Skip to main content
Southeast Missouri State University
Audience  Search  Menu 

You are here:

  1. Home
  2. news
  3. Wencewicz to Receive Southeast’s Distinguished Young Alumni Award

Wencewicz to Receive Southeast’s Distinguished Young Alumni Award

Continue to main content
  • Alumni,
  • STEM,
  • Events,
  • Alumni Spotlight,
  • Mathematics,
  • Chemistry & Physics
Published: October 26, 2021

Share Options

  • Share to Twitter
  • Share to Facebook
  • Share to Linkedin

The Southeast Missouri State University Alumni Association will present Dr. Timothy Wencewicz of St. Louis, Missouri, with the Distinguished Young Alumni Award on Friday, Oct. 29 during the Copper Dome Society/Alumni Awards Dinner at the Show Me Center.

dyaa-timothywencewicz-storyimage480x720.jpgThe award honors alumni under the age of 37 for their outstanding service to and support of the University.

Wencewicz, a native of Cape Girardeau, received a Missouri Bright Flight Scholarship and Regent’s Scholarship to attend Southeast, from which he graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry and applied mathematics. 

Wencewicz went on to attend graduate school at the University of Notre Dame, where he earned a doctorate in chemistry in 2011. He then trained as a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard Medical School, before returning to Missouri to teach at Washington University in St. Louis. In 2013, Wencewicz joined the chemistry faculty as an assistant professor, before being promoted to associate professor in 2020.

“I could not pass up on an opportunity to return to Missouri and give back to the people and state that gave me so much,” he said. “I remain committed to community outreach and service to the St. Louis region and of course my home, Cape Girardeau.”

Wencewicz serves on the editorial boards for the Journal of Antibiotics and the Journal of Biological Chemistry. He teaches undergraduate and graduate level courses in organic chemistry, bioorganic chemistry and biochemistry.

“I am lucky to train and work alongside talented colleagues and motivated students that are capable of greatness,” Wencewicz said. “There is no single discovery, publication or idea of my own making that can provide the same feeling of pride and wonder as seeing a young person generate new ideas and manifest a thought into new knowledge, practice and technology. Science is a place to do this.”

His research is focused on antibiotic drug discovery to address the global antibiotic resistance crisis. His research program is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation and the Children’s Discovery Institute at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

Wencewicz said the research environment at Southeast was dynamic and full of energy from eager students and engaged faculty. He recalls being part of a special team of chemistry majors that motivated each other in a way that created an atmosphere of success. Several students, he said, had the opportunity to co-author publications with research mentors, deliver presentations at professional meetings and accrue academic awards.

“The chemistry and mathematics departments at Southeast provided me with a superb education, rigorous training and dedicated professors that sponsored and supported my further education and career development,” he said.

He has received several awards for his independent research including the Oak Ridge Associated Universities Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award in 2014, the ACS Infectious Disease Young Investigator Award in 2016, the NSF CAREER Award in 2017, the Cottrell Scholar Award in 2017, a Sloan Research Fellowship in Chemistry in 2018 and a Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award in 2019.

Wencewicz is married to his high school sweetheart, Rachel Renee Ruopp, and they reside in St. Louis with their four children, Grace Elizabeth, Lucy Ann, Emory Clara and Benjamin Timothy. As a family, they enjoy all that St. Louis has to offer and return to Cape Girardeau regularly to visit with family and friends.

It is the people who matter the most, Wencewicz said, noting his gratitude to family, friends and mentors who invested in him along his journey.

“My greatest reward is the accomplishments of the students that I teach and train in the research lab and classroom. Learning is exponential, an explosion, a chain reaction. Without people, there is no fuel, no propagation,” Wencewicz said. “My greatest accomplishment, I hope, is to generate a legacy of leaders to solve the next set of problems and foster the next generation of leaders – to propagate the chemical reaction of learning.”

Site Menu

Southeast Missouri State University

Secondary

  • Apply
  • Visit
  • Request Info
  • Give

Site

  • Academics
    • Program Finder
    • Undergraduate
    • Graduate
    • Online
    • Early College Programs
    • Study Abroad
    • Research
    • Honors Program
  • Admissions & Aid
    • Admission Requirements
    • How to Apply
    • Paying for College
    • Visiting SEMO
    • Admission Events
    • Meet the Team
  • Life at SEMO
    • Living on Campus
    • Dining
    • Student Life
    • Events
    • Traditions
    • Cape Girardeau
  • Student Support
    • Academic Support
    • Career Support
    • Health & Wellness
    • Financial Services
    • Dean of Students
    • Military & Veteran Services

Secondary

  • Apply
  • Visit
  • Request Info
  • Give

Quick Links

  • About
  • News
  • Blog
  • SEMO Online
  • Economic & Workforce Development
  • Colleges & Departments
  • Offices & Services
  • People Directory
  • Athletics
  • University Foundation
  • En Español
  • Institutional Data

Audience Links

Southeast Missouri State University

Resources for you.

