An endowed award fund has been created to honor the memory of internationally renowned chemist Dr. A. Ian Scott in the Department of Chemistry at Texas A&M University.

The A. Ian Scott Award in Chemistry Fund recently was established through the Texas A&M Foundation by Scott’s widow, Elizabeth W. Scott, in an original amount of $150,000. The award will be made annually to a chemist who has made significant contributions in the area of bio-organic chemistry related to natural products. Recipients will be selected by a committee of faculty or staff designated by the head of the Department of Chemistry.

In addition, proceeds from the award fund will be used to offset costs associated with the A. Ian Scott Endowed Lectureship, established in 1994 in Scott’s honor to generate funds for an annual lecture by a world-leading chemist or biochemist for the benefit of bio-organic chemistry students.

“The A. Ian Scott award established in honor of Distinguished Professor Scott will allow the Department of Chemistry to support visits by world-class scholars who will present cutting-edge research in their seminars to the university campus,” said Dr. David H. Russell, Applied Biosystems/MDS Sciex Professor of Mass Spectrometry in Chemistry and head of the Department of Chemistry.“I am sure that Ian would be proud to know that this award has been established in his name to carry on his legacy. The Department of Chemistry is indebted to his family.”

Scott was a pioneering chemist who came to Texas A&M in 1977 and achieved worldwide recognition during his 30-year career with the university for his discovery of how bacteria produce vitamin B12, as well as his study of the cancer drug taxol. Named a distinguished professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Texas A&M in 1981, Scott held the Robert A. Welch Chair in Chemistry and also was the D.H.R. Barton Professor of Chemistry. He contributed to numerous other works that helped revolutionize both organic and natural product chemistry before his death in 2007 at age 79.

Elizabeth Scott remembers her husband as a “wonderful man” and great scholar who truly loved being a part of Texas A&M. She believes this award will be an appropriate memorial to her husband’s legacy, both in chemistry and at Texas A&M.

“I wanted to honor his memory and his many contributions to organic chemistry,” she said. “The award will help other scientists in his field. He loved his work at Texas A&M, he was a great scientist and won many, many awards. He will be sorely missed.”

For more information on the A. Ian Scott Endowed Lectureship, contact the Department of Chemistry at (979) 845-2011 or visit www.chem.tamu.edu.