Rachel Horness

Rachel grew up in Michigan, and attended Kalamazoo College where she earned a B.A. in Chemistry (2013). As an undergrad, Rachel spent a semester at Oak Ridge National Lab (Oak Ridge, TN) where she examined the effects of polyacrylonitrile carbon fiber precursor properties on the thermal and mechanical characteristics of their carbon fiber products. She then pursued graduate education at Indiana University under the advisement of Dr. Megan Thielges where her research focused on elucidation of the role of conformational heterogeneity in the interaction between a signal transduction protein domain (SH3 domain) and its peptide binding partner using site-specific labeling and infrared spectroscopy. In addition to her research, Rachel taught at IU as a Briscoe Fellow before earning her Ph.D. in 2018.

Following graduation, Rachel taught general chemistry at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (Terre Haute, IN) before returning to IU in 2019 with a focus on teaching biochemistry and general chemistry. Fall 2022 is her first semester teaching at Carleton. When she’s not working, Rachel enjoys getting outside, hiking, and baking.