved from http://www.rsc.org/is/journals/current/geochem/contentslists/2001/gt001001.html.


Cai, W., Zhao, P., Wang, Y., Theberge, S., Witter, A., and Luther, G.W. (2001). Porewater redox species, pH, and pCO2 in aquatic sediments. In: Electrochemical methods for the environmental analyses of trace element biogeochemistry, Taillefert, M.; Rozan, T., Eds. American Chemical Society Symposium Series Vol. 811; American Chemical Society: Washington, D. C., pp. 188-209.

Witter, A.E., Hutchins, D.A., Butler, A., and Luther, G.W. (2000). Determination of conditional stability constants and kinetic constants for strong model Fe - binding ligands in seawater. Marine Chemistry, 69: 1-17.

Witter, A. E. , Lewis, B.L., and Luther, G.W. (2000). Iron speciation in the Arabian Sea. Deep Sea Research II, 47: 1517-1539.

Hutchins, D.A., Witter, A.E., Butler, A., and Luther, G.W. (1999). Competition among marine phytoplankton for different chelated iron species. Nature, 400: 858-861.

Witter, A.E., and Jones, A.D. (1999). Chemical characterization of organic constituents from sulfide- rich produced water using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 18: 1920-1926.

Witter, A.E. and Luther, G.W. (1998). Variation in Fe-organic complexation with depth in the Northwestern Atlantic Ocean as determined using a kinetic approach. Marine Chemistry, 62: 241-258.

Witter, A.E. and Jones, A.D. (1998). A comparison of methods for speciation of sulfur in a petroleum production effluent. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 17: 2176-2184.

Witter, A.E., Mabury, S.M. and Jones, A.D. (1998). Copper complexation in Northern California rice fields: an investigation using differential pulse anodic and cathodic stripping voltammetry. Science of the Total Environment, 212: 21-37.

Druffel, E. R. D.,Griffin, S. M.,Witter, A. E., Nelson, E., Southon, J.,Kashgarian, M., and Vogel, J. (1995). Gerardia: Bristlecone Pine of the Deep-Sea? Geochim. et Cosmochim Acta , 59: 5031- 5036.

Druffel, E.R.M., Griffin, S.M., and A.E. Witter, 1988. Decade-to-century timescale variability in radiocarbon records from banded corals. Chemical Geology 70: (1-2) 108.

Publications (Education)

Witter, A.E (2005). You are what you eat: the quantitative determination of butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) in chewing gum by GC/MS. Journal of Chemical Education, 82(10), 1538 - 1541.

Witter, A.E., *Klinger, D., Fan, X., Lam, M., Mathers, D. and Mabury, S.A. (2002) Quantitative determination of nicotine and cotinine in urine and sputum using a combined SPME-GC/MS method, Journal of Chemical Education, 79, 1257-1260.

Grants Funded (EXTERNAL)

2008 Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grants Program ($10,000)
Hamilton Chemistry Education Grant Program ($2,000 equipment support)
American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund Type GB starter grant ($35,000).
Society for Analytical Chemists of Pittsburgh ($10,000 for undergraduate student support).
2001 Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grants Program ($9,000; matched with $9,000 from the Dean's Fund at Dickinson and used to purchase a new departmental Varian atomic absorption spectrometer.)
Cottrell College Science Grant, Research Corporation, Fall 1999. ($35,755; matched with $17,737 from Dickinson College).

Grants Funded (INTERNAL)

Mellon CPC grant for Reassigned Time, Summer 2007 ($5,000)
Research and Development Grant for Student-Faculty Research, Summer 2007 ($3828.50)
Mellon CPC grant for Reassigned Time, Fall 2006, ($1,000)
Whitaker Grant for Student-Faculty Summer Research, Summer 2003 ($2,941)
Howard Hughes Medical Institute grant for student-faculty research, Summer 2002 ($10, 285.46)
Whitaker Grant for Student-Faculty Summer Research, Summer 2002 ($7055.02)
Whitaker Grant for Student-Faculty Summer Research, Summer 2001 ($6601.03)
Whitaker Grant for Student-Faculty Summer Research, Summer 2000 ($4,598.50)
Dana Internship for Student-Faculty Summer Research, Summer 2000 ($3.600)
Research and Development Award, Dickinson College, Fall 1999. ($1,000)

Abstracts and Presentations
*denotes a Dickinson student co-author

Witter, A.E., and D.A. Hutchins, February 2001. Effect of Fe limitation on biomolecule production by marine phytoplankton and cyanobacteria. Invited talk at 2001 American Society for Limnology and Oceanography, February 12-16, Alburquerque, NM.

