Summary
Steve Korecki is the Director of Laboratories for the Chemistry Department. The major functions of the Director of Laboratories are to oversee the facilities for the Department of Chemistry; to plan, coordinate and implement the logistics needed for the operation of both instructional and research laboratories; to administer departmental operating budgets for laboratory operation and maintenance and to oversee departmental research and instructional operating expenditures; to help plan long-range building space needs; and to administer all phases of building and personnel safety and security.
Facilities of the Chemistry Department overseen by the Director of Laboratories include the instructional and research laboratories, scientific glass-blowing shop, machine shop (shared with Physics), an electronic design and repair shop, three instructional support supply rooms, a research laboratory supply center, and miscellaneous offices, conference rooms and storage rooms. These facilities currently support 26 faculty, 2-3 temporary instructors, 4-8 post-doctoral fellows, 60-70 graduate students, and over 7,000 undergraduate students each year. The Director supervises the departmental technical staff and is responsible for coordinating laboratory and classroom room scheduling.
Through his career in higher education Steve has worked to ensure a safe work environment and equitable opportunities for students. While employed at the College of Southern Idaho as the Chemistry Laboratory Manager, he instituted a chemical hazard labeling program for the chemistry laboratories, assisted with chemical waste disposal in other departments, and fostered a safety-centered culture among faculty and students. Steve worked to expand laboratory operations at satellite campuses to increase access to higher education among rural and low-income students, expanded and maintained instrumentation for Organic and Analytical/Quantitative labs, and facilitated research with the University of Idaho. He also developed a series of wet laboratory experiments for students to complete at home as part of an online chemistry course.
Education
- B.S., Natural Science, Western Oregon University