Allison Wong recognized as 2025 CAS Future Leader

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (4/25/2025) – Fifth-year PhD student Allison Wong was recently selected to participate in the 2025 Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Future Leaders program. The program is an international competition open to PhD students and postdoctoral scholars in chemistry or a related science. Wong earned this prestigious distinction as one of the top 35 scientists to apply.

Wong, a member of the Lamb Lab, joined the Department of Chemistry at the University of Minnesota–Twin Cities in 2020 after completion of her Bachelor’s degree in chemistry at Williams College in 2018. Wong’s research interests lie at the intersection of polymer, organic, and physical organic chemistry. “My work in the Lamb group has focused on characterizing structure-property relationships of polyoxazolidinones (an emerging subclass of polyurethanes) and developing new synthetic methods to enable these studies,” she says. “Polyoxazolidinones have strong, oriented dipoles that give the polymers interesting properties. I'm interested in understanding how changing these dipoles through structural modifications impacts reactivity and material properties, which could help us better design these promising polymers.” As she works towards wrapping up her PhD research in anticipation of defending her thesis later this year, Wong says she is excited about the professional opportunities the CAS Future Leaders program will provide for her:

“After I graduate, I’ll be pursuing postdoctoral training in organic chemistry and photocatalysis as the next step towards  my long-term career goal of becoming a professor. The CAS Future Leaders program is an excellent opportunity to advance my leadership skills as I prepare to be a mentor, teacher, and leader in my independent career. I am humbled and grateful to be part of the 2025 cohort and am excited to meet everyone this summer!”

Founded in 2010, the CAS Future Leaders program seeks to provide PhD students and postdocs with "opportunities to learn leadership skills, engage in scientific discourse, and connect with peer scientists and innovators from around the world." The top 35 scholars who apply for the program are selected to visit the CAS headquarters in Columbus, Ohio, and receive complimentary registration for the ACS Fall Meeting (which is in Washington, DC in 2025) where they will have the opportunity to present their research. Awardees also receive a 3-year ACS membership and a $1,000 honorarium.