The Office of the Provost is pleased to announce that Dr. Laura Pence, Professor of Chemistry in the College of Arts & Sciences, has been named University Marshal for a three-year term beginning in 2026-27.
Dr. Pence has served as a Commencement marshal for nearly 30 years, including stepping in as University Marshal for one year. Her disciplinary expertise is in environmental chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and science policy. She is an outstanding educator, winning the University of Hartford's Roy E. Larsen Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2006 and twice ranking among the top 25 professors nationally on RateMyProfessor.com in both 2014 and 2017. She has served the University in a variety of roles, including as department chair and as NECHE Reaccreditation Steering Committee Co-Chair. She was honored with the University's Oscar and Shoshana Trachtenberg Award in 2023 for outstanding service by a faculty member. She currently has a joint appointment as a Research Scientist with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in their National Security Directorate.
In 2012-2013, Dr. Pence spent a year as an American Chemical Society (ACS)/American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Congressional Science Policy Fellow in the office of Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO), where her policy portfolio featured natural resources, energy, and environmental issues, with a particular emphasis on water and forestry. She served on the American Chemical Society Board of Directors from 2017 to 2019 and continues to be an acknowledged expert on the nexus of science and public policy for that organization. She was named a Fellow of the American Chemical Society in 2011 for her programming and leadership on environmental and sustainability issues.
Dr. Pence will work with our current University Marshal, Professor Jim Fuller, throughout the spring semester and on Commencement Day for a seamless transition in the role.
Congratulations to Dr. Pence!