Meet the Dean
Tina Choe, Ph.D., is dean of the Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering at Loyola Marymount University. As a champion of student success, she has dedicated her professional career to developing, supporting, and leading programs and initiatives that advance inclusive excellence in STEM education. Prior to joining the faculty at LMU, she was the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Fellow at Occidental College and a research chemist at Dow Chemical USA.
Dean Choe earned her bachelor and doctoral degrees in chemistry from UCLA. Her research focused on the synthesis of a class of glycosidase inhibitors that have shown to possess important biological activities. She synthesized a natural product called cyclophellitol from readily available glucopyranoside. Cyclophellitol displayed inhibitory activity against a key enzyme in Gaucher’s disease. She also developed a novel synthetic methodology to prepare modified carbohydrate molecules that serve as templates for the synthesis of complex organic compounds.
As a Camille and Henry Dreyfus Fellow at Occidental College, she conducted research on the enantioselective hydrolyses with electric eel acetylcholinesterase to synthesize chiral molecules that are essential in developing chiral drugs. Dean Choe has also worked on the scholarship of teaching to improve science education. Her research has been supported by a number of different agencies including the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, the American Chemical Society and the National Science Foundation.
Dean Choe is committed to undergraduate research. She mentored many undergraduate students in her own lab and has provided leadership to develop new programs and resources to expand research opportunities for students. In recognition of her dedication to teaching, Dean Choe received the Loyola Marymount University Fritz B. Burns Distinguished Teaching Award.
Dean Choe’s passion extends beyond academic excellence. In addition to providing academic leadership at the departmental, college, and university level, she served as chair of the Life Sciences building project at LMU. Dean Choe provided leadership from concept to completion of the facility that supports innovation and advancement in science education and research. The design and function of this building has garnered national recognition and ranks as one of the best science facilities in the country.