  • Current Students
  • Parents & Families
  • Accepted Students
  • Counselors
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Staff
  • Donors
  • Community Partners

Info For:

  • Current Students
  • Parents & Families
  • Accepted Students
  • Counselors
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Staff
  • Donors
  • Community Partners

Current Students Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Canvas
  • mySEMO
  • Email
  • SupportNET
  • University Calendar
  • Campus Map
  • Office Directory
  • People Directory
  • People Search
  • University Closings

Academics

  • Program Finder
  • Academic Calendar
  • Academic Advising
  • Academics
  • Course Catalog
  • Register for Classes
  • Registrar
  • Help Desk
  • Kent Library

Paying for College

  • Pay My Bill
  • Financial Services
  • Student Employment
  • Financial Calendar

Student Life

  • Apply for Housing
  • Residence Hall Association
  • Student Transportation
  • Dining
  • Dean of Students

Career Services

  • Schedule an Appointment
  • Handshake Jobs
  • Resources
  • Events

Parents & Families Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Family/Parents
  • Family Weekend
  • About Southeast
  • Campus Map
  • Academic Calendar
  • Office Directory
  • People Directory

Your Student

  • Admissions
  • New Student Programs
  • Opening Week
  • Financial Services
  • Residence Life
  • Academic Support
  • Health and Wellness
  • Dean of Students
  • University Police Department

Accepted Students Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Admissions
  • Camp Redhawk
  • Engage in 8
  • First Step
  • First Year Experience
  • New Student Programs
  • Textbook Rental
  • University Calendar

Academic Advising

  • Academic Calendar
  • Program Finder
  • Schedule an Appointment

Career Services

  • Schedule an Appointment
  • Handshake Jobs

Paying for College

  • Financial Aid
  • Scholarships
  • Payments

Student Life

  • Apply for Housing
  • Residence Life
  • Dining
  • Student Orgnizations

Counselors Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Office of Admissions
  • Find My Admissions Counselor
  • Counselor Resources
  • Early College Programs

Applying to SEMO

  • Admissions Requirements
  • How to Apply
  • Deadlines
  • Test Optional

Financial Aid

  • FAFSA
  • SEMO Scholarships
  • Cost and Affordability

Launching Careers

  • Academics
  • Outcomes
  • Career Services

Alumni Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Alumni Association
  • Update Your Information
  • Share Your Story
  • Employment
  • Office Directory
  • Southeast News
  • People Directory

Get Connected

  • Alumni Events
  • Campus Events
  • Show SEMO Spirit

Give Back

  • Giving to SEMO
  • Get Involved
  • Annual Fund

Faculty & Staff Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Profile Spotlight Form
  • Offices and Services
  • People Directory
  • People Search
  • mySEMO
  • Email
  • Academic Calendar
  • University Calendar
  • Campus Map
  • SupportNET
  • Kent Library
  • Human Resources
  • Training and Development
  • University Closings
  • SE Alerts
  • Web Change Request
  • Southeast News

Faculty Resources

  • Faculty Senate
  • Canvas
  • Center for Teaching and Learning

Staff Resources

  • Professional Staff Council
  • CTS Staff Council

Facilities

  • Work Order/Order Supplies Request
  • Central Receiving

Donors Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Giving to SEMO
  • University Foundation
  • Office Directory
  • People Directory

Making an Impact

  • Student Stories
  • Ways to Give
  • Student Emergency Fund
  • Get Involved

Connecting with SEMO

  • Alumni Association
  • Alumni Events
  • Academics
  • Redhawk Athletics

Community Partners Resources for you

Featured Links

  • Economic and Workforce Development
  • Skill Development
  • Factbook
  • About Southeast
  • Career Services
  • University Foundation
  • University Communications
  • People Directory
  • People Search

Workforce Development

  • Small Business and Technology Development Center
  • SEMO Online
  • Regional Professional Development Center
  • Alumni Association

Community Service

  • Southeast Serves
  • Office of Campus Life
  • Office of Greek Life
  • Redhawk Athletics

Media Inquiries

  • Southeast News
  • Redhawk Sports Information

One University Plaza Cape Girardeau, MO 63701

(573) 651-2000
Contact Us

Social

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Youtube

Campuses

  • Cape Girardeau
  • River Campus
  • Kennett
  • Sikeston

Campus Links

  • News
  • Athletics
  • Events
  • Blog
  • Accreditations
  • Show Me Center

Social

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin
  • Youtube

Footer

  • Employment
  • Accessibility
  • Nondiscrimination Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclosures
  • Sunshine Law

© 2025 SEMO