Dr. Katherine Maloney, assistant dean of PLNU’s School of STEM, was recently named a 2025 fellow of the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world’s largest scientific organization. American Chemical Society fellows are recognized for outstanding contributions to science as well as for service to the ACS and greater scientific profession. Maloney is one of 36 fellows this year.
Maloney is the first science professor in PLNU’s history to receive this award, according to biology professor emeritus Michael McConnell, Ph.D.
Maloney’s contributions to science have come in the form of both outstanding teaching and research that addresses urgent global problems. She received an Excellence in Teaching Award from PLNU and has coauthored a lab text used around the country. She regularly involves students in her research projects, giving aspiring chemists opportunities to learn and grow. Of the 54 student researchers she has mentored, 26 have coauthored publications with her, 34 have gone on to graduate studies, 11 are medical doctors, and 25 are working in STEM careers.
Maloney’s current research projects, both of which involve students, focus on using chemistry to find solutions to pressing challenges. The first is citrus greening disease, a devastating plant infection caused by a bacterium and spread by insects. Citrus greening disease has been a major problem in Florida and has spread to additional areas. It is currently incurable, but Maloney’s research hopes to change that. She and her students are working with a microbiology professor at the University of California, Riverside, on the project.
“Because not all infected trees succumb to the disease at the same rate, even though most trees in a given orchard are genetic clones, the team’s hypothesis is that there might be something in a given tree’s microbiome that offers a level of protection,” she explained. “Some bacteria and fungi in a tree’s microbiome produce antibiotics. The microbiology research team has spent time isolating specific bacteria and fungi from trees in Florida and testing to see if they inhibit the growth of a bacterium closely related to the one that causes citrus greening disease. Those that are active are then sent to our team, which studies their chemistry to understand the active compounds.”
Their most recent findings were published in Applied Environmental Microbiology in July 2025 with several students serving as coauthors. The student/alumni coauthors were: Kiana Callahan (biology-chemistry, ’24), Corrie Fyle (chemistry, ’24), Andrew Kamemoto (biology-chemistry, ’23), Amanda Koontz (biology-chemistry, ’23), Chris Yang (biology-chemistry, ’26)
Maloney’s other research area has to do with the Tiny Earth initiative, which focuses on student research-sourced antibiotic discovery from soil bacteria. Finding new antibiotics is a vital task as antibiotic resistance has increased. The Tiny Earth initiative was started by Jo Handelsman, a microbiology professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Maloney developed a chemistry course that addresses the chemistry side of antibiotic discovery. She taught the class at PLNU a few years ago and is hoping to bring it back soon. Meanwhile, her research students continue to do related work on the project.
Maloney has also served the ACS Division of Organic Chemistry in several important roles over the past 12 years, including most recently as chair. Among her contributions was starting the Division of Organic Chemistry’s social media presence and helping develop an operations manual that would help capture institutional knowledge and make successions easier. She also helped with strategic planning, reviewed applications for grants and travel awards, completed awards nominations for others, and assisted the division in other ways.
Maloney wrapped up her time as chair of ACS’s organic chemistry division last year. She’s continuing to serve her profession as an associate editor for the Journal of Natural Products. She remains a member of ACS and is involved with the American Society of Pharmacognosy.
As Maloney continues her teaching, research, and service, her selection as an ACS fellow highlights the value of all she does. Her commitment to students, the field of chemistry, and finding solutions to important problems serve as inspiration to her students as they find their own callings. PLNU congratulates Dr. Katherine Maloney on this well-deserved honor!
