Timothy Chase

“My passion for climate change started long before I was cognizant of how pollution impacted our planet,” says Outstanding Graduate Timothy Chase.

Chase is one of 23 outstanding graduates for Spring 2025 in the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University.

Having grown up in the rural Midwest, Chase says that good harvests were a huge priority. As he grew older, he became increasingly aware of the devastating impact of climate change-induced events such as droughts.

“Every day we were told it was the warmest day in a decade,” he says.

Inspired to help solve this issue, Chase decided to pursue chemical engineering.

He worked with Professor Timothy Long to study plastics and design new polymer structures. As part of Long’s lab, Chase synthesized, characterized and mechanically tested unsaturated polyesters, a type of polymer, for application in drug delivery as biodegradable microneedles. Working with Assistant Professor Eileen Seo, he independently led two projects related to chemical recycling.

Chase went to Germany for a 10-week internship during the summer of his sophomore year through the prestigious Research Internships in the Science and Engineering program by Academic Exchange Service. He says the experience gave him an international perspective.

Of all his accomplishments at ASU, which include speaking at the 2024 National American Chemical Society conference, Chase is particularly proud of one.

“My biggest achievement was winning the Goldwater Scholarship,” he says. “This scholarship represented my cumulative effort in my first three years at ASU. It felt like a thank you letter to each and every faculty member, graduate mentor, friend and family member who helped me on my journey, and it highlighted what a supportive community like ASU can provide for an eager student.”

During his sophomore year, Chase led a group of 20 students in advocating for and empowering women in STEM fields as the Science and Innovation Mission Team Leader on behalf of Next Generation Service Corps.

“This work has meant so much to me, and has helped me better understand how to navigate leadership roles,” he says.

As he transitions to graduate school, Chase says he’s proud of the progress he has made so far.

“In the four years of pursuing research, I have worked on projects that could potentially allow drug delivery to be more efficient and precise, and enable major industrial plastics to be more sustainably recycled.”

Read about other exceptional graduates of the Fulton Schools’ spring 2025 class here.