Steve Groskruetz, junior chemistry ACS major, is a 2011 recipient of a Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, making him the seventh Gustavus student since 2000 to receive this scholarship.

The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship is awarded to 275 students nominated by faculty of colleges and universities nationwide. Nominees are selected on the basis of academic merit from a field of over 1,000 students pursuing careers in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering. The scholarship covers the cost of tuition, books and room and board up to a maximum of $7,500. The scholarship was created in honor of Senator Barry M. Goldwater in an effort to help alleviate the current and future shortage of highly qualified scientists, mathematicians and engineers by helping to provide a continuing source of highly qualified individuals to those fields of academic study and research.

The process for the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship, aside from being nominated by a faculty member, included filling out an extensive application which also required the nominee to cite a unique research proposal, something that the individual had not researched or studied previously.

Groskreutz got his start in research at Gustavus during the January Interim Experience of his first year. During the fall semester, Groskreutz began talking to Assistant Professor of Chemistry Dwight Stoll during a lab when he mentioned an opportunity to research during January working with chromatography.

“At that point in time, I knew no more about chromatography than the average person. I read a book, did a few experiments and I guess the rest is history,” Groskreutz said.

Groskreutz continued to research with Stoll for the next January Interim Experience as well as the next two summers. The focus of their research is mainly method development for chromatography, or as Groskreutz defined, “building stuff and testing it out. We are trying to find better and cheaper ways to do chromatography.”

Put simply, chromatography is the separation of physical substances. “Take the water tower in St. Peter, for example.  A trillion grains of rice fit in that water tower. We basically work to sort out two particular grains out of the trillion. This should give you a better sense of how complex it is,” Groskreutz said, explaining the definition of chromatography and the complexity of the work. Work that chromatographers do may include separating pesticides from river water or separating the alcohol content from the blood of an intoxicated individual.

The work Groskreutz has done at Gustavus with Stoll has produced results. Within the last year, a publication involving their work was published in the Journal of Chromatography. More recently, Groskreutz and Stoll attended the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society in California where Groskreutz presented some of the work he had done.

Stoll attributes Groskreutz’s success in the laboratory and in academics to several important characteristics. “The complete package involves work ethic, high intellectual potential and being a likable person—all things of which [Groskreutz] is. It is not all about the GPA or being smart on paper. It is about everything put together,” he said. Stoll also noted Groskreutz’s abilities as a technical writer and his ability to talk about and explain his work to people as well as present his work to large audiences.

“One thing unique about Groskreutz is that he is also an athlete. It is one thing to be dedicated to research and science but to also be dedicated to a sport and to give such great focus to both of those passions is a quality unique to [him]. He is very disciplined with his time and his ability to focus,” Stoll said. Groskreutz is a member of the track team, running hurdles.

Groskreutz’s characteristics have not gone unnoticed by his peers. Laura Secor, a senior chemistry major and teammate of his on the track team, remarked, “[Groskreutz] is more dedicated to chemistry than anyone I have ever met, including most of the professors.” Secor first met Groskreutz through track, meeting again during a summer of research in the chromatography laboratory. “He basically should have just had a cot in the lab,” she said. “He works harder than anyone else I know. His life actually only involves chemistry and track.”

Speaking about Groskreutz’s future, Stoll is extremely optimistic.“[Groskreutz] has many achievements already and has received numerous recognitions, each of which has opened doors. These distinctions, including publications with his name on them, will aid him in finding success with graduate school,“ he said, noting that Groskreutz will likely be recruited by some of the best graduate programs in the country. “Because of his many accomplishments, he will have the opportunity to choose where he goes more than most students entering graduate programs will.”

In the future, Groskreutz plans to go on to attend graduate school. His schools of interest currently include Florida State and the University of Pittsburgh, where he will also be spending the upcoming summer of 2011 working in the laboratory of Professor Stephen Weber. Groskreutz plans to obtain a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry, which would include taking classes for two years and then doing research for three years.

In the upcoming year before graduation, Groskreutz looks forward to more time in the laboratory and on the track. “Sleep is overrated. You have to give up a lot of things such as going out with your friends or sleeping in, but it is totally worth it.”