The 2026 Distinguished Alumni Awards Ceremony & Dinner
is bring planned, stay tuned for more information.
We are delighted to honor four chemistry alumni by bestowing upon each of them a Department of Chemistry Distinguished Alumni Award. Their accomplishments and contributions are a testament to their talents and to the education and training they received at the University of Pittsburgh.
The 2026 Awardees
Professor Vincent M. Donnelly (Ph.D. 1977) is a prominent leader in the field of semiconductor device materials processing, and in particular plasma processing. He is a native of Pennsylvania and received a B.A. in Chemistry from LaSalle University in 1968. The University of Pittsburgh Awarded him a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry in 1977 for his work with Professor Frederick Kaufmann on understanding the dynamics of the excited state of NO2. A brief time at the Naval Research Laboratory was followed by a productive period of about two decades at Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, NJ. Donnelly moved in 2002 to the University of Houston, where he is now the Moores Professor in the William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical and Biomechanical Engineering. He has published over two hundred papers on diverse topics, often focusing on plasma etching reactions and mechanisms. He has studied a nanopantography method for massively parallel nanopatterning over large areas and introduced a new “spinning wall” method for studying plasma interactions with the chamber walls. His awards include the 2011 Thornton Medal from the American Vacuum Society, the Will Allis Prize from the American Physical Society in 2024. In 2023 he was elected as Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.
Dr Rama Kondru (Ph.D. 1999) is a scientist, inventor, and technology executive with over 25 years of experience across pharmaceuticals, medical devices, health technology, data science, and academia. As CEO of Veridix AI, he leads the development of AI-driven and digital platforms that modernize clinical research and enhance data/AI capabilities. Dr. Kondru also serves on multiple boards and advises companies in the technology and life sciences sectors. Before leading Veridix AI, Dr. Kondru served as CEO of Medidata, where he led more than 4,000 professionals, helped deploy technologies that supported the development of COVID-19 therapies, and was recognized as one of the Top 100 Inspirational Leaders in Health Care by PharmaVOICE in 2020. His experience includes senior leadership roles at Janssen Americas (Johnson & Johnson), J&J Medical Devices, UCB Pharma, and Hoffmann-La Roche. He has also served as adjunct faculty at Duke University. Dr. Kondru holds over thirty patents and has authored over thirty scientific publications. He spent a decade designing drug-like molecules using computational methods and served as Janssen’s global head of data sciences. He earned his undergraduate degree from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bomby, and his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh under guidance of Prof. David Beratan and Prof. Peter Wipf in 1999.
Peter Marone (BS 1970, MS 1971) received a BS in Chemistry and MS in Forensic Chemistry from our department. Peter moved on to the Virginia Division of Forensic Science where he rapidly became a leading figure in the serology division. By 2005 he rose through the ranks to become the Director of Technical Services. In addition to the oversight of the Commonwealth’s lab, he served as agency liaison with the Virginia General Assembly, Scientific Advisory Committee, and courts. In 2007 he was elated to be the Director of the VA Department of Forensic Science. Pete held several leadership roles in committees of the National Academy of Sciences, National Institute of Justice, and served on the Forensic Science Advisory Boards of North Carolina and the District of Columbia. He served in the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors (ASCLD-Lab), and he received The Briggs White Award (2009), The Tony Longhetti Inspector Excellence Award (2002), and Doug Lucas Award (2015) for contributions to this organization.
Barbara Skinner (BS, 1999) is an experienced chemist and laboratory professional whose career spans medicinal chemistry, analytical testing, and scientific operations across both industry and academic environments. She began her career conducting undergraduate research at the University of Pittsburgh in the Wipf group before moving into medicinal chemistry roles at BASF and the Abbott Bioresearch Center, where she spent nearly a decade contributing to small-molecule drug discovery, including published work on kinase inhibitors, multiple conference presentations, and issued patents. After returning to Pennsylvania, she transitioned into analytical and materials-testing roles at Assured Testing Services, first as a Lab Analyst and now as Master Scheduler, where she coordinates chemical and accelerated testing workflows. She was recognized in 2024 as part of the American Chemical Society’s “Heroes of Chemistry” award team for her contributions to the discovery of Rinvoq, one of Abbott’s major therapeutic achievements—a distinction reserved for industrial scientists whose work has led to impactful, commercialized products that benefit human health. This honor highlights her long-standing scientific impact as well as the creativity and perseverance she has brought to her career.
The biennial Alumni Award Celebration is a cherished event that provides opportunities for our awardees to interact with the Department faculty, students, and staff. Through two days of roundtable discussions, department tours, and informal meetings, the awardees inspire graduate and undergraduate students by their accomplishments in many spheres. They are presented with the awards at a dinner with faculty and staff.
For current and past recipient profiles, please visit our archive list.