MEDIA, Pa. – Eshani Lee joined Penn State Brandywine as an associate professor of chemistry in August. She received her bachelor’s degree in social sciences from the University of California, Irvine, and she received her master’s degree in biochemistry and doctorate in chemistry education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Coming from Penn State Hazleton, Lee talked with Penn State Brandywine about looking forward to building student relationships and getting them engaged in undergraduate research.
Q: What courses are you teaching this semester?
Lee: I’m teaching Experimental Chemistry I (CHEM 111) and Chemical Principles II (CHEM 112).
Q: What made you interested in teaching at Penn State Brandywine?
Lee: Coming from Hazleton, I’ve heard so many awesome things about Brandywine. What really drew me in was the strong sense of community among the faculty and staff—it feels like a place where collaboration and connection are truly valued. I was also impressed by how vibrant the campus is, especially the way student services and academic program work hand-in-hand to support students. On top of that, the diversity of research happening here really excited me. I saw it as a great opportunity to grow professionally, build meaningful relationships, and contribute to a dynamic academic environment.
Q: What is your background and previous experience?
Lee: I started teaching at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. I was a graduate student and was a part of a fellowship that required me to teach. I started teaching in biology and chemistry labs. I really loved it. The students helped sharpen my knowledge; the questions they asked really made me stop and think. That experience made me want to have a career in teaching, so I got my doctorate in chemistry education. From there, I went on to teach at Penn State Hazleton.
Q: What are your research interests?
Lee: I’ve always been interested in language and how it operates in chemistry. Language is the pathway to understanding so many concepts, and it can also be a barrier. I didn’t grow up speaking English, and it was a barrier for me when I first started learning science. Once I overcame that challenge, I wanted to do research into how to make chemistry easier for students like me. From there, I started looking into how to make chemistry assignments more linguistically accessible. Instead of using a lot of chemistry jargon or run-on sentences, I try to simplify the language around the subject.
Q: What made you interested in pursuing a career in chemistry?
Lee: I was always fascinated by science. I would stage experiments by myself in my kitchen growing up. I was also very interested in how the world functioned and how I could manipulate different things in science.
Q: What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
Lee: I have two children (ages nine and two) and a great husband, so I have a full life. My children keep me on my toes at all times, running around. I take them to parks. We like hanging out and doing anything outdoors, like skating, soccer and swimming. All the little kid activities keep me busy and bring out the kid in me.
Q: Do you have anything else to add or anything you’d like people to know about you?
Lee: I would like people to know that I’m deeply committed to bringing inclusivity and equity to science in any way possible. Being a professor in chemistry was out of my wildest dreams; I never thought I would be able to get to this point. I’m sure there are a lot of students like me who are first-generation and have thought they could never pass chemistry or get a doctorate in chemistry; that was me when I was in school. It can be done if you have the right mentorship, and I want to provide that. I want to provide accessibility, mentorship and passion that can maybe drive one student forward.