ACA SIG Officer Candidate 2021: Dan Decato

Greetings from Big Sky Country! My name is Dr. Dan Decato, and I am currently the manager of both the Small Molecule X-ray Diffraction and NMR Facility the at the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana. As I’m sure many of you do, I wear a lot of hats managing these facilities; educator, collaborator, mentor, repairman etc... Simply put, I am a scientist that is dedicated to helping others. I find contributing to the successes of others to be exceptionally rewarding. As such, I am always seeking other avenues to enrich students experiences or their research efforts. For example, my current interests have been pulled towards MicroED and I expect to add this technique to my skillset soon. I am also currently working with UM Chemistry and Biochemistry faculty to further integrate our facilities into the undergraduate curriculum. As the current outgoing chair of YSIG, I believe I am a perfect candidate for the Service SIG chair-elect position as I will have solid lines of communication with YSIG over the next couple years ensuring that we can continue serve the next generation of structural scientists. I hope to receive your vote, and I hope to meet you all, in person, in Portland 2022!