About

I am a graduate of Georgia Tech. I earned my Ph.D. in Biochemistry under the direction of Professors “Bud” Suddath and Loren Williams. I was Bud's last student before he passed away in my 2nd year. My formal training is in x-ray crystallography of drug-DNA complexes. After earning my Ph.D., I worked in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the Medical College of Virginia as a post-doctoral researcher. From there, I took a position in the Vaccine Development division of Merck and Company in West Point, PA. I have loved teaching for as long as I can remember! My motto is: 'I have not taught until students have learned.' So, after tasting life in the pharmaceutical industry, I quit my job, returned to Atlanta and pursued a career in undergraduate education. I have been teaching undergraduates in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry for more than 20 years. I have also had the pleasure of being awarded more than $500,000 in funds for undergraduate education through NSF grants, Institute-level Technology Fee Funds, and departmental funding. I have regularly produced educational materials and done technical reviews for biochemical publishers including John Wiley and Sons and Macmillan Learning. I have also been privileged to receive numerous awards in undergraduate education.

I am a Laboratory Manager in the College of Sciences at Georgia Tech, providing support for instrumentation used in the upper-division instructional labs for the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the Neuroscience program. Prior to joining Georgia Tech, I was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Intramural Research Program at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD. I graduated Magna Cum Laude from Huntingdon College with a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry at the University of Southern Mississippi, where I was selected for the National Science Foundation’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program. My research expertise is in the field of protein misfolding and aggregation, where I have published more than 15 peer-reviewed publications which have garnered more than 300 citations.

Vincent Spezzo is the Program Manager of Teaching and Learning Online in the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). With more than 10 years of higher education experience, Vincent has served in various roles including that of faculty (both in person and online), instructional technology specialist, learning systems administrator, instructional design coordinator, and technology and pedagogy development facilitator. Vincent earned his Ed.D in curriculum and instruction, an Ed.S. in instructional technology, and his master’s in industrial and organizational psychology from Valdosta State University. In his current role, Vincent supports Georgia Tech faculty and TAs who teach online through consultation, resource development, and on-going professional development opportunities. He consults and collaborates with various campus individuals and units in order to ensure quality of instruction in Georgia Tech’s online programs. And he works with campus units to provide instruction that represents evidence-based best practices in online education.