Nanette Boyle named department head for Chemical and Biological Engineering
Boyle, who has been at Mines since 2013, is an associate professor and the Coors Developmental Chair
Nanette Boyle has been named department head for Chemical and Biological Engineering at Colorado School of Mines.
A member of the Mines faculty since 2013, Boyle is an associate professor. She has served as interim chair of the department since August 2023 and her permanent appointment began in December 2024.
“I’m excited to lead the department in new directions,” Boyle said. “Chemical engineers are going to be important in the energy transition because a lot of our traditional strengths lie in systems optimization. With all the new technologies being developed, we’re going to need chemical engineers to design and optimize these new processes. We are looking to innovate the curriculum to ready our students to meet the needs of future industries.”
Undergraduate students in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering follow a curriculum that builds upon fundamentals of biology, chemistry, mathematics and physics. Three optional specialty tracks – in biological engineering, process engineering or honors research – can be added in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree. The department also awards PhDs and master’s degrees.
As department head, Boyle has three major goals for the department: to be recognized as a leader in innovative chemical engineering pedagogy, to increase visibility of the strength of the department’s research and graduate programs and to improve the overall well-being of the department’s students, faculty and staff, making it a great place to work and study.
“The department needs more brand recognition and visibility,” Boyle said. “We’re leaders in research and should be recognized more for the work we’re doing in a variety of industries. We want to let people know all the things that chemical engineers can do.”
Boyle holds a PhD from Purdue University and a Bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University. Her research group focuses on using genome engineering approaches to design photosynthetic organisms capable of producing fuels, feedstocks and fine chemicals in a sustainable way. Boyle was chosen to be a Fulbright Scholar in 2021 to perform research at the University of Amsterdam on plant/microbe interactions, and in 2018, Boyle received the U.S. Department of Energy’s Early Career Research Award.
About Mines
Colorado School of Mines is a public R1 research university focused on applied science and engineering, producing the talent, knowledge and innovations to serve industry and benefit society – all to create a more prosperous future.