Witter, A.E., *Cerminaro, D., *Sharbaugh, D., and D.A. Hutchins, August 2000. Effect of Fe limitation on LPS and EPS composition in marine cyanobacteria. 220th American Chemical Society Meeting, August 20-24, Washington, DC. Poster presentation presented by Amy Witter.

Witter, A.E., *Sharbaugh, D., and D.A. Hutchins, March 2003. Effects of nitrogen limitation on the composition of phytoplankton-derived dissolved organic matter revealed through carbohydrate analysis. 225th American Chemical Society Meeting, August 23-27,
New Orleans, LA. Poster presentation presented by Denise Sharbaugh.

Fan, X ., Witter, A.E., *Klinger, D., Lam, M., Mathers, D. and Mabury, S.A. Quantitative determination of nicotine and cotinine in urine and sputum using a combined SPME-GC/MS method. 224th American Chemical Society Meeting, August 18-21, Boston, MA. Poster presentation presented by X. Fan.

Witter, A.E., Hutchins, D.A., Butler, A., and G.W. Luther, III. November 1998. How does ligand structure affect conditional stability constants and the bioavailability of strong FeL complexes? The Biogeochemistry of Iron in Seawater, SCOR 1998 meeting, sponsored by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Poster presentation.

Witter, A.E. September 1998. Hydration and the complexation of metals. Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA. Invited lecture.

Witter, A.E., Bono, A.B., Cai, W., Cornwell, J.C., Giblin, A.E., Theberge, S.M., and Luther, G.W. August 1998. Electrochemical studies of redox active species in pore waters from fresh and salt water environments using microelectrodes. 216th American Chemical Society Meeting, August 23-27, Boston, MA. Platform presentation.

A.E. Witter, July 1998. Trace metal complexation in seawater: it’s all too complexed for me. College of Marine Studies, University of Delaware, DE. Invited lecture.

A.E. Witter, February 1998. On the nature of Fe complexation in seawater. Virginia Institute of Marine Science, College of William and Mary, Gloucester, VA. Invited lecture.

A.E. Witter and G.W. Luther, February 1998. Fe(III) complexation by natural organic ligands in the Arabian Sea. 1998 Ocean Sciences Meeting, San Diego, CA. Platform presentation.

A.E. Witter and G.W. Luther, 1997. Temporal and spatial variability in Fe(III) complexation stability constants and kinetics in the Northwestern Atlantic Ocean and preliminary data from the Arabian Sea. Chemical Oceanography Gordon Conference, August 10-15th, NH. Poster presentation.

Lewis, B.L., Holt, P.D., Butler, A., Witter, A.E., and G.W. Luther, 1997. Voltammetric estimation of thermodynamic stability constants for Fe(III) chelates derived from marine organisms. 213th American Chemical Society Meeting, April 13-17, San Francisco, CA. Poster presentation.

A.E. Witter and G.W. Luther, 1997. Fe(III) complexation by natural organic ligands in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean using competitive ligand cathodic square wave voltammetry and a kinetic approach. 213th American Chemical Society Meeting, April 13-17, San Francisco, CA. Platform presentation.

A.E. Witter and A.D. Jones, 1996. A comparison of methods for speciation of sulfur in a petroleum production effluent. American Chemical Society Meeting, March 24-28th, New Orleans, LA. Poster presentation.

A.E. Witter and A.D. Jones, 1996. An investigation of copper complexation in Northern California rice field waters using differential pulse anodic and cathodic stripping voltammetry. American Chemical Society Meeting, March 24-28th, New Orleans, LA. Poster presentation.

A.E. Witter and A.D. Jones, 1994. Measurement of Complexation Properties of Metals Ions by Polyelectrolytes using Ultrafiltration/GFAAS Methods. 15th Annual Meeting, Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Denver, Colorado. Poster presentation.

A. Daniel Jones, Amy E. Witter, and Richard M. Higashi, 1994. Petroleum-related Contaminants Near a Produced Water Discharge Site in the Santa Barbara Channel. 15th Annual Meeting, Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Denver, Colorado. Platform presentation.

A. E. Witter, A.D Jones, and R. M. Higashi, 1993. Analysis of Organosulfur Compounds in Produced Waters Using Mass Spectrometry. 14th Annual Meeting, Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Houston,Texas. Platform presentation.

A. E. Witter, A.D. Jones, and R.M. Higashi, 1993. Characterization of Produced Water Composition. 7th Annual Research Symposium, University of Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA. Poster presentation.

A.E. Witter, A.D. Jones, and S.A. Mabury, 1993. The Effect of Liquid Composition on the Quantitation on Small Molecules of Environmental Interest using Negative-Ion Electrospray. 10th Annual Montreux Symposium on Liquid Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. Poster presentation.

A.E. Witter, A.D. Jones, and R.M.Higashi, 1993. The Identification of Organosulfur Compounds in Produced Water by Mass Spectrometry. 41st ASMS Conference on Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics, San Francisco, CA. Poster presentation.

Educational and Research Conferences Attended

Attended the 20th Annual Biennial Conference on Chemical Education, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, July 27th-31st, 2008.
Attended the Complex Carbohydrate Research Center’s course on Glycoprotein Analysis, August 2007.
Attended the Eastern Analytical Symposium class on using Principal Components Analysis in Data Handling. November 2006.
Attended the CAMO software class on learning to use Principal Components Analysis in Data Processing. Summer 2006.
Attended the 2005 International Chemical Congress of Pacific Basin Societies, Honolulu, Hawaii, December 15th- 20th, 2005.
Attended GC/MS training seminar given by Restek, Inc., Pittsburgh, PA, September 22, 2005.
Attended Gordon Research Conference, Connecticut College, June 15 – 20th, 2003 “Analytical Chemistry at the Interface of Biology”.
Attended Chautaqua teaching conference, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, May 19-20th, 2000 “Studio General Chemistry: Merging Laboratory, Team Problem Solving, and Discussion”.

Teaching

Guest Lectures

At Dickinson College:

Spring 2007 Spoke to Environmental Studies 132 on “Industrial Chemicals”.

Fall 2006 Spoke to the Dickinson College Chemistry Department “The physical chemistry of PAH transport to the Conodoguinet Creek, PA”.

Fall 2001 Spoke to the Dickinson College Chemistry Department "Nutrient limitation effects on organic matter production by phytoplankton".

Spring 2001 Spoke to the Dickinson College Biology Department "Pumping iron in the ocean: Strategies marine organisms use to acquire a limited resource".

Spring 2000 Spoke at Women’s Center discussion, February 15, 2000, “Environmental Chemicals and Women’s Health”.
Spoke in Environmental Science 131, April 19, 2000: “Pb in the Environment”.

Fall 1999 Spoke at Earth Issues luncheon, November 29, 1999, “Silent Spring Revisited: Chemical contamination in the new millenium”.

At other academic institutions

Fall 2002 Spoke to the Chemistry Department at St. Francis University, Loretto, PA "Pumping Iron in the ocean: Strategies marine organisms use to acquire a limited resource".

Professional Service and Activities
To the Dickinson community:

Member of the Faculty and Personnel Committee, 2007-present.
Member of Science Executive Committee, 2006 - 2007
Member of New Science Building Working Committee, 2001-2003.
Attended the Trustees Meeting as a Faculty Representative, October 16-18, 2003, Princeton, NJ.
Attended the Trustees Meeting as a Faculty Representative, May 2003, New York City.
Attended Carlisle Dickinson Council Luncheon, Spring 2003, to discuss Student-faculty research as it applies to the Carlisle Community.
Attended Dickinson Trustees Luncheon, Spring 2003, to discuss Student-faculty research as it applies to the liberal arts education.
Chemistry department Webmaster, 2001- 2003.
Chemistry seminar coordinator for Fall 2002.
Member of the Trustees Honorary Degrees Committee, 2001-present.
Member of the Academic Program Committee, 2000-2003.
Routine Affairs Subcommitee
Hazardous Materials Committee, 1999- 2000.
Outside committee member on Christiana Bridell's thesis defense in Environmental Studies, 2001.
Co-convener of Chemical Magic Show with Professor Joyce Whitehead during Parent's Day Weekend, Fall 2000.
Hosted Three Seminar Speakers for Campus Graduate School Recruitment, Dr. David A. Hutchins, Dr. George Luther (College of Marine Studies, University of Delaware) and Dr. A. Daniel Jones (Department of Chemistry, Penn State).
Convened the session entitled “Field Studies and Laboratory Methodologies in the Natural Sciences” for the 5th Annual Centennial Conference Student Research Colloquium, Dickinson College.
Supervisor for the “Qualitative Analysis” section of the Science Olympiad, held at Dickinson College, March 24th, 2000.

To the scientific community:

Served as an outside reviewer of the Chemistry Department at St. Francis University, Loretto, PA, Spring 2008.
Member of Analytical Abstracts Advisory Board, Royal Society of Chemistry, 2004 - present.
Co-chaired a symposium in Chemical Education at the 225th National American Chemical Society Meeting, March 23-27th, 2003, entitled "Program Impact of a One-semester general chemistry course" with Dr. Linda Doerrer of Barnard College.

Professional Associations

American Chemical Society (ACS) (1991-present)
American Society for Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO) (2000-2006)