Rate My Professor Neil Allison

Neil Allison served as an associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville for four decades until his retirement in 2024. As the Liebolt Chair of Premedical Sciences, he directed the university's premedical program for 15 years, establishing one of the nation's most esteemed programs with medical school acceptance rates surpassing national averages by more than 20 percent. His expertise spans physical organic and organometallic chemistry, contributing significantly to research, education, and student mentoring within the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

Allison garnered numerous accolades for his outstanding teaching and service, including the Fulbright College Master Teacher Award in 2000, the Faculty Gold Medal and Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award in 2004, the Wally Cordes Chair in Teaching and Faculty Support in 2017 for his presentation 'Back to the Future! A Conversation About Us and Our Students,' and the Ro Di Brezzo Service to Teaching Award in 2024. As a former co-director of the Cordes Teaching and Faculty Support Center and a Fulbright Master Teacher, he delivered presentations such as 'Transform Your Teaching! Planning - Delivery - Assessment' in 2024, offering strategies to ignite student enthusiasm for challenging organic chemistry topics.

In addition to his pedagogical innovations, Allison co-authored a prominent organic chemistry textbook and led the development of its solution manual through three editions, complemented by iPad and iPhone applications. He supervised graduate research, including dissertations on the total synthesis of Antascomicin B (2013) and synthesis of naphthalene annulated trienyl iron complexes. His leadership roles encompassed chairing the Faculty Senate in 2015, serving as vice-chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and continuing as secretary/treasurer of the UA Local Section of the American Chemical Society.