About Prof. Speight

Prof. Isaiah Speight is a native of the Hampton Roads Area, born and raised in Portsmouth, VA. He earned his B.S. in chemistry in 2016 from Norfolk State University as a DNIMAS Scholar. During this time, he did undergraduate research in polymer and carbohydrate synthesis. Isaiah then moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he completed his Ph.D. as a Provost’s Graduate Fellow at Vanderbilt University with Prof. Timothy Hanusa. During his time as a Ph.D. student, Isaiah developed new mechanochemical methods for making inorganic and organometallic compounds. Following his doctoral work, Isaiah became a NIGMS Postdoctoral Fellow at University of California, Irvine. His research focused on the development of new technologies for amide reduction and bond formation. Prof. Speight did a short stint in industry at AbbVie in the New Chemistry and Continuous Improvement group where his work focused on green synthesis of pharmaceutical targets. 

Isaiah joined the W&M chemistry department in Fall of 2023 where his group focuses on mechanochemistry and sustainable chemistry. In addition to his bench work, Isaiah works very closely with the National Organization for Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE), serving on the Executive Board as their National Student Representative (2019-2021) and as their Western Regional Chair (2021-2023). He is also currently a WM SURE faculty fellow where his presence in the program helps support first-year students learn about research opportunities across W&M, how to effectively navigate the first year, and build a sense of community when starting college. In 2026, Prof. Speight was selected to be an English-Stonehouse Faculty fellow which further supports his teams efforts in student mentorship and growth